The Kee to Coaching: Preseason is Coming to a Close
Good Evening! Things have been super productive here, and I am incredibly thankful for this period of self-growth. I can feel myself improving as a coach and leader each day, and it has been even more exciting to see how much our team has grown. We are less than a week away from our first practice, and I am thrilled to get to work with my guys on the court. They have been doing things at a high level and will be coming into the season strong and in excellent shape. Our staff has been on the road, spreading the mission of the Apprentice School. We are involved with a number of talented recruits, and have been extending our reach to various parts of the east coast.
Three takeaways that I've gotten from my first two months as a head coach:
1. Importance of Surrounding Yourself with Good People
- My first priority as a head coach was to hire a great staff. My three assistant coaches have all been reliable, loyal, and very hard working. They have made my job so much easier, and they are great mentors for our players. My lead assistant/recruiting coordinator is a guy named Tim Sparks. Coach Sparks has a high-level of experience and is one of the most aggressive recruiters I've ever been around. He has had tons of coaching success and has worked as an assistant coach at Louisburg Junior College, Virginia Wesleyan and Castelton State. He also has head coaching experience at the high school level. I wanted to have an assistant on my staff that played at a high-level. Dimitri Batten filled that void for us. He was the Peninsula District Player of the Year in 2010 and had a great collegiate playing career at Old Dominion University & Boston College. If you want to see a guy who could flat out shoot the ball, check out his highlights! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axnEulXFNIk&t=232s . Rounding out my assistant coaching staff is MJ Gainey. Mj is a senior at The Apprentice School and was a very good player here. Due to some injuries, he has decided to get into coaching, and he has done a tremendous job so far.
2. Importance of Relationships/Showing That You Care
- Another area of importance was to build relationships with each player, and as many of my co-workers as possibe. As a team, we have done an amazing job representing our program in a positive way. Our coaching staff has been out on the recruiting trail, promoting our school and the unique opportunity we have. Our players have done a tremendous work on the yard and in the classroom. I've stolen a slogan from Hampton University, and am constantly preaching to our team to be "The Standard of Excellence". We want to do things better than they have ever been done in the past, and guys seem to be buying into that message. We have some wonderful community service projects planned for the season, and we will continue finding ways to be model citizens on the shipyard and in the community.
3. Patience & Positivity
- At 26 years old, I have been given the opportunity to be a head coach! This opportunity has come somewhat earlier than I expected, but i'm eternally grateful for the trust and level of confidence that the administration had in me to get the job done. I have so much to be thankful for. I try my best to be positive and look on the bright side. We are building a strong program here, and I'm fortunate to be surround by great people who want to be coached and be successful. We will continue to embrace the process and do things the right way. Things might not always go our way, but we will work our butts off, and will find a way to "Win Each Day"!
