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special to collegeinsider.com |
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EVERYBODY'S MENTOR
by Bruiser Flint, Drexel
I have been following CollegeInsider.com for well
over a decade now and one of the things I thoroughly
enjoyed is the many columns, authored by coaches.
For the most part my contributions have been more on
the lighter side of the court, but with the recent
announcement of the creation of the Lute Olson
National Player of the Year Award, I thought I would
write about a coach who has always taken time to
write about others.
Lute has written about legendary coaches like Al
McGuire and Ralph Miller. He expressed the
sentiments of all of us with his column, nearly a
decade ago, on the aftermath of September 11th. Lute
has always done a nice job of capturing the moment.
Every feature he has ever written for
CollegeInsider.com has been just like the man
himself -- first class!
Like so many in this business, I have always admired
him from afar. His teams were always fun to watch.
They played at a fast pace, but they played with so
much discipline.
I don't think fans can appreciate just how difficult
that is to do.
In today's game, players are so conscience of their
own game and often express their thoughts to the
coach -- "coach you're messing with my game."
That is an all-too-familiar phrase to coaches.
Coach Olson always found a perfect balance, bringing
out the talents of the individual for the better of
the team. From the first day he arrived in Tucson he
had terrific guards and he was always able to get
them to play in his system, while not taking away
from their abilities. Back when he was at Iowa, it
was the same situation but it was talented big men
that he was able to cultivate into his system.
Trust me, that’s not an easy thing to do.
What Coach Olson did on the floor speaks for itself,
but it's away from game where he really shines.
Everyone has heard the expression, "in life, not
everyone is going to like you." Well, I don't think
that applies to Lute. He personifies class and
dignity. The guy is about as good as it gets as a
human being.
From time to time I will hear one of my piers make a
derogatory remark about another coach. That's just
the way it is. But I have never heard anyone say
anything but the best about Coach Olson. Should you
ever hear someone say something less than pleasant
about Lute, consider the source and give strong
consideration to telling them to shut the hell up!
Better yet, you may want to opt for a different term
than "hell." There lies another one of Lute's great
traits.
In today's game, the use of four-letter descriptives
is unfortunately all too common place. When Lute was
coaching you could take your children to an Arizona
game or practice session without a concern for
inappropriate language.
The man was always so cool, calm and collected on
the sidelines. That blue blazer never had crease and
not a single blade of hair ever moves. I always kid
Coach John Calipari that his hair always looks so
neat because of all that junk he pours on his scalp,
but Lute keeps his smooth look with his great
demeanor.
Coach Olson was inducted into the Basketball Hall of
Fame because of his numerous basketball
accomplishments, but had he never won a single game
he would have deserved enshrinement.
Like every guy in this business I have a basketball
mentor. Coach Cal is my mentor, but so is Coach
Olson.
Lute Olson is everybody's mentor. |
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