Critical Analysis of a Coach Paper Example

Introduction

Robert Montgomery Knight, popularly known as Bob Knight is the chosen sports personality for this task. Knight is a retired American basketball coach, whose coaching heroics are highlighted in the history of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). While still a student, Knight played basketball and football, which played a significant role in shaping his coaching styles and philosophy. This project will focus on knight's biographical information and critical analysis of his coaching philosophy, coaching style, and principles of coaching which enabled Bob Knight to be among the most successful NCAA coaches.

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Bob Knight's Biography

Bob Knight was born in Massillon, Ohio on October 25, 1940. He spent a significant part of his childhood at Orrville. Knight began his career as a player in football and basket at Orrville High school. He continued working and being inspired by Fred Taylor, who was a Hall of Fame coach, until 1958 (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2018). Knight was also a reserve player for the national championship basketball team which represented Ohio State University in 1960. This competition featured Hall of Fame players such as John Havlicek and Jerry Lucas, which highlighted Knight's illustrious career as the player. Knight graduated in 1962, where he pursued a degree in history and government.

Knight's coaching career started after his graduation. He was hired as a coach for Cuyahoga Falls High School's junior varsity basketball for a year. Knight was made an assistant coach in U.S. Army team, where he worked for two years before becoming a head coach at the young age of 24. In the entire six seasons at West Point, Knight successfully won 102 games, which elevated his status as reputable NCAA coach (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2018). In 1971, Knight was recruited by Indiana University, helping Indiana reach semifinals in 1973, but lost to UCLA. Knight's success with Hoosiers (Indiana's basketball team) was demonstrated by the winning of championships in 1976 and 1981 (Indiana University, 2018). Knight also helped Indiana emerge victorious in 1979 NIT championship.

Bob Knight had a colorful coaching career when it comes to the number of trophies and individuals accolades he has achieved. He coached great players such as Michael Jordan and hall of Fame player; Isiah Thomas (Indiana University, 2018). In 1984, Knight successfully led U.S. national basketball team to a gold medal victory in Olympic Games. Furthermore, Knight won at least 11 Big Ten Conference trophies, and he is among the few coaches who emerged victorious in NCAA, the NIT, and the Olympic Gold and the Pan-Am Gold competitions (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2018). At some point during his tenure at Indiana University, Knight made the Hoosiers be "basketball invincible" by remaining unbeaten in Big Ten Conference play between 1974 and 1976.

Regardless of his glittering career, Knight was beleaguered by temperamental behaviors which tainted his reputation. In 1985, he caused public outrage when he threw the chair across the basketball court during a game. During his tenure at the helm of Hoosiers' coaching role, Knight was repeatedly fined for his gross misconduct which included outbursts toward match officials and NCAA representatives (Indiana University, 2018). Verbal and physical abuse accusations against Knight escalated when it was alleged that he choked his player in practice sessions in 1997. In 2000, he had was embroiled in a heated altercation with an Indiana student, leading to his dismissal.

Immediately after he was fired by Indiana University, Texas Tech University hired Bob Knight to be the head coach for the next season. Knight had a quick impact at Texas Tech, depicted through the improvement of the team (Red Raiders) had not featured at NCAA tournament for over five years. During his four years at Texas Tech, Knight ensured that Red Raiders appeared in three NCAA championship and NIT (Indiana University, 2018). During his stint at Texas Tech, Knight helped Red Raiders win a total of 126 games, which translated into an average of 21 games per season.

On January 1, 2007, Knight won his 880th career game, ultimately ousting Dean Smith as the recorder holder of all-time NCAA Division I coaching victories in men's basketball (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2018). In 2008, Bob Knight left his coaching role at Texas, where he subsequently retired, and he was replaced by his son; Pat Knight. Regardless of his controversial reputation, Bob Knight will be remembered for his excellent coaching philosophy which emphasized acceptable teaching abilities and high graduation rates for the teams he coached.

Bob Knight's Coaching Philosophy, Styles and Principles

Coaching philosophy includes one's purpose of coaching, coaching values and adopted leadership style whereas coaching style encompasses overall direction undertaken in every training session. Knight's coaching philosophy is outlined in his book, "The Power of Negative Thinking." Knight does not attribute his glittering coaching career in the history of NCAA Division I basketball to positive thinking, but instead, he points out that his successes should be attributed to the power of thinking negative (Friedman, 2018). Knight's coaching philosophy was based on identifying and analyzing possible worst case scenarios in a game. Before every match, Knight routinely focused on the evaluation of the vulnerabilities of his team to determine what could go wrong.

According to Knight, "...Victory favors the team making the fewest mistakes..." (Knight, 2013, p.3). Knight emphasized to his players that majority of basketball games are always lost, thus reminding them of the importance of avoiding mistakes at all cost. From his book, "The Power of Negative Thinking," knight reveals that during the training sessions, it was compulsory for his players to wear attires with the writings "Have it your way...This Ain't Burger King. We'll do my way" (p.3). Through this thinking, he created a created a perfection mentality amongst the teams he coached, where mistakes were never tolerated. Knight acknowledged that human beings could not play the game perfectly. However, he pointed out that coaches needed to understand that elimination of the mistakes will lead to the development of a winning team as opposed to nurturing of strong offense or defense teams.

Knight's coaching style focused on the eradication of individual mistakes or "lazy instances of irresponsible carelessness that cause teams to fail" (p.4). Knight identified poor ball handling, slow recovery from offense to defense, bad fouls, Go-it-alone and uncoordinated defense as critical individual errors that can hamper the winning of a team. The training sessions overseen by Knight prioritize improving players' focus and intelligence since a coach is supposed to help players realize their maximum potential.

Knight treated practicing grounds like classrooms, to ensure players learn how to be fully attentive and concentrate. This coaching style aimed at eliminating simple mistakes that can be costly to the team. Knight believed that a bad foul originates from poor concentration from a player bestowed with defensive duties. The primary objectives of his practicing sessions were to teach the team about the footwork, effective defensive stance, alertness and anticipation (Knight, 2013, p.5). Knight also forbade shortcuts when defending or attacking thus demanding that the players stick to the outlined rules and procedures. According to him, shortcut around the established rules "...can give an opponent two free points and add to the team team-foul count" (p.5). This indicates that Knight's coaching style prioritized training sessions that enabled players to be accountable for their actions in the field since any personal failure can trivialize the effort of a whole team.

Coach Bob Knight paid close attention to the fine details of the game, an aspect of his coaching attribute which I adore. His vital coaching style included watching game film with his team to identify the vulnerabilities of his players or the opponents. Knight noted that whereas other tacticians used such as sessions to point out good plays, he specifically pinpointed mistakes or a series and collection of series to eliminate them (Knight, 2013, p.6). Knight's coaching style which focused on polishing their strengths and preventing losing enabled his team to win a lot of games and championships over the years. Throughout his coaching career, Knight's spend hours analyzing what the opponent can do to defeat his team and the strengths of other teams.

Being present and focus is another coaching principle that defined the Knight's approaches, which I admired the most. He did not allow the past victories or disappointments to way outweigh the present and future endeavors of his team. Knight discouraged the tendencies of celebrating big wins or congratulating the staff and players after victories. Through his negative thinking philosophy, Knight encouraged his players to forget the victory and focus on the next game (Bobby Knight, 2013). For example, Knight often substituted close to five starters when they are in a comfortable lead. While on the bench, Knight would be talking to those players regarding the next game. He did not want his players to gloat about "...how well we played in a game that is almost over" (p.13). This coaching style was vital in ensuring the players remain focused on next game, thus avoiding the complacency that can be detrimental.

Lessons Learnt From Bob Knight

Bob Knight was an iconic figure in the NCAA coaching history. Eradication of mistakes in a game is one aspect I have learned from Knight. Knight always insisted that "...Victory favors the team making the fewest mistakes" (Knight, 2013, p.3). His training sessions and coaching styles focused on ways of minimizing errors. Through this approach, I have learned the importance of developing a team which upholds high levels of focus and concentration during the game to avoid instances of errors which can be costly to the whole team.

I have also learned the significance of negative thinking approach. Throughout his coaching career, Knight analyzed the game or results from a worst-case scenario perspective. He often tried to identify what can go wrong during the match, ultimately costing him a victory. As a coach, I will always focus on eliminating bad habits in basketball games which include poor ball handling, slow recovery from offense to defense, go-it-alone and uncoordinated defense, since they are individual mistakes that cause the entire team to fail (Bobby Knight, 2013). This will involve the use of playing grounds as a classroom where players will be taught to avoid poor concentration. According to Knight, it is imperative to show the players how to prevent losing before inspiring his team on how to win.

Following instructions is another crucial lesson learned from Bob Knight. He made it known to his players that whoever fails to follow the laid instructions, they would not be selected. The essential aspect of coaching is implementing effective practice sessions governed by a particular set of rules and regulations. Knight's primary goal was to do practice to be relatively difficult, both physically and mentally, which enhanced the endurance of his players (Friedman, 2018). Knight often reminded his players that his practices were not meant to be enjoyed but to improve them. I can assert that coaching styles which are characterized by adequate instructions are vital in enhancing the players to perform at higher levels. The approach also nurtures a disciplined squad.

Coaching Objective

My coaching philosophy is coined around the act of winning, the art of winning and knowing how to win a match against all the odds. I have structured my coaching ob...