Coaching is easily one of the most important parts of team sports. Having a good coach vs. a bad coach is a massive difference in how the team performs. But what makes a good coach good and a bad coach bad?

The Role of Coaches

Coaching can be one of the most serious aids or problems when it comes to performing in sports. Coaches have a lot on their shoulders of what to do and if it isn’t done well, the coaches almost always get blamed.

Coaching, though in general’s definition, is to control the team and to make sure the team achieves its goals and uses all of its potential. That’s why coaching is such a hard job though is because they have to do all of this without playing in the game.

Looking at professional basketball players, if a team starts losing a ton of games in a row, most people will usually look to the coach on why they’re losing. Some will also look to the players for what the problem is but it’s mostly coaching.

Coaches are really the whole controller for the team and the glue for the pieces of the team. Although players are more important in a sense because they are playing, the coach has a massive role on how the performance of the team is.

I asked people from Timnath High School about this topic and they said similar things. I interviewed two freshmen, and one said “Yeah, coaches are like really make or break if the team is like good or not.” I asked the other freshman what he thought and he said, “Well, there’s a reason why coaches have so much responsibility and that’s because like the whole team relies on the coach.” It is just a naturally accepted thing that everybody that plays team sports views the coach to be one of the biggest responsibilities if not the most important.

When Coaches Can’t Coach

However, coaches can also seriously affect the performance of the team in the wrong way because if they play certain players with not enough time or have favorite players even if they aren’t better because of a biased view, this can unfortunately stop the team from its potential success.

An example in the NBA of a bad coach is Monty Williams because his current Detroit Pistons team has a record of 13-61. His team is full of young players and they have lots of potential, but because of his coaching style and his scheme not matching the team, they are struggling badly. This just shows the importance of coaching.

What Makes the Best Coaches

The best coaches however in the NBA have a very different scheme and style than those of Monty WIlliams and that’s how they are so successful. An example is Joe Mazzula of the Boston Celtics and how they have a 58-16 record in contrast. Joe Mazzula lets his best players play their game instead of forcing them into a scheme that is not their style of play. This is all coaches have to do is just let players play the game and adjust the team around the styles of players.