Another Day Another Assist

When former Umpqua basketball player Micaela (Williams) Leinonen needed some help getting her mom's house ready to sell, it only took one Facebook post and one text message to gather some extra help. I saw the post on FB saying that Micaela and her husband Chris were coming to Roseburg and were gong to try and cram a week's worth of work into one weekend and so I sent out a mass text to the current members of our team. Even though it was the last minute Mykiea Russell, Sparkal Clark, Priscilla Walker, and Jameia McDuffy dropped what they were doing and went with Linda and I over to the house where we spent the day moving furniture and painting. It was great to work side by side and fun to listen to Micaela and Priscilla compare Umpqua basketball stories and experiences. Even though they played years apart, a stranger walking into the room would have thought they were teammates! Jameia thought that working together like that brought us all a little closer and suggested that we find a house to paint as a team bonding event next Fall. Working hard, working together, appreciating the past, and looking ahead to the future. . . .it was a good day!!

RIP Krisden Tanabe

Twenty years ago this week, while my dad and I were coaching at Golden West College in Huntington Beach, CA we experienced something that we will never forget and that we still talk about every October. In fact, we talked about it tonight.

After a typical practice, two of our players, Donna Gondringer and Krisden Tanabe, made a trip to the Huntington Beach mall to buy jackets and get their ears pierced before going back to Donna's house. Sitting in his car in front of the house waiting for them was Thomas White, a former boyfriend that Krisden had recently broken up with. Donna continued to walk into the house and left Krisden standing at the end of the driveway and Thomas standing in the street behind an open car door. Moments later there was an explosion and Donna sprinted out of the house and found Krisden down on her knees slumped over, the victim of a shotgun blast. Thomas White then turned the shot gun around and killed himself.

I remember calling players on our team and explaining to them what happened and all of us wondering what we should do next. We all tried to think about the last things we said to her since we would never have a chance to say anything else.

When we finally all got together, Donna and Stacee Johnson both made passionate pleas for everyone to dedicate the season to Krisden and told us that Krisden would not want us just to persevere but would want us to go out and kick ass. And from that day forward we did just that!

We went 37-1 that year and won every tournament we played in, including the California State Championship in March. In the state semi final game Bits Sirchia hit a 50 footer right before halftime that changed the entire game. When the ball left her hand it looked like it was going to be way left of the basket but suddenly made an unexplainable turn and then hit nothing but net. In the locker room Bits said out loud what we were all thinking, "Krisden helped out on that one!"

When we returned home, the first stop was at the cemetery, where the girls gave Krisden her championship medal, shirt, and flowers. They were placed right next to the shirts, trophies, and medals that we had won in previous tournaments. It was a stunning visual reminder of a dominating season and we would have gladly traded it all to spend just one more day with our friend and teammate.

Love your family, your friends and your teammates because you just never know what's going to happen.

Susan Creek Falls

Yesterday we told the girls to meet at school and to bring workout clothes and a camera if they had one because we were going to run, lift weights and then go on a "field trip."

When they were finished in the weight room everyone piled into two cars and Linda and I drove out along Diamond Lake Blvd. and then followed the North Umpqua River for about 30 miles until we came to Susan Creek Falls. From there we lead them on a hike through the forrest and while walking we talked about bugs, poison oak, and how the air in the woods smells a whole lot different than the air in Los Angeles.

Eventually we turned a corner and walked down a ledge and then the girls suddenly found themselves standing in front of a large, beautiful waterfall. Almost immediately everyone's "inner child" came out and the girls started walking along logs, climbing rocks, wading in the water, looking at crawfish and taking pictures. Almost all had never seen or done anything like that before and Linda and I couldn't help but laugh at all their different reactions.

Run, lift, hike, waterfall, laughing and teammates all added up to a great, great day!

Former Player Future TV Star

Former UCC star Sarona (Snuka) Polomalu, pictured at the left with Taylor, was in town for a couple days and came by the house to see us yesterday morning. Sarona played as hard as any player we've ever had and her intensity and enthusiasm impacted every single practice and every single game. Fortunately for us, she never learned the meaning of half speed. It's been ten years since she played but I remember Sarona diving into the stands, to chase a loose ball, with such force that she broke a fan's finger. I remember her being the MVP of the LA Valley Tournament in Los Angeles even though she scored relatively little. I also remember her bringing dinner to the office when she knew Linda and I would be there late. (Her teriyaki chicken is the still the best I've ever tasted!) Regardless of the circumstances, Sarona was always there for her coaches and teammates and never complained or expected anything in return. I still know that if Linda and I ever needed her, she would be here in a second.

Sarona, whose father is profesional wrestling champion Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka and whose cousin is Duane "The Rock" Johnson, is now living in Florida with her two young daughters and getting ready to embark on a professional wrestling career of her own. I had to laugh when Sarona told us that after hurting too many women, she now has to train against men!

As we sat and talked, Sarona told us how grateful she is for her Umpqua experience and how the focus, work ethic, and mental toughness that she developed here changed her life. She must have still been thinking about us because early this morning at 1:57am Sarona sent me a text. "Coach, I'm at the airport waiting for my flight but just wanted to thank you again for everything you've taught me."

You're welcome Sarona! I can't wait to see you on TV!!

Team Spirit

I was sitting here in the office catching up on some things while waiting for our game with Southwestern Oregon when I noticed a book on one of my shelves called “Wooden on Leadership,” by John Wooden. I picked up the book and it opened to a section called “Team Spirit.” Here are a few ideas from that section: “Team spirit is an eagerness to sacrifice personal interests or glory for the welfare of all.” (Notice it says eagerness not just willingness!) “Each individual revels in the glory of the group rather than the glory of the individual.” “There is only one star that counts: the team.”

I couldn’t help but think that this is a trying time of year for a lot of teams. Every game is huge. Playing rotations are usually shortened. Roles change as the needs of the team changes. Some players have continued to improve while some have stayed stagnant. There are even some players who actually look like they have gotten worse, when in reality they just haven’t progressed and improved as much as other teammates and opponents.

The players who have continued to improve over the course of the season and who have become more and more productive want to play more and usually deserve to play more. But for them to play more, someone else has to play less. How teams handle this situation is often times the difference between being champs or chumps. A lot of teams have at least one player who would rather play more than win, but those are usually not championship caliber teams. Championship caliber teams have competitive players who want to play as much as they can but if it comes down to playing more or winning more, they choose winning. And they do so without whining, complaining or making excuses.

So far, our team has been extremely unselfish and supportive of one another and I fully expect it to stay that way. And if it does, we have a chance to accomplish some great things over the next several weeks.