CHAMPIONSHIPS

This past weekend we opened up at Boise State, my Alma Mater, where they had an Alumni Reunion and recognized our 1993-94 Big Sky Champion Team who was also nationally ranked. What an amazing season that was, and what an fantastic experience to be a part of. Although our Bobcats didn't win that night, it was a nice distraction to have dinner after the game with my former teammates. We reminisced, told many stories about that season and the seasons that led up to it. When you reflect on an experience after having lived it you gain a much broader appreciation. Here is what I know to be true after my career at Boise State. A Championship Program is built when people work harder than they think is possible and they selfessly buy into their role, value their role, and no one cares who gets the credit. Our program was built on a team concept with one goal, and that was to win & lose as a team. Our 1993-94 squad was built over many seasons, many players, and that particular season all the pieces and all the hard work came together. One of my teammates, Shelly "Wright", was a senior when I was a freshman. My freshman year was SO HARD because she made it nearly impossible for me to just get an entry in practice because of her hectic pressure. As a result the only thing I remembered of my first collegiate game was how easy it was to get the team into our offense. She had challenged me relentlesly every day and I never had a game experience more difficult than a practice. Jokingly my other teammate, Heather Sower, told the story of how our junior point guard, Lyndsie "Rico" went out mid season after breaking her wrist. She said she was pretty much thinking we "were doomed" because they were stuck with this freshman, "Who is this Trish character running the team." What if Shelly & Lyndsie hadn't prepared me? We talked about our favorite coach of all time, June Daughtery who led this special team and how she used to make us run 12 200's or 8 400's or ride mountain bikes off cliffs. Yet when it came time to tip off, I can't think of one team that ever ran us off a court or any kind of adversity that could throw us off of our vision because we had completely come together through that mental and physical challenge and could compete with anyone. Do you think playing in Missoula is harder than running 12 200's? What a team. What a season. Don't take one day for granted. Appreciate it, believe in yourself, each other, and be willing to do more than what you think is possible. Coach Bin

Home Visits

The past few weeks I have had an opportunity to get on the road and do some home visits with the junior class, yes class of 2016. I'm not so good with directions and finding houses in the dark, so Siri & I have become very close. When I push the button, she now asks, "Where can I help you get to, Trish?" Here are a few tips that I found extremely helpful. 1) Find a good restaurant on the road. I say choose Popeyes. When you forget your wallet there, you can be confident they will put it in their safe for you. 2) Exercise, but don't go running outside when it's 90+ degrees out and you are from Montana. You may start having hip pain later on. 3) Clarify the correct address before you head to the home or you might be across the street knocking on the neighbor's door. 4) Make sure your rental car doesn't have an spedometer displayed in Kilometers, or you might have a heart attack when you glance down and it says you are going 100. 5) If you get a car in Kilometers, DON'T panic. Just ask Siri to make sure you are under the speed limit. 6) Wear high heels so you can try to be taller than, well, ANYONE. 7) Bring a snack for the puppies. Actually, that's probably an NCAA violation, so don't do that. 8) Remember everyone isn't a Denver Broncos fan like you are. 9) Last but not least, be yourself. When you stumble over your own words, have a good chuckle about it. If they start to finish your sentences for you, that means you've made a great connection! Good luck and Go Cats!

Becky Hammon

Congrats to Becky for a great coaching opportunity to work with one of the greatest coaches of all time. This was quite a big story the first few days, and whether or not this was a breakthrough for women. I suppose I have looked at it through a transparent lense, probably similar to Coach Popovich, in that it was a great & qualified hire, and someone that matched the philosophy of the organization. Here is why. 1-Becky has had an incredible playing career and has consistently proven herself against any odds or any critics. 2-Becky has an impressive knowledge of the game and has carried a coaching mentality to her on court successes. 3-Becky is a worker! You can't play at the highest level for as long as she has, overcome the injuries, setbacks and do what she has without that kind of passion, commitment, and work ethic. That may be one of the most important reasons Coach Pop hired her. This hire makes sense and is good for everyone involved. What is remarkable about Coach Popovich is that he finds, mentors, and develops winners. He seeks people who don't take anything for granted but work for everything and every opportunity presented to them and that's exactly who Becky is. So, to answer the question about what I think about the hire and breakthrough for women... If you are qualified and have a workers mentality then there is no reason you should't have just as good of an opportunity as the next person. Coach Bin

The Down Falls of Living In Montana

I feel absolutely blessed to be able to live in Bozeman, MT, but there are a few down falls that we do have to live with. 1) We get disappointed when we "ONLY" see a deer. Our family went to Big Sky this past weekend to celebrate our parents 50th Wedding Anniversary and my kids shrugged their shoulders when we saw deer 20 yards from us. They had already seen deer. They were hoping to see a bear or a moose. 2) We get frustrated with traffic when it takes us 12 minutes to get home from work instead of eight. To clarify, I have mastered the back roads so I can still get home within 10 minutes even if there are 20 other cars on the road. Yet, when you don't "really" have traffic you do grow to be pretty darn impatient if you don't get through the first stop light within 30 seconds. 3) We really can't decide which view is the best because when you have a different mountain range every which way you look you tend to get spoiled. 4) You have to hike or you waste your backyard. For all of those who have jumped on board for Chillin4Charity, the Bobcats are going to show you one of our favorite hikes this weekend up to Grotto Falls and do our chillin our Montana way. Go Cats! Coach Bin

Leadership Development

When you look at any successful organization, program, team, it begins with the consistent message, vision, and motivation of all to drive, work, and push every day until your team reaches that common goal. One of the most important components of achieving your mission on a daily basis is through your leadership, begining from the top and trickling down throughout the entire squad. In other words I would describe it as "peer pressure" to think, act, and respond in the way of a champion. As coaches, strengthening our own leadership ability as well as those who have the most influence among their peers may be our most vital 6th man ingredient in overcoming the adversity of daily challenges and disruptions. However you go about identifying those individuals, commit to this area. Go Cats! Coach Bin

BUILD YOUR CULTURE

It's been a fantastic week hanging out in San Antonio with the San Antonio Stars and Head Coach, Dan Hughes, the two time WNBA Coach of the year. Dan coached me in Cleveland when the Rockers won the Eastern Conference Championship and continues to mold champions every single day here in Texas. It's important for all coaches to continue to learn, tweak, invest, and grow their programs in every way, and the off season is a terrific time to do this. I am so blessed to have mentors who are so open. June Daughtery, the Head Coach at WSU, is another great mentor of mine who ironically I've been on the phone with for the last half hour. What impressed me so much with the Stars program was the transparancy from the coaches, support staff, throughout the players themselves. They were all so friendly, engaging, complimentary of one another, while being able to nearly kill each other on the court. What a skill that is to be a team first, pursue the highest bar, while not allowing anyone else around you to lower it. Dan has built an exceptional program where its culture is sustained by the people involved. I am so thankful that we have these same quality people here at Montana State. I've come away with simple pieces that can help us improve our efficiency as a program. I think Dan is a master at teaching the game from so many angles to cover all learners & we will carry these into our program. He is so gifted in putting each athlete in their strengths & communicating what's desired out of their performance. A big thank you to the San Antonio Stars, Head Coach Dan Hughes, his fantastic assistant coaches, trainer, strength coach, and players. I am rooting for you tomorrow against the Mercury, and as a former teammate will also being cheering for Penny Taylor. So good luck Penny, but Go Stars! Coach Bin

INFLUENCE

The off season is one of our most valuable opportunities to grow individually. What an opportunity to look around and grab ahold of all the factors that can be a great influence on our personal development. Take advantage of your location. Growing up in Colorado was one of the best things that could have happened to me as a kid since Carbondale was over 6,000 feet in elevation. My game was based on speed and endurance and I think that impacted my sustainability in my playing career. Look at Katie Bussey, former Bobcat, who plays like the Energizer Bunny but grew up in Alamosa, Colorado which is even higher at over 7500 feet. Coaches watch prospects for what they CAN do. Just think if you could make your best move, crash the glass, sprint the floo, defend at your highest intestity EVERY possession. Wow, that would be fun! Take advantage of your support, find someone better to compete against. Being the youngest of three I would say I took advantage of playing against my brother ALL the time. Some of the greatest improvements are based upon the toughest competition. I ran the 400 in high school and my fastest split is when I ran it in a relay because I had to "catch" the opponent in front of me. Jasmine Hommes had a break out year for the CATS and she also competed against Rachel Semansky the last two years. Take advantage of your resources. One of my favorite sports movies is "Rocky" especially when the theme song "Eye of the Tiger" comes on and you know Rocky is now going to get to work. I think it's Rocky IV when he goes to Russia and doesn't have a gym to train in so he uses everything in the barn out to the foothills and snow. If you are an opportunist, a competitor, you will find what's around you and make it work for you to get better. This past spring we took our team to the climbing wall to strengthen our bodies in a totally different way. Sometimes changing it up can be a great motivator. Take some time this week and make a list of people you know that can provide great wisdom as well as the resources you have at your fingertips that you can utilize to get better. Today is an opportunity and one we all should take advantage of to move forward. Coach Bin