Nearly two minutes to play. Michigan State down three. Crisler Arena howling. Michigan students swaying. Winning time looming. Break for media timeout.
Michigan State coach Tom Izzo entered his team’s huddle Tuesday night and blinked at the most astounding sight:
Kalin Lucas, the team’s sometimes silent point guard, barking instructions to teammates. Telling them they’d better not surrender an inch on defense. Telling them every rebound better be a Green rebound. Telling them Michigan was not winning this game.
For a second, Izzo simply enjoyed the view. Then he spoke. “Is it all right if I talk, Kalin?” Izzo asked.
Player and coach exchanged a nod. Next thing you knew Crisler Arena was as quiet as an art exhibit, and Michigan State (18-3) was looking like a team you’d better return to the list of contenders completely capable of finishing the season at Lucas Oil Stadium in early April.
A basket by Raymar Morgan. Then a game-wining jumper by Lucas with 3.5 seconds to play. Michigan State 57, Michigan 56. The Wolverines tasted that same splash of heartburn that Minnesota tasted last weekend when Lucas hit a game-winner to beat the Gophers, too.
Suddenly the Spartans are 8-0 in the Big Ten, at least two games ahead of everybody in the loss column. Magic Johnson and Mateen Cleaves delivered national titles to East Lansing, but they didn’t start 8-0 in the league. It’s a first for the Spartans as they await a Saturday visit by Northwestern and then trips to Wisconsin and Illinois next week.
Izzo delivered hugs in the locker room. One of the first went to Lucas.
“Maybe now you understand why I was on you the way I was, because I know what you’re capable of doing,” Izzo said.
Maybe now everybody understands -- without hyperventilating. It was Dec. 29 when Izzo told Lucas he didn’t want him at practice that day. You would have thought the coach had announced that Magic Johnson’s jersey was being pulled down at the Breslin Center. The news led one segment on the Big Ten Network and dominated the crawl on another network. The message boards warped into meltdown mode.
Izzo has directed five of the last 11 Michigan State teams to the Final Four. He understands the rhythms of how habits formed in December shape what happens in March. A player as gifted and as gritty as Kalin Lucas needed to lead more forcefully than Lucas was leading. MSU had lost three of its first dozen games. This was no freshman. Lucas is a junior who had directed the Spartans into Detroit, his hometown, for the 2009 national championship game.
“We need Kalin to score, pass, defend, rebound, lead, sell popcorn and coach the team,” Izzo said. “He understood some of that, but I don’t think he understood all of it. I wasn’t looking for him to lead in a rah-rah style. I was looking for him to embrace his teammates more.”
In Lucas, Morgan, Draymond Green, Durrell Summers, Chris Allen and Delvon Roe, Michigan State has a formidable core. But the Spartans aren’t blessed with as many potential high NBA draft picks as Kentucky, Kansas, Syracuse or Texas. The Spartans don’t have a DeMarcus Cousins, Damion James, Cole Aldrich or Wesley Johnson glaring from the post. They need a collective buzz – stirred by Kalin Lucas.
It wasn’t just that Michigan State had been beaten by Florida, North Carolina and Texas. It was that State averaged more than 18 turnovers in those defeats – and Izzo could not tolerate that.
Here’s another set of numbers you don’t associate with a Tom Izzo team: The Spartans had been outscored by a combined 11 points in the final two minutes or so of those losses.
Izzo wanted more. He had to have more if the Spartans intended to survive against Purdue, Wisconsin, Ohio State and the others itching to displace MSU atop the Big Ten.
“I told him not to come to practice,” Izzo said. “I told him he could go in the other gym and shoot, or he could watch extra video or he could go sit in my office and think about what he was ready to do to make us a better team.”
Did it work? Roll video from the final two minutes of the Minnesota and Michigan wins, when State outscored those teams by five points. Are the Spartans better? They have not lost another game. Feel free to connect the dots.
1.29.2010
1.26.2010
LEADERSHIP LACKING AT MICHIGAN
When evaluating Michigan in the preseason, the consensus was to project on the production returning and assume the Wolverines would be just as good if not even better than the team that advanced to the second round of last year's NCAA tournament.
Manny Harris was returning, and so too were DeShawn Sims, Zack Novak and Stu Douglass. Plus the Wolverines would get a full year from Laval Lucas-Perry.
But what didn't come back -- what is clearly missing from this Michigan team -- is leadership from two players who were hardly perceived as necessities.
Gone from last year's team are seniors C.J. Lee and David Merritt, who played in all 35 games but were ninth and 12th respectively on the scoring list.
"They were born leaders," Michigan coach John Beilein said. "It was obvious to us. C.J. is already going into politics and David already has started his own company."
Manny Harris led Michigan to a NCAA win last year, but hasn't been able to make the Wolverines a contender this season.
As the Wolverines slumber through a disappointing 10-9 season (3-4 in the Big Ten), what is missing from this group is the locker room and practice leadership that clearly wasn't in place when Harris went awry last week. The junior guard was suspended for a behavioral issue in practice last week in advance of a game at Purdue. The Wolverines' leading scorer didn't play against the Boilermakers because of the action.
Beilein said Lee and Merritt were the type of players that were leaders in the locker room and during practice. They were the coach on the floor that a head coach desperately needs.
"Basketball is a flow sport where play continues," Beilein said. "It's not like football where you can have the quarterback huddle everyone up after a dropped pass."
Beilein said that Lee and Merritt didn't let last season's team drift. And this exact type of situation -- not knowing where the leadership might come from -- has occurred elsewhere this season. Like at Boston College, for example.
The Eagles didn't fret much about losing Tyrese Rice because he had a bit of an enigmatic personality and tended to drift. But what Rice could do, and had the respect to do it among his teammates, was get the Eagles refocused at times if the situation called for it. Biko Paris, who took over for Rice, doesn't have the demonstrative personality and neither does Reggie Jackson or Rakim Sanders. Senior Tyler Roche doesn't have that personality trait and neither does Joe Trapani. Yet, a lack of leadership in key moments has led to BC floundering in home games it should have won like against Rhode Island, Harvard and Maine.
But the Eagles (11-9, 2-4 ACC) were picked ninth in the ACC and even though they should have a much better record, there wasn't as high an expectation for them as there was for the Wolverines. Michigan, which lost to BC at home in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge in December, was ranked No. 15 in the preseason.
They didn't show leadership in late-game situations against Alabama in Orlando in the Old Spice Classic or at Indiana or against Northwestern at home.
Look, blaming the problems on the loss of Lee and Merritt may sound like an excuse, but no one has apparently filled the void. They need someone to act as an extension of Beilein, someone like Lee and Merritt who can be more assertive. If it doesn't happen soon, the Wolverines will be playing their final game this season in the NIT.
Manny Harris was returning, and so too were DeShawn Sims, Zack Novak and Stu Douglass. Plus the Wolverines would get a full year from Laval Lucas-Perry.
But what didn't come back -- what is clearly missing from this Michigan team -- is leadership from two players who were hardly perceived as necessities.
Gone from last year's team are seniors C.J. Lee and David Merritt, who played in all 35 games but were ninth and 12th respectively on the scoring list.
"They were born leaders," Michigan coach John Beilein said. "It was obvious to us. C.J. is already going into politics and David already has started his own company."
Manny Harris led Michigan to a NCAA win last year, but hasn't been able to make the Wolverines a contender this season.
As the Wolverines slumber through a disappointing 10-9 season (3-4 in the Big Ten), what is missing from this group is the locker room and practice leadership that clearly wasn't in place when Harris went awry last week. The junior guard was suspended for a behavioral issue in practice last week in advance of a game at Purdue. The Wolverines' leading scorer didn't play against the Boilermakers because of the action.
Beilein said Lee and Merritt were the type of players that were leaders in the locker room and during practice. They were the coach on the floor that a head coach desperately needs.
"Basketball is a flow sport where play continues," Beilein said. "It's not like football where you can have the quarterback huddle everyone up after a dropped pass."
Beilein said that Lee and Merritt didn't let last season's team drift. And this exact type of situation -- not knowing where the leadership might come from -- has occurred elsewhere this season. Like at Boston College, for example.
The Eagles didn't fret much about losing Tyrese Rice because he had a bit of an enigmatic personality and tended to drift. But what Rice could do, and had the respect to do it among his teammates, was get the Eagles refocused at times if the situation called for it. Biko Paris, who took over for Rice, doesn't have the demonstrative personality and neither does Reggie Jackson or Rakim Sanders. Senior Tyler Roche doesn't have that personality trait and neither does Joe Trapani. Yet, a lack of leadership in key moments has led to BC floundering in home games it should have won like against Rhode Island, Harvard and Maine.
But the Eagles (11-9, 2-4 ACC) were picked ninth in the ACC and even though they should have a much better record, there wasn't as high an expectation for them as there was for the Wolverines. Michigan, which lost to BC at home in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge in December, was ranked No. 15 in the preseason.
They didn't show leadership in late-game situations against Alabama in Orlando in the Old Spice Classic or at Indiana or against Northwestern at home.
Look, blaming the problems on the loss of Lee and Merritt may sound like an excuse, but no one has apparently filled the void. They need someone to act as an extension of Beilein, someone like Lee and Merritt who can be more assertive. If it doesn't happen soon, the Wolverines will be playing their final game this season in the NIT.
1.17.2010
SCOTTIE REYNOLDS - ALL GROWN UP
Like every parent, Rick Reynolds packed his son off to college in the hopes that the university would return to him a man.
As father and son embraced on Sunday afternoon, the father, marveling at what he's witnessed in four years, nodded.
The university had delivered.
A kid scores points.
A man pulls in the critical rebound.
A kid plays for himself.
A man plays for everyone else.
A kid relishes the joy of playing with abandon.
A man smiles knowingly at the new kids playing with reckless abandon and says, "Enjoy it now."
A kid wins Big East Rookie of the Year.
A man just might sandwich his career with Big East Player of the Year honors.
Scottie Reynolds has helped Villanova get off to a 16-1 start, 5-0 in the Big East.
"What's remarkable to me isn't what he's doing; it's the impact he's having on other people," Rick Reynolds said. "Next year, who knows what's going to happen next year, but I know what's going to happen after this season, and that's life. What he's doing right now, impacting other people, that's life."
As No. 4 Villanova steamrolls through the Big East, rolling to a 5-0 record after escaping Georgetown 82-77, it is being steadied by the sure-handed guidance of a man.
In some regards, senior guard Scottie Reynolds always had poise beyond his years. He deferred to his older teammates to the point that his coach practically had to beg him to stop passing the ball.
He was polite, yes sir-ing his way through interviews, and coachable, taking Wright's instruction almost down to the literal definition of the word.
(Though there was that time in Reynolds' sophomore season when Villanova was playing Pitt. Reynolds showed up late.
Because he was at church).
But it was in between the whistles when Reynolds remained a kid his freshman season. With Wright's blessing if not tacit encouragement, he giddily went to the rim on a 1-on-3 break. He jacked up long-range 3-pointers without a worry even if there was a better shot available. Villanova had just graduated one of the best classes in school history and the Wildcats needed points. Reynolds' job was to provide them.
"He put up 40 against UConn and he probably took at least seven or eight [bad] shots," Wright said of the player who would sew up Big East Rookie of the Year honors with that game against the Huskies. "We would tell Mike Nardi and Curtis Sumpter, you can't do that, but he has to. That was the only way he knew how to score, to sort of just be wild."
Reynolds would average 14.8 points on 39 percent shooting from the floor in his freshman season.
Today? Reynolds leads Villanova with 19.3 points per game.
He shoots 50 percent from the floor.
He and Wright spent the offseason talking about what Wright believed was the last step in Reynolds' progression as a player: being efficient.
Against Georgetown, that efficiency was on display everywhere. Reynolds scored a team-high 27 points, hitting 8 of his 15 shots from the floor and 4-of-7 from the arc.
Mr. Big Shot, who sealed his moniker with the buzzer-beating floater to send Villanova to the Final Four last year, also scored on a drive to the hoop to seal Sunday's victory. Going from left to right, he went to the side of the basket, tucking the ball like a running back approaching the goal line and went up hard and strong to the rim. The bucket counted and Villanova, which watched Georgetown rally from a 15-point halftime deficit, owned a 71-69 lead, an edge it would never surrender.
"Scottie can't be contained," John Thompson III said. "I don't say that in jest. He's too good of an offensive player and they do too good of a job of getting him where he needs to be. It's nothing new. He's been doing it for four years. What's different is now as a senior, when they need a basket, he ends up with the ball in his hand and good things happen."
Were Reynolds still a kid, he would have loved to talk about that big bucket.
Instead he was more excited about a play 90 seconds later.
Georgetown rode Greg Monroe back into the game, with the sophomore pulling in 16 of his career-high 29 points in the second half. Villanova tried Antonio Pena on Monroe; it tried Mouphtaou Yarou; it tried Isaiah Armwood. If the guy in Section 124 had any eligibility left, the Wildcats might have suited him up because no one could stop Monroe's sweet repertoire of post moves or his work on the glass. He finished with 16 boards.
But the Wildcats finally found a way to handle Monroe.
Clinging to that 72-71 lead, Reggie Redding missed a jumper and in the forest of rebounders that included Monroe, the lone guy in a white jersey, the one 9 inches shorter came down with the rebound, signaling for a timeout as he fell.
It was Reynolds.
"That rebound felt pretty good," Reynolds said. "I'm not allowed to go to the offensive glass. The 1 and 2, we're supposed to go back, but the ball was there and I thought I could go get it. Of course in that situation, you have to make sure you go get it or I'm back on the bench."
Wright wasn't complaining.
"That was the play of the game right there," Wright said. "But that's what great players do. It's making plays to win the game. Not necessarily shots, just big plays."
Wright has seen this evolution before. Randy Foye came to Villanova as an unpolished guard and left as a lottery pick. Kyle Lowry came with fearlessness and speed and learned a way to channel it.
Now it is Reynolds, learning how to create a play when he needs it but be wise about his choices.
And it is Reynolds doing what his predecessors taught him -- taking the final step on the ladder of maturity and teaching the guys behind him. Maalik Wayns scored 11 against Georgetown, playing as if he was blissfully ignorant of the brutal physicality of the game, the importance of the game or the sellout crowd of 20,000-plus.
Sometimes Reynolds smirks when he watches Wayns play. Somewhere in the depths of the Villanova film room there exists game tape of Scottie Reynolds, circa 2007. He, like Wayns, crashes into the paint with almost reckless abandon. He, like Wayns, thinks nothing of jacking up a 3 in transition when a more patient shot might be the better option.
And he, like Wayns, watches and learns.
"I tell him all the time, 'Enjoy it now,"' Reynolds said, sounding very much like the elder statesman. "Pretty soon they're going to be clogging the lane and not letting you have those shots."
Someone recently fashioned Reynolds' fancy headphones with Villanova logos at Reynolds' request.
It was a small thing, especially for a guy constantly tricked out in Villanova gear thanks to his basketball career.
But to Rick Reynolds, the decision spoke volumes.
"He gets it now," Rick Reynolds said. "You go to college and at first, it's where you're going to school. But if it goes right for you, if it's really a special experience, it gets inside of you. It's part of who you are. That's what's happened to Scottie."
He's grown up.
Into a player.
And a man.
As father and son embraced on Sunday afternoon, the father, marveling at what he's witnessed in four years, nodded.
The university had delivered.
A kid scores points.
A man pulls in the critical rebound.
A kid plays for himself.
A man plays for everyone else.
A kid relishes the joy of playing with abandon.
A man smiles knowingly at the new kids playing with reckless abandon and says, "Enjoy it now."
A kid wins Big East Rookie of the Year.
A man just might sandwich his career with Big East Player of the Year honors.
Scottie Reynolds has helped Villanova get off to a 16-1 start, 5-0 in the Big East.
"What's remarkable to me isn't what he's doing; it's the impact he's having on other people," Rick Reynolds said. "Next year, who knows what's going to happen next year, but I know what's going to happen after this season, and that's life. What he's doing right now, impacting other people, that's life."
As No. 4 Villanova steamrolls through the Big East, rolling to a 5-0 record after escaping Georgetown 82-77, it is being steadied by the sure-handed guidance of a man.
In some regards, senior guard Scottie Reynolds always had poise beyond his years. He deferred to his older teammates to the point that his coach practically had to beg him to stop passing the ball.
He was polite, yes sir-ing his way through interviews, and coachable, taking Wright's instruction almost down to the literal definition of the word.
(Though there was that time in Reynolds' sophomore season when Villanova was playing Pitt. Reynolds showed up late.
Because he was at church).
But it was in between the whistles when Reynolds remained a kid his freshman season. With Wright's blessing if not tacit encouragement, he giddily went to the rim on a 1-on-3 break. He jacked up long-range 3-pointers without a worry even if there was a better shot available. Villanova had just graduated one of the best classes in school history and the Wildcats needed points. Reynolds' job was to provide them.
"He put up 40 against UConn and he probably took at least seven or eight [bad] shots," Wright said of the player who would sew up Big East Rookie of the Year honors with that game against the Huskies. "We would tell Mike Nardi and Curtis Sumpter, you can't do that, but he has to. That was the only way he knew how to score, to sort of just be wild."
Reynolds would average 14.8 points on 39 percent shooting from the floor in his freshman season.
Today? Reynolds leads Villanova with 19.3 points per game.
He shoots 50 percent from the floor.
He and Wright spent the offseason talking about what Wright believed was the last step in Reynolds' progression as a player: being efficient.
Against Georgetown, that efficiency was on display everywhere. Reynolds scored a team-high 27 points, hitting 8 of his 15 shots from the floor and 4-of-7 from the arc.
Mr. Big Shot, who sealed his moniker with the buzzer-beating floater to send Villanova to the Final Four last year, also scored on a drive to the hoop to seal Sunday's victory. Going from left to right, he went to the side of the basket, tucking the ball like a running back approaching the goal line and went up hard and strong to the rim. The bucket counted and Villanova, which watched Georgetown rally from a 15-point halftime deficit, owned a 71-69 lead, an edge it would never surrender.
"Scottie can't be contained," John Thompson III said. "I don't say that in jest. He's too good of an offensive player and they do too good of a job of getting him where he needs to be. It's nothing new. He's been doing it for four years. What's different is now as a senior, when they need a basket, he ends up with the ball in his hand and good things happen."
Were Reynolds still a kid, he would have loved to talk about that big bucket.
Instead he was more excited about a play 90 seconds later.
Georgetown rode Greg Monroe back into the game, with the sophomore pulling in 16 of his career-high 29 points in the second half. Villanova tried Antonio Pena on Monroe; it tried Mouphtaou Yarou; it tried Isaiah Armwood. If the guy in Section 124 had any eligibility left, the Wildcats might have suited him up because no one could stop Monroe's sweet repertoire of post moves or his work on the glass. He finished with 16 boards.
But the Wildcats finally found a way to handle Monroe.
Clinging to that 72-71 lead, Reggie Redding missed a jumper and in the forest of rebounders that included Monroe, the lone guy in a white jersey, the one 9 inches shorter came down with the rebound, signaling for a timeout as he fell.
It was Reynolds.
"That rebound felt pretty good," Reynolds said. "I'm not allowed to go to the offensive glass. The 1 and 2, we're supposed to go back, but the ball was there and I thought I could go get it. Of course in that situation, you have to make sure you go get it or I'm back on the bench."
Wright wasn't complaining.
"That was the play of the game right there," Wright said. "But that's what great players do. It's making plays to win the game. Not necessarily shots, just big plays."
Wright has seen this evolution before. Randy Foye came to Villanova as an unpolished guard and left as a lottery pick. Kyle Lowry came with fearlessness and speed and learned a way to channel it.
Now it is Reynolds, learning how to create a play when he needs it but be wise about his choices.
And it is Reynolds doing what his predecessors taught him -- taking the final step on the ladder of maturity and teaching the guys behind him. Maalik Wayns scored 11 against Georgetown, playing as if he was blissfully ignorant of the brutal physicality of the game, the importance of the game or the sellout crowd of 20,000-plus.
Sometimes Reynolds smirks when he watches Wayns play. Somewhere in the depths of the Villanova film room there exists game tape of Scottie Reynolds, circa 2007. He, like Wayns, crashes into the paint with almost reckless abandon. He, like Wayns, thinks nothing of jacking up a 3 in transition when a more patient shot might be the better option.
And he, like Wayns, watches and learns.
"I tell him all the time, 'Enjoy it now,"' Reynolds said, sounding very much like the elder statesman. "Pretty soon they're going to be clogging the lane and not letting you have those shots."
Someone recently fashioned Reynolds' fancy headphones with Villanova logos at Reynolds' request.
It was a small thing, especially for a guy constantly tricked out in Villanova gear thanks to his basketball career.
But to Rick Reynolds, the decision spoke volumes.
"He gets it now," Rick Reynolds said. "You go to college and at first, it's where you're going to school. But if it goes right for you, if it's really a special experience, it gets inside of you. It's part of who you are. That's what's happened to Scottie."
He's grown up.
Into a player.
And a man.
GEORGE BRETT - GOING ALL OUT
A reporter once asked 3 time batting champion and Hall of Famer George Brett what he wanted to do in his last at-bat before retiring, he gave the following response:
"I want to hit a routine grounder to second and run all out to first base, then get thrown out by a half step. I want to leave an example to the young guys that that's how you play the game: all out.
"I want to hit a routine grounder to second and run all out to first base, then get thrown out by a half step. I want to leave an example to the young guys that that's how you play the game: all out.
LARRY FITZGERALD - ALWAYS STRIVING TO IMPROVE
Arizona Cardinals all-pro wideout Larry Fitzgerald is always brainstorming new ways to chase greatness. He outdid himself this offseason.
It wasn't enough for Fitzgerald, 25, to eclipse San Francisco 49ers legend Jerry Rice with his playoffs-record 30 receptions for 546 yards and seven touchdowns in the Cardinals' 2008 Super Bowl run. He decided this offseason to train with and learn from the former receiver, whom he considers the greatest ever.
So Fitzgerald convened a passing camp this summer at the University of Minnesota, inviting other young talented wideouts such as Green Bay Packers star Greg Jennings, the Denver Broncos' Brandon Marshall, the Minnesota Vikings' Sidney Rice and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Michael Clayton. Fitzgerald also invited his longtime mentor, Cris Carter. Then he reached out to Rice, who agreed to join the camp for a week.
The only thing more impressive than Fitzgerald's remarkable postseason ascent was his ambitious offseason agenda. There's little concern about a post-Super Bowl letdown for the sixth-year wideout, who reinvented himself as a respected league-wide leader.
"My goal is to be a better player in every way possible and never let complacency set in," Fitzgerald says. "Don't ever lose sight of being the best, most dominant player. After every year, I evaluate the weaknesses in my game — the mental and physical. I called Cris Carter, who has been like an uncle to me.
"But I wanted the same type relationship with Jerry Rice, one of the greatest players to ever play the game and the greatest receiver ever to play. I wanted to see what made him tick."
And Rice showed Fitzgerald.
"Jerry Rice is 46 years old. Yet he did every single thing we did on that field. He worked like he was in training camp," Fitzgerald says. "His dedication is off the charts. I was thinking, if I had the mental toughness Jerry Rice has at 46 at 25, where would I be in this game?"
"There's certain players who are driven not by money or fame, but who want Super Bowls. We want to be remembered as some of the best players to play this sport in honor of the people who played before us. Larry's one of those guys."
Jennings, who led Green Bay with 80 catches for 1,292 yards and nine touchdowns in 2008, says: "Working at Larry's camp for two weeks really opened my eyes to how to work. As good as he is, there's so much humility in Larry."
It wasn't enough for Fitzgerald, 25, to eclipse San Francisco 49ers legend Jerry Rice with his playoffs-record 30 receptions for 546 yards and seven touchdowns in the Cardinals' 2008 Super Bowl run. He decided this offseason to train with and learn from the former receiver, whom he considers the greatest ever.
So Fitzgerald convened a passing camp this summer at the University of Minnesota, inviting other young talented wideouts such as Green Bay Packers star Greg Jennings, the Denver Broncos' Brandon Marshall, the Minnesota Vikings' Sidney Rice and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Michael Clayton. Fitzgerald also invited his longtime mentor, Cris Carter. Then he reached out to Rice, who agreed to join the camp for a week.
The only thing more impressive than Fitzgerald's remarkable postseason ascent was his ambitious offseason agenda. There's little concern about a post-Super Bowl letdown for the sixth-year wideout, who reinvented himself as a respected league-wide leader.
"My goal is to be a better player in every way possible and never let complacency set in," Fitzgerald says. "Don't ever lose sight of being the best, most dominant player. After every year, I evaluate the weaknesses in my game — the mental and physical. I called Cris Carter, who has been like an uncle to me.
"But I wanted the same type relationship with Jerry Rice, one of the greatest players to ever play the game and the greatest receiver ever to play. I wanted to see what made him tick."
And Rice showed Fitzgerald.
"Jerry Rice is 46 years old. Yet he did every single thing we did on that field. He worked like he was in training camp," Fitzgerald says. "His dedication is off the charts. I was thinking, if I had the mental toughness Jerry Rice has at 46 at 25, where would I be in this game?"
"There's certain players who are driven not by money or fame, but who want Super Bowls. We want to be remembered as some of the best players to play this sport in honor of the people who played before us. Larry's one of those guys."
Jennings, who led Green Bay with 80 catches for 1,292 yards and nine touchdowns in 2008, says: "Working at Larry's camp for two weeks really opened my eyes to how to work. As good as he is, there's so much humility in Larry."
KEVIN EASTMAN - BOSTON CELTICS
Boston Celtics assistant coach Kevin Eastman talks about some common characteristics every great leader has. These are the special people who only need a coach to teach them what and how to do something; then they take that and run with it. They understand that a major part of their job is to be self sufficient and personally accountable for their improvement and productivity.
• They don't blame others first; instead, they look first for what they contributed (or did not contribute) to the situation
• They don't complain; instead, they look for ways to correct things that aren't working
• They don't procrastinate; instead, get things done now
• They always give more than they ask of others
• They always look to take on as much as they can handle, rather than look to pass things on to others all the time
• They are constantly trying to improve their game so they can bring more to the team and consistently fulfill their role
• They are self starters and study the game (and themselves) enough to know what needs to be done; then go about doing it
• They do the unrequired work, knowing that it simply needs to get done -- extra shots, extra weight training, extra film watching, etc. – without constantly needing a coach to tell them to work
• They hold others accountable for their jobs and roles because they know the importance of accountability as it relates to winning; this creates a collective responsibility
• They always be among of the most trusted players on the team, by coaches and players
• They don't blame others first; instead, they look first for what they contributed (or did not contribute) to the situation
• They don't complain; instead, they look for ways to correct things that aren't working
• They don't procrastinate; instead, get things done now
• They always give more than they ask of others
• They always look to take on as much as they can handle, rather than look to pass things on to others all the time
• They are constantly trying to improve their game so they can bring more to the team and consistently fulfill their role
• They are self starters and study the game (and themselves) enough to know what needs to be done; then go about doing it
• They do the unrequired work, knowing that it simply needs to get done -- extra shots, extra weight training, extra film watching, etc. – without constantly needing a coach to tell them to work
• They hold others accountable for their jobs and roles because they know the importance of accountability as it relates to winning; this creates a collective responsibility
• They always be among of the most trusted players on the team, by coaches and players
PEYTON MANNING - PREPARATION
Good article in the USA Today on Peyton Manning & they way he prepares his young receivers to be great:
Former Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy gives a glimpse of Peyton Manning's singular drive that distinguishs the three-time league MVP.
Manning made the regular three-hour commute from Indianapolis to Columbus, Ohio through May and June 2007 to get then-rookie receiver Anthony Gonzalez oriented to the Colts offense.
Many expected the 4-0 Colts to take a step back without Dungy and veteran receiver Marvin Harrison and with Gonzalez sidelined by a sprained knee since Week 1.
"Peyton has tons of ability, but really his preparation is why Peyton's great," Dungy said. "I remember Anthony Gonzalez's rookie year, he couldn't come over to practice with us until June.
"Peyton drove over twice a week to Columbus to throw with Anthony. That's the type of preparation people can't really appreciate, the extra time he spends bringing those young guys along as quick as he has."
When the Colts won Super Bowl XLI, Manning broke down every regular-season and playoff game of the Chicago Bears' defense.
"He digested 22 games in two weeks to get ready for one game," Dungy said of the Super Bowl MVP.
"He makes everyone around him better."
Manning, 33, leads the league with a 114.5 passer rating, 1,336 yards, has nine touchdowns and has thrown for 300 or more yards in his first four games for the first time.
Said Dungy: "I appreciate what he's doing even more now because in 2004 he threw 49 touchdowns with Marvin, Reggie Wayne, Brandon Stokely, Dallas Clark, familiar weapons," Dungy said.
"He's hotter and doing it with Collie, Pierre Garcon and Donald Brown. He makes it look ho hum.
The other things that makes Peyton special is he's never satisfied.
Former Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy gives a glimpse of Peyton Manning's singular drive that distinguishs the three-time league MVP.
Manning made the regular three-hour commute from Indianapolis to Columbus, Ohio through May and June 2007 to get then-rookie receiver Anthony Gonzalez oriented to the Colts offense.
Many expected the 4-0 Colts to take a step back without Dungy and veteran receiver Marvin Harrison and with Gonzalez sidelined by a sprained knee since Week 1.
"Peyton has tons of ability, but really his preparation is why Peyton's great," Dungy said. "I remember Anthony Gonzalez's rookie year, he couldn't come over to practice with us until June.
"Peyton drove over twice a week to Columbus to throw with Anthony. That's the type of preparation people can't really appreciate, the extra time he spends bringing those young guys along as quick as he has."
When the Colts won Super Bowl XLI, Manning broke down every regular-season and playoff game of the Chicago Bears' defense.
"He digested 22 games in two weeks to get ready for one game," Dungy said of the Super Bowl MVP.
"He makes everyone around him better."
Manning, 33, leads the league with a 114.5 passer rating, 1,336 yards, has nine touchdowns and has thrown for 300 or more yards in his first four games for the first time.
Said Dungy: "I appreciate what he's doing even more now because in 2004 he threw 49 touchdowns with Marvin, Reggie Wayne, Brandon Stokely, Dallas Clark, familiar weapons," Dungy said.
"He's hotter and doing it with Collie, Pierre Garcon and Donald Brown. He makes it look ho hum.
The other things that makes Peyton special is he's never satisfied.
BRANDON ROY - 1ST TEAM ALL DEFENSE
Brandon Roy has received a challenge that he likes from his head coach Nate McMillan, to be 1st team All-NBA:
"You should make a goal to defend on a high level every night," Roy said McMillan told him. "Not only would it take us as a team to the next level, but it would take me to that next level as a player that I want to be at. This is just the next natural progression in my game. A lot of people may say I got my contract because of scoring. But I think I got my contract because I am all-around, I'm versatile, and I'm always looking for ways to improve my game."
Said coach Nate McMillan:
"All the good players who win big -- All-Stars who are not only All-Stars, but who win at a high level -- they all do that. We know that this was what he needed to do. He can do it. And he knows he can do it."
"You should make a goal to defend on a high level every night," Roy said McMillan told him. "Not only would it take us as a team to the next level, but it would take me to that next level as a player that I want to be at. This is just the next natural progression in my game. A lot of people may say I got my contract because of scoring. But I think I got my contract because I am all-around, I'm versatile, and I'm always looking for ways to improve my game."
Said coach Nate McMillan:
"All the good players who win big -- All-Stars who are not only All-Stars, but who win at a high level -- they all do that. We know that this was what he needed to do. He can do it. And he knows he can do it."
BOSTON CELTICS - EGOLESS
Quote from Kevin Garnett after the Celtics beat the Cavs last night in Cleveland. KG was asked how the Celtics gelled together so well two years ago when they won the championship and how Cleveland can get there:
"The secret is that we came in with no egos, no agendas. One goal and we stuck to that. There wasn't something for your guys' morning papers, there wasn't something for headline news. That was what we was living. I think that's been the onus since we've been here. You've got to leave the ego at the door. Whatever swagger you've got, you bring it in here and you make sure it ain't cockiness. You do your job, you get the shooters open, you play defense, you talk, you give yourself up to get better as a team. ... That's the reason we work. I don't know what they have over here in Cleveland and what their beliefs are and what their studies are. But that's the formula for the Boston Celtics and why we were so successful our first year.''
"The secret is that we came in with no egos, no agendas. One goal and we stuck to that. There wasn't something for your guys' morning papers, there wasn't something for headline news. That was what we was living. I think that's been the onus since we've been here. You've got to leave the ego at the door. Whatever swagger you've got, you bring it in here and you make sure it ain't cockiness. You do your job, you get the shooters open, you play defense, you talk, you give yourself up to get better as a team. ... That's the reason we work. I don't know what they have over here in Cleveland and what their beliefs are and what their studies are. But that's the formula for the Boston Celtics and why we were so successful our first year.''
BOSTON CELTICS - '85 BEARS
"I think night in and night out, we want to come in and defend more than anything," said Perkins. "Obviously, you've got to put points up to win the game, but I just think we want to defend."
But coach Doc Rivers identified something special in this year's team and challenged them to be remembered like the 1985 Bears: one of the greatest defenses of all time.
"Doc brought it to our attention in the preseason," said Perkins. "We just kind of built from there. Doc asked if we wanted to be the best defensive team in history, like the '85 Bears. I think we've bought into it. We're playing intimate team defense and we just need to continue to do that."
"It's one thing to talk about it and another thing to actually do it," said Williams. "We're striving to be the best defense, but we've got work to do. That's the mindset we have to have day in and day out. We're stressing defense every single play, ever single minute."
Asked what he prefers, shutting the opposition down or shining on the offensive end, Garnett didn't hesitate. "Shutting people down," he said. "Because we work so hard in practice, man. Y'all have no idea what our drills are like. Every day, it's the same thing, same repetitive stuff, if not more. You know, when you shut a team down, that's hard work and effort."
But coach Doc Rivers identified something special in this year's team and challenged them to be remembered like the 1985 Bears: one of the greatest defenses of all time.
"Doc brought it to our attention in the preseason," said Perkins. "We just kind of built from there. Doc asked if we wanted to be the best defensive team in history, like the '85 Bears. I think we've bought into it. We're playing intimate team defense and we just need to continue to do that."
"It's one thing to talk about it and another thing to actually do it," said Williams. "We're striving to be the best defense, but we've got work to do. That's the mindset we have to have day in and day out. We're stressing defense every single play, ever single minute."
Asked what he prefers, shutting the opposition down or shining on the offensive end, Garnett didn't hesitate. "Shutting people down," he said. "Because we work so hard in practice, man. Y'all have no idea what our drills are like. Every day, it's the same thing, same repetitive stuff, if not more. You know, when you shut a team down, that's hard work and effort."
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