Saw this video and made me think about what a lot of these kids are leaving. [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dpxjl23QFH8[/media]
W-O-W. Im speechless :dis: I know this vid is old but that same team happens to be the number 1 rated HS team in the country right now. They just beat Carroll of Texas last weekend.
Pretty pathetic. What I see is coaches who are scared chitless and using fear tactics/bluffing to put up a front to maintain discipline, while in the one-on-one setting, using "Family", "Your're like my son" and dangling a DI carrott in front of the kids to keep them around. I'd love to see what someone like a coach Shannon could do with them, if they're good now, he'd really make them great and build their self-esteem, making them happy kids and good citizens at the same time. All they know is violence as a means of conflict-resolution, and it's very prevalent in the communities of low socio-economic hoods too. Essentially, all they have is: 1/ Their bodies, and 2/ Their pride/respect. I attended a workshop in which these things were demonstrated, in depth, and it made me understand a lot of the "Behaviors" we see/read about.
The player who was featured on most of that video is Tauren Green. He was signed by Florida but ended up getting suspended then got kicked off the team. I read somewhere last year that he was playing at a small D-2 school but got kicked out for punching a ref or coach or something. Cant remember but it wasnt good.
I work as an attorney in juvenile court work. You see it all the time with kids (and their parents) who don't know any other way. They think that if someone insults you, you fight them. If someone insults your family member, you fight them. If someone argues with you, you fight them. Kids see parents act like this, and that's what they learn. We point to people who came from these kinds of backgrounds and overcame it and we think, "All you need is hard work." That's true of extraordinary people. Extraordinary people can overcome bad environments and bad role models. Most people aren't extraordinary though. Most people just learn by seeing what others do and think it's normal without ever really questioning it. They learn bad habits from those who are older than them, and then teach bad habits to those who are younger than them. Fixing it requires a great deal of personal attention, instruction, and positive examples, and most people who come from those environments will never have the opportunity to get that. It's a pretty depressing cycle with no obvious way out that will work for the bulk of the people in it. You can get a handful out by getting a coach involved in setting them on the path to college, but 99% of these people simply aren't good enough athletes to merit that kind of attention.
I am actually shocked this filthy language and embarrassing behavior took place in one of America's cleanest and very-well rounded cities, Miami. There is discipline (which I find ironic in the sign in the weight room) and then there is that. In no way does that help someone become a better person.
Taurean Green is the son of former NBA star Sidney Green. He did play basketball at Florida and was just selected by Portland in the 2nd round of this year's NBA draft. Taurean Charles is #11 in this video, this is what I found on him: http://www.fanblogs.com/florida/005048.php He's now a senior ILB at Bethune-Cookman. That video was absolutely jaw-dropping, and I think it really demonstrates a lot of Charles' problems are rooted in the adult figures in his life. When you're growing up and being tackled and shoved around by coaches and then given star treatment by the public, it's not going to lead to any sort of credible lifestyle in adulthood. The mention of stealing pizza was also perhaps a portent of things to come. Such a shame. Brian ~Go Tigers!~
Read this too, interview with Taurean Charles right before he got kicked off the team: http://florida.scout.com/2/362337.html
