Building Leaders, Not Just Players

Every coach I talk to wants leadership on their team. We say it in preseason meetings, we put it on the wall, we talk about it after losses. But I think a fair question to ask ourselves is whether we're actually developing leaders or just hoping they step up.

Most of us inherited a model where leadership was something the seniors did. The senior captains were leaders by experience, talked in the huddle, got after teammates in practice. But that structure doesn’t always work. What if you have a class of seniors that didn’t play much earlier in their careers? What if their personalities are confrontational or they aren’t naturally vocal? It’s something worth examining inside every team and program.

The question becomes what are we actually building, and how. I think it starts with identification. Are we looking at our roster and honestly assessing who has leadership traits and who doesn't? Not who we wish was a leader, not who’s a senior, but who actually has the disposition for it. The willingness to hold a teammate accountable. The ability to be coached publicly without falling apart. The instinct to put the team before themselves when nobody's watching. Those things are visible if we're paying attention. Too often we assign leadership based on talent or seniority and then wonder why it's not working.

Once we identify them, we have to develop them. That means giving them real responsibility, not symbolic responsibility. It means putting them in front of the team in moments that matter. It means letting them sit in on conversations they wouldn't normally be part of. It means correcting them privately when they get it wrong instead of pulling the responsibility back. Leadership grows through reps, just like a jump shot.

But here's where it gets complicated, and I think this is the conversation a lot of coaches are quietly having. What do you do when your most influential player isn't your best leader?

You know the player I'm talking about. Great kid. Everyone loves them. Personality fills the gym. Teammates gravitate toward them. But when you watch closely, they’re not setting the tone you need. Maybe they don’t always take things seriously. Maybe their work habits are average. They’re not a bad kid, not even close. They just don’t have the leadership qualities you'd put on a recruiting report.

This is one of the trickiest situations a coach can navigate, because you can't ignore their influence and you can't fake them into being something they’re not.

A few things I've seen work. First, be honest with them. Have the conversation. Tell them you see their influence and you need it pointed in the right direction. A lot of these kids have never been told plainly what leadership requires. They've been praised for being well-liked their whole lives. Naming the gap is often the first step. Second, pair them with a teammate who has the leadership traits they’re missing. Sometimes the right voice in the right ear changes everything. Third, give…

And sometimes, honestly, you have to accept that your most influential player and your best leader are two different people. That's okay. The job becomes managing both relationships and making sure they're not pulling in opposite directions.

The last thing I keep wrestling with is the balance between organic and structured leadership development. I've heard coaches argue both sides. One camp says leadership has to be forged in adversity, that you can't manufacture it in a classroom, that the only real leadership is the kind that emerges when the season gets hard. The other camp says we have to be intentional, that hoping it happens organically is how you end up with a team full of nice kids and no leaders.

I think both are right. The adversity is non-negotiable. You can't shortcut what a tough road loss teaches a leader, or what it does to a kid when he has to address the team after a bad practice. Those moments build something a meeting can't replicate. But we also can't sit back and wait for them. The teams I've seen do this best create deliberate environments where leadership is talked about, modeled, and practiced. Leadership groups that meet regularly. Film sessions where players have to speak up. Drills where someone other than the coach has to make the call. Then when adversity hits, the kids have a foundation to draw from instead of trying to figure it out in the moment.

The way I think about it now is that structure builds the vocabulary and adversity builds the conviction. You need both.

I'd love to hear from other coaches on this one. How are you identifying leaders in your program? What have you done with the influential-but-flawed kid? And where do you land on the organic versus structured debate?

Why June Might Be the Most Important Month on Your Calendar

We talk a lot about November through March. The season, the practices, the tournament. But realistically, June might be the month that separates programs that are staying average from programs that are building something special.

June is where next season starts to take shape. And if you're intentional about it, you can get more done in these four weeks than you think.

See Your Team With Fresh Eyes

This is the month to experiment. Move players around. Put kids in spots they haven't played before and see what happens. You've got players coming up from JV, from the freshman team, maybe a transfer or a talented incoming freshman. June is when you find out what you actually have. Don't go into the fall guessing. Use June to get real answers about roles, combinations, and who can handle what when it matters.

Don't Sleep on Youth Camp

I know, I know. Youth camp feels like an obligation for a lot of programs. Something you throw on the calendar because you're supposed to. But if you run it the right way, it can be one of the best things you do all summer.

Think about what you're really getting out of a well-run camp. You're building relationships with younger kids who will eventually be in your program. You're collecting emails and contact information so you can stay connected with those families for future camps and events. You're installing your drills and your terminology from the top down, so by the time those kids get to you, they already speak your language. And here's one that matters more than people realize: if you run it well enough, you can get your assistant coaches paid. Those assistants put in an incredible amount of time and energy for your program. Getting them a check, even a modest one, goes a long way toward keeping good people around.

Get Your Kids in the Weight Room

This one is straightforward but it has to be said. June should be a month where your players are lifting and working on athletic development. Getting stronger, getting more explosive, building habits that carry into the season. The programs that take this seriously show up in November looking different than the ones that don't. Kids can make extreme progress with good habits and consistent offseason development.

Go Play in a College Shootout

Most colleges run summer shootouts and invite high school programs. If you're not taking advantage of this, you're leaving a lot on the table. Your team gets to play together in a competitive setting during the summer. Your players get a chance to be seen by college coaches. You get some team bonding outside of your own gym. And here's something I used to love about shootouts: it's a great opportunity to give your assistants some real responsibility. I would have assistant coaches coach the team during these events sometimes. Let them coach. Let them make decisions. It gives them experience they can't get any other way, and it gives you a chance to step back and actually watch your team. You'd be surprised what you notice when you're not the one calling plays.

A Note for Junior High and Middle School Coaches

If you coach younger groups, don't sit June out. Get your kids together. Run summer workouts. Get them in the gym. If you can tie into what the high school program is doing, even better. The earlier kids start feeling connected to the bigger picture, the stronger your pipeline becomes.

June is hectic. There's no way around that. But the coaches who are intentional about this month put themselves in a much better position when the season rolls around. It's not about doing everything. It's about being purposeful with the time you have.

The Scouting Report is your weekly dose of resources that can help your coaching. Plays of the Week, videos, drills, etc. What’s the old joke? The best coaches are just the best thieves?

Italy U20 - Stagger Decoy Back Screen

Shared Resources: “Drive Like a Pro” - good video for players to learn how to use angles to do better drives to the basket.

We’ve all gotten that one message from a parent that makes you pause, blink twice, and say… “Did they really just send that?”

If you’ve got a funny, confusing, or just plain wild message sitting in your inbox, send it in to [email protected]. We’ll feature the best ones anonymously - names and personal info will be removed.

Let’s remind each other we’re not alone in this coaching journey.

That’s a wrap on Episode 40 of Game Shots. Thank you for subscribing.

My mission has always been, and will always be, to support coaches around the world who love the game and want to keep getting better.