As 2009 draws to a close, reflections of the past decade are beginning. Sun Media's Neate Sager (also founder of CIS Blog) takes an excellent look at the key elements that have contributed to CIS men's basektball's version of a dynasty at Carleton University.
Carleton Ravens: A decade of dominance
The Carleton Ravens only look at what they need to do, not what they’ve done.
The Ravens’ run under coach Dave Smart the past 10 years has given them the best regular-season winning percentage (.650) of any Ontario men’s basketball team dating to 1970-71.
The decade cannot end without a stab putting that at perspective, which means talking about … practice.
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1 comment:
I think Kevin McCleery's comment about Dave Smart's ability to infuse intensity into his players without sacrificing personal relationships is very telling.
As Dave's accomplishments and reputation has grown over the past decade as one of the best Canadian coaches ever in any sport, there is unfortunately a lot of myths and ill conceived notions about him.
One of the most persistent myths is that he is some kind of maniacal ogre who would willingly sacrifice a player's well being for the sake of winning.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
I've read articles on Dave by people who obviously don't know him at all, calling him such things as "Canada's answer to Bobby Knight".
Not only is the comparison inaccurate, it is rather insulting.
As far as I know, Dave has never gotten into an altercation with Puerto Rican police, never tossed a chair across the floor or employed used TP as a motivational tool.
Yes, Dave Smart is an incredibly intense coach.
But along with his great passion for teaching and coaching, comes his compassion and caring for those kids who play for him.
Beyond the championships and the incredible win-loss record, his legacy is the relationships he has forged with players past and present.
I believe that is what Dave would want to be best remembered for when his career is over.
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