By: Bryan Lawrence
Energy, something Dave Paulsen does not lack. You’ve probably seen DP scream at a Referee, dance up and down the coaches box or kick the scorers table. Most applaud these actions. It’s refreshing to witness his enthusiasm. He applies this intensity to practice as well. I have only seen two practices so far but it’s clear that he demands attention. There is no reason to miss a rep and if a player is caught in la la land, they will get called out. For as much yelling as I’ve heard him do, he’s also showed a patient approach. He stays calm in teachable moments and explains what he wants done and why. Engagement, effort and improvement appear to be important within every practice. Practices are filled with individual competitions and managers can be seen keeping stats or point totals. This resonates with me as this is how I run my practices as well.
I have coached basketball for six years at West Potomac High School at all three levels and continue to help at the varsity level scouting upcoming opponents and coaching in offseason leagues. Due to this, I understand the integrity of practice and game planning and can’t discuss many things I see. Does this mean “Practice Makes A Patriot,” will be a vanilla read? Absolutely not, and I hope to provide you interesting insight. So far, Paulsen gets an A+ for practice performance. Him and his staff seem well prepared and their knowledge of their opposition is evident. My one gripe with our staff is, do we have a big man coach? I have not gotten a chance to really probe about this but from a quick glance, it doesn’t appear so. Does the frontcourt coach have to be a larger individual? Also no, but I will dive further into this going forward.
DP is not the only person who brings it at practice. It’s obvious that the team wants to get better, as a whole. They listen to their coach and they enjoy competing. Of course there are mental errors or occasional mishaps but it never really slows down the practice tempo. Jalen Jenkins is very vocal during 5 on 5 play. He critiques and makes suggestions as well as keeping it light with jokes. Everyone’s man, Otis, is a captain for a reason really maintaining the flow of practice. By his senior year, he will be able to coach most of practice himself. If Marquese Moore shouts at a player in practice, they know they either did something super smooth or need to shape up.
Quibits – (Quick Bits)
- The team spends 15+ minutes before practice working on individual skillsets
- After practice, they have a free throw competition
- Jaire Grayer’s athleticism is on display at practice and I believe we will see more of it in games as he grows into his body and skills.
- I’m intrigued to see Ian Boyd’s role after this season based on his abilities and our need to fill MM’s shoes
- Kameron Murrell can shoot the 3 ball
- Justin Kier can facilitate and we may see more of this once MM leaves
- Karmari Newman is a tough defender and uses his arms to be as wide as possible
- David Relvao is a smart player and as soon as he can just play instead of think about playing, we may have a special piece
- Troy Temara is one weird dude and I believe he embraces it
- A.J. Wilson helps with the scout team some and participates in all of the drills. He is freakishly athletic and springs off the court. I can’t speak in detail on his shot but do believe he can make an immediate impact next year grabbing offensive rebounds and running in transition
- Slim Otis, Slim who? Slim Otis is confident getting to the basket in games because he is confident doing so in practice. Some say he attacks to a fault, but it well pay dividends his next two years
- Jenkins and Moore and even Tate look like and act like veterans at practice. Just another day in the lab
- Graduate Manager, Bryson Johnson, hands out buckets in 5 on 5 play
- DP has messages for his team pre and post practice. One of the practices he spoke of being good civil servants to their communities. To end another practice he said, “this is when teams separate,” referring to where they are located in the schedule and rankings.
As I continue to view practice, my “Quibits” will become more detailed and focused. Again, I have only seen two practices and simply don’t know enough to expand too much further yet.
I love the practice intensity. I love the attentiveness of the players. I love DP even if I don’t agree with all of his decisions. I love the opportunity to cover practices, bringing you a consistent backstage vantage point. What would you like to know more about? Comment below and help me grow into this role.
We will be dropping our Freshman Five interviews starting Friday morning. Make sure to subscribe to our podcast (ByGeorgeGMU) on your podcast app to auto download our show as soon as it airs. Thanks for reading and continue to lurk around for other featured posts! #PracticeMakesAPatriot