Coaches face unpalatable choices. Play the senior or the freshman phenom? Move a player to another position which displaces the incumbent? Cut the politician's child? It's not a question of whether but how often?
Coach Wooden said, "no progress occurs without change, but not all change is progress." Change is inevitable.
Coffee, a new bean-based beverage from Ethiopia had stormy origins. Some argued about its health effects, others defended existing beverages (wine and ale), and governments shut down coffeehouses, not because of the coffee but the conversations held there. Change is uncomfortable.
We rob Pietra to pay Paola. Giving more minutes to a star subtracts from another deserving player.
When a coach makes changes, objections, especially from parents seeing their child displaced, are inevitable. My wife sat in the stands once, surprised to hear a parent say, "I'm glad Ron isn't playing her in crunch time, we have a better chance with her on the bench."
Performance is unpredictable. When things go south, the coach's neck is on the line. At the end of the day, I work to see change via "coaches' eyes" not "parents eyes."
Remember the wisdom of Bill Parcells. "Coaches are the most selfish people in the world. They put players on the field who are going to make us look good."
Lagniappe. The 2023 postseason playoffs haven't been kind to the ML12. Still alive are Melrose, Burlington, Reading, and Wakefield. Liberty Division champion Belmont got bounced in the round of 32 by Lincoln-Sudbury.
Lagniappe 2. Imagine.
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