Most players rarely think about this. Maybe that's a good thing. Excellence is not about balance.
As Brad Stevens told my wife Ellen (the rocket scientist) about sports, "It's not rocket science."
Coaches' Player Evaluation
- Performance (competence)
- Projection
- Character (intangibles)
Performance is dynamic.
The pathway to excellence traverses "kaizen," work toward continual improvement. It's ruthless pursuit toward your asymptote of excellence, your performance ceiling. Teams succeed when they develop enough individuals hungry for team success.
Projection is hard to measure.
Two young players especially stood out during 2025 tryouts to me. Both are regulars now. Scott Celli has the ability to recognize "it" when he sees "it." When I asked him once how long it took him to see that a specific player had "it," he said, "five minutes."
Anson Dorrance about Mia Hamm
Character
"The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior." Exceptional players have extraordinary character. This allows ordinary people to achieve extraordinary things. Finding these 'guys' separates champions.
Former Michigan Coach Bo Schembechler said about avoiding the 'wrong player', if he goes to Ohio State he might beat you once a year. If he comes here, he can beat you every day.
Melrose has never had those 'wrong' guys. They still don't.
Become the metaphorical "lottery pick" or "first rounder" who can play for anybody. Melrose has a bunch of candidates for those labels. Coaches don't make lottery picks or first rounders. Players do via their commitment, discipline, focus, sacrifice, teamwork, and will. They embody "deliberate practice."
You control your career arc.
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