We are beginning our third year at Jackson Community College and today we had an open gym. We are pretty close to finalizing our roster spots and the one thing that stands out is we are going to have competitive practices when the 09-10 season begins…more competitive than the first two seasons for sure. We are going to have an abundance of guards-not point guards, not shooting guards…GUARDS! I don’t look for certain guards when recruiting-I could care less about putting two lead guards on the floor at the same time. If a kid plays hard, defends, shares the ball and most importantly, pulls for his teammates, I’m fine.
Last night watching the Los Angeles Lakers eliminate the Denver Nuggets in the NBA Western conference finals I witnessed Lakers guard Jordan Farmer congratulate Shannon Brown as he came off the floor.
Why am I mentioning this?
Well both players are competing for playing time.
But both players pull for each other.
While Jordan got the call first last night from Phil Jackson off the bench, I noticed Brown standing and cheering for Farmer while the former UCLA Bruin played well.
The ABC guys announcing the series have brought it up on occasion and it’s something that should never go unnoticed.

Bleacher Report mentions the two Laker players and what they bring to the team.
Teammates should always pull for each other-they should never wish that someone in front of them in the rotation plays poorly so they can get the minutes. In practice they should compete hard and push each other.
Which leads to me to a quote by the late Red Auerbach;
“The guy next to you, he’s your teammate not your rival.”
-Coach Finamore
Hoops135@hotmail.com
