A strange year has passed

In my soon 25 years in coaching this year has had its highs and lows like no other year. I have never felt more disrespected than this year that now has passed and its all about bball.
At the same time I have had one of the best years basketballwise in 2016 in all my years in this great sport.


But being talked to like a 5 year old, getting bullshit explanations that no experienced coach will ever fall for and having no choice but to swallow it and go on. And sure thats LIFE not all will be great and smooth, but at least give me the respect I actualy deserve and if you dont like me, well at least respect the the years I have put in.

Well im not gonna bitch about more, but this was the first time in 25 years that I actually thought about QUITTING and that scared me like nothing else has scared me in my life.

Its NEVER been about the MONEY for me in coaching and it never will be, but Im good at one thing in LIFE and thats teaching kids basketball, so please PAY me that respect.

I wish for everybody a great 2017 and for my current and former players I wish more than that.
You are my OXYGEN keep working hard and BELIEVE!
Happy New Year to all!
Coach out!

Im tired and I need to get some things of my chest

I have spent more than half my life involved in basketball 24 years something in coaching. I have worked part time, fulltime in clubs for over 9 years of those 24. Some things are the same even if we go back 24 years in the clubs and some have evolved, some have gone the other way.

I will not go in to everything and I must stress that these are my word and not my clubs, these words come from 39 year old man that fell in love with the game watching the great Magic Johnson play on Super channel at my grandmothers place when I went to 4th grade. Ever since Im stuck, still in love with the game.

I have seen/met/worked with great coaches, great talents, great humans and coached amazing people during all these years. Everybody has bad days and most of my bad days are saved by the kids I coach even if they give my headaches and a sleeping pattern that would make most quit. I cant Im in love with the game.
If it aint the kids that I coach in present time that saves a bad day, most of the time its somebody I used to coach sometime ago that has gotten a new job, made a new hit single, made it to college or in some kind of way found success in their life that makes my get back into a better mood.

As a coach and as a person I like to have fun, I like to laugh I think having fun still is one of life`s most important things. I also believe we humans forget that as we get older. People might think about me aint he to old for that, dress like that, talk like that, listen to hip.hop. Come on you to old for that...........get a job!

Well I have a job I challenge kids very week on their path to their dreams. I try to give them the tools needed in basketball and in life. Im not saying I have all the answers but im dedicated to this and if my former players dont have any use of what I taught them while they where playing for me in their life after basketball I HAVE FAILED!

The most frustating thing about working with basketball is its worth in general in Sweden. Yes, we have ourselves the blaim for the most part. I never EVER will forget the words of Hans Crunak former headcoach for the swedish nationalteam in Swimming at a time when sweden owned the pools on the mens side. I listened to a lecture he had and he talked about one of the women swimmers came and talked to him about the men getting all the attention in media, sponsorers and so on.
His answer was SIMPLE: Swim faster!

She was properbly clueless at first, but as I remember he explained it a little more to her. WELL, in a few years time the table had turned the women swimmers was swimming faster, winning and now most the male swimmers was in background eccept one.

BUT and i have a BUT.....in later years the attention in general has gone the equal rights, integration, lettingkids be kids, eqaulity in general in society and that is of course good that everybody tries to make the world a better place for ALL.


BUT....businesses, goverment, city boards are willing to pay millions and millions to people talking about these subjects, issues, but us sport clubs and especially in the case basketball which is the best sport in integration, most equal girls/boys playing and so on have to struggle year after year while.

Companies, goverment have great values out on every webpage, but a sport that actually does all these things still have to struggle. In Malmoe my club takes a huge responsability and we know and want to do more and better I can garantee everyone but this has nothing to do with SWIMMING faster this is putting your action to fancy words by those whom have the resourses to help a club like mine to grow.

Simply put your money, time and efforts where your "mouth" is. We share your values, and together we can make it a better world if we put together Basketball, resources, time and this amazning sport that sees no colour, has good values and allows everyone to play this game regardless if you are from a forein country,colour of the skin,  old, young, girl, by, gay, handicapped, athletic, short or tall.

My club is integration!
My team has 17 nationalities in 24 players, we made a T-shirt for last years FINAL FOUR in the swedish chamionships that said "Winning integration" and it was/is in so may ways. It was a statement, Im tired of the talk, tired of well written papers/values. Lets se some action and resources put in the right places, then WE will see CHANGE and only then.

BUT you wrote swim faster....well yeah that is mostly for the senior teams, nationalteams and of course more. Im talking about youth in most part in the ages where we can mold them, shape them, lift them, inspire them to greatness in basketball and after.

For when it comes to above mentions things like equality, human rights, integration we have THE WORLD RECORD so we can only beat our selves and we shouldnt have struggle in a great country like sweden with founds for those things, for education, for coaches, gyms so we can practice.

If the kids are in the gyms they are not in the street it cant be put more simple than that. We need to make coaching a real job and respect it, so we can do better.

Im tired.......and need to sleep, but I havent written in a long time and had to get this rant of my chest. Agree or disagree no matter what I hope I made you think and if you thought what was written above as garbage, why did you read it to the ned!? :-)

Cant wait until practice tomorrow night! See you in a gym somewhere, sometime the future is ours :-)
Good night! Coach out!

Almost a year since my last post

I´m not the best at writing or spelling but I love it! I write when I have the energy and inspiration to do so and to be honest for the last 11 months the only things I could have written about would have been in anger and would lead to nowhere.

So I wrote nothing or deleted it before I publish it.
Now after 2 weeks vacation I feel a need to write and I have the nergy to do so....so here it goes........

So many good things has happen over these months but it has been burried among a workload that has been crazy. Its hard for most people to relate to being a BASKETBALLCOACH and one that takes it seriously. Most people think its like any other job you go to work do your hours go home and have freetime, well it aint!

In most cases for example you have do a lot of other work to make ends meet. Maybe a stupid choice for a job, but anyway it was my choice. Been coaching for 24 years and around 9 years fulltime. (meaning just basketballrelated work)

I havent coached except for 5 games at the highest level, but the pressure, responsability, time, sweet and tears are the same in youth basketball that I spent most of my time in. Countless sleepness nights before important games (worrying, thinking, if my kids gonna reach what that want). I never really been a TROPHYHUNTER, but guiding my kids to fulfillment being apart and teacher on their journey towards their goals, dreams is what Im all about.

I write "MY KIDS" I dont have any kids of my own, but I have "thousands" of kids instead and as coach you get all the good and bads with it. All the hours of talking to players that are sad, worried, feeling bad for whatever reason it could be issues at home, girlfriends, boydfriends or selvconfidence issues. There is not a day that passes by when I dont think of past or present players and when they succeed at something I feel proud as an rooster. But when they have problems my brain will automatically switch to how can I help them.
                             
Maybe you could call my crazy, but thats how I work its the same with my friends if they have a problem I can spend hours, days trying to find a solution. Maybe I care to much, but I rather care too much than to little. Some players call me COACH and when they do I feel a sense of pride. I guess thats the same kind pride that someone feels when called FATHER.

BASKETBALL is a great sport and Im glad I fell in love with it. So many great people I have met during the years and so many great experiences. Im glad for all the players from the past I still have contact with and I tell you everytime an old player ask for advice or maybe a workout its like getting injected with "happyenergi". I see and know other people with the same crazy passion as me, dont get me wrong im not special in anyway. But my kids become special! At least I like to think so :-)

I chose to work with basketball a longtime ago knowing that it was back then almost criminal to pay for basketballcoaches especially youth coaches. Seniorcoaches has always gotten paid in some kind of way, but youth coaches was almost like you had to pay to coach.

I had a dream and I gueess I still do that the climate would change, but has it?
Well its finally starting to but its been like 15-20 years and very little has happened. Im glad to see that some clubs nowdays understands the value and work of youth coaches and actually let them work with what they are good at. But those jobs aint very common in the nordics. But at least I see progress in that department. We expect our kids to compete with other countries that have paid, educated coaches that focus just on the kids. We tell kids to follow their dreams, but we cant really give them 100% help that they need to fulfill it or get as close as possible.

But still some of us try and almost bury our self in the process. I guess you need some kind of switch to turn OFF and ON as coach, but this much I know I dont have that switch. If somebody has a spare let me know about it :-)

Every week a talk with other coaches around the world about problems with players, parents, tactics or specific drills and thats almost like a therapy group online or phone Dr Coach. Im thankful for those coaches that are close to me and put up with my problems and I hope they feel the same with me. Problems are there to be solved, but man have they changed during the years. With the schoolsystem failing (as I see it) and a more "ME" aproach in society in general has made so many "new" issues as a coach, which you didnt even need to think about before.

Selfishness in team sports are real killers im not talking about taking more shots than others or having the ball more, but the attitude that I`M the only one that MATTERS thats the issue.
This is not the kids fault it is us grown men and women that in all goodness put wrong values in them. I like to think I put good values in my kids, but sometimes its a struggle but I aint giving up anytime soon.

One of my old danish players asked me some days ago if he could come over and do some workouts and I tell you Im still smiling. My vacation is raining away, but he made my vacation special and he will regret asking. lol just kidding!

Will be nice to see one of MY KIDS!
I may be wrong but I doubt it!, coach out!

And some people call me crazy!

Well, hasn`t been once I have been called crazy doing this that I love called basketball. But hey people if Im crazy what your verdict on the people throwing granades in Malmoe, killing people with knifes in a IKEA store in Västerås or all armys killing innocent humans around the world.

So Im crazy......hmmm. But I guess there is something good with beeing crazy also, when used the right way.
Now Im sitting here in my castle writting a blogg once again and another season starts for real in 6 days. Strange cirumstances brought m back to Malmoe and Malbas Basketball once again and this time it feels like Im in totally new club. So much more positive and adding to that is that the mens team made it back to the LEAGUE for this season which is great for everybody.

But its not that only......the atmosphere is just different among, players, coaches and people behind the scenes. Malbas with Malmoe as its city (3rd largest in sweden) has potential to be a real powerhouse, but has never been near that in modern times. Are we as a club, as a city on that path now?

I truly believe so!

With smart decisions and slowly building the whole club I think we can be that powerhouse that the south of sweden so desperatly needs. We need to get bigger as a club and that is not done in a couple of months. A coach from denmark wrote something that I will aways remember in a discussion about why basketball in denmark wasnt bigger, recruitment of kids and so on.

It was something like this "Give me a coach and there will be a bunch of kids playing" the solution is pretty easy, but at the same time it one of the hardest things for all clubs. Finding coaches that are willing to put in a tremendous amount of hours often in the end paying for their own existence as coach. Taking vacation days from work to go to tournaments, skipping family events because of games ( yeah I know some want to skip these) going directly from work to the gym and on their way to the gym picking up their kids to be a few minutes late. Getting there as fast as possible only to get critizes for beeing late.

Most coaches reality in Sweden or the nordics is not a fulltime employment, 50%/25% emplyoment, but some little amount that barely covers their costs to be a coach.

I guess more people than me are crazy! :-)

But regardless the coach`s situation all is expected to be profesional in their coaching, behaivor and planning and more. Thats crazy!

Clubs needs to to make it easier to be a coach and the solution is not only money, but its def a part of it in todays society.

Im starting work this week at malbas and this will be big part of my responsability to create a "happier place" for the coaches in the club. Will be an exciting season to say the least for once I`m truly put in a situation the make a change.

And this is a change I truly hope I can get done if giving the time o do so. Because this is not something that is changed in a heartbeat either.

Malbas is changing - We are on a mission and Im glad Im on point!

And like I wrote earlier, you can be crazy and still be good human, but the world is looking crazier and crazier for each year. I grew up being a big fan of two Michaels. One was Michael Jordan and another was Michael Jackson. I can honestly say I hated Jordan and I never shed a tear, but a few of michaels songs has made me cry rivers.

Here is a great song and WE should all start taking some responsability in making the world a better place. Not to care is NOT the solution that much I know for sure!

It took a lot of years....

......but finally its in the making. Will start up with one of my babies that has been just a plan until now and that is a CAMP concept that will be held 5 times per year and up on request.

Many many years ago I started summer practice in my childhood club LOBAS that I called
DRILLS FOR SKILLS, tough planned practices that covered most of what there is to cover for a baller in development.

Totally I offered 25 hours practice/week + 3 hours of open gym, crazy I know :-)

My first DRILLS FOR SKILLS CAMP will be a four day camp in cooperation with my childhood club, so this dream I have had for so many years starts at the same place where I dreamt of having basketball as my craft. So it couldnt be more suiting. going back to where it once began, to start something new, but still old.

Drills for skills Camps, will be held at dates/places that later will announced.
Its also possible to ask for other dates and if its possible to fit the calender it can be done.

First camp will be held now in june 2015 and its already full, so depending how its goes I will kick it into full GEAR or rethink it.

It will not be the kind of camp you are used too that I can promise. It will only be suitable for players with good work ethic.

Why?
Because otherwise you willl waste your parents money and dont show up after day 1.

More on this later...webbpage and so on will be launched this summer.

Börjar skymta en OAS i öknen

Längesen man hittade tangentbordet och var aktiv här på sidan, men har varken funnits intresse eller ork från min sida att skriva nåt.
Man kan ju hoppas att detta blir bra då :-)


Efter 22år som coach i denna underbara sport varav 4 år i Danmark (Hörsholm) via en kort sejour i Norge, så hamnade jag i Skåneklubben Malbas. Malbas har under flera år byggt upp en stark herr/killsida och det kändes mest rätt att erbjuda mina tjänster i en klubb med ambitioner.

Blev erbjuden intressanta lag och kom igång om än sent, så efter en kort paus så var man igång igen på golvet. Tränar bla ett killag med spelare födda 2001 och för deras basketframtid och alla andra spelare i SKÅNE med ambitioner så kom till slut nyheten att MALBAS valde att söka till Basketligan. UNDERBART!
 
Hur skall man motivera spelare om de inte kan se "de bästa" i landet lira LIVE. NBA och Euroleague i all ära, men de allra allra flest kommer aldrig vara i närheten av dessa ligor. Inte fel med drömmar, men måste också finnas rimliga trappsteg att ta som spelare.

LIGAN till säsongen 2015/2016 vill ju vara fantastiskt, men än är man inte där med båda fötterna. Sportsligt sett så är klubben i LIGAN, men nu fattas bara riktigt god korv på matcherna!?

Nope korven "är najs", men nu skall det ekonomiska på plats och hur är intresset egentligen i SKÅNE?

Finns en hel del basketfolk ute i näringslivet på chefspositioner, som har egna företag men är man villig att stoppa in lite "deg" för att Malbas skall kunna baka bröd?

Kan basketSKÅNE sluta upp under ett basketligalag på herrsidan, som det delvis har blivit på damsidan med Eos damligalag?

Förstår ALLA i skåne vikten av att ha ett ligalag på herr & damsidan eller vill man bara leka i sin egen klubb och jaga pokaler för sitt klubbemblem eller vill VI mer än så?

Vill vi skapa ligaspelare, collegespelare, proffs spelare en framtid för skånska spelare att leva på sin idrott på hemmaplan?

Kan klubbar känna stolthet i att skicka vidare spelare till ligalagen i SKÅNE?

Konceptet HETA SKÅNE var inte illa tänkt förutom namnet och genomförandet, men i alla fall för denna basketidioten så måste ALLA med på nåt hörn i Malbas ligasatsning för att vi skall kunna göra OASEN större i basketöknen.

Jag kan tillsammans med många andra duktiga coacher lära kidsen spela basket, men kanske du har "degen" eller lite tid över, så att vi kan sluta stirra på recept och börja baka!?

Eller kanske du kan bidra med nåt annat?

Vi borde ALLA bidra med allt vi kan "deg" eller inte så kan vi alla bidra med något inte minst att komma på matcherna.

RIP Dean Smith

RIP Coach Dean Smith.

A man that dedicated his life to basketball and helped to shape the G.O.A.T of basketball in Michael Jordan​ . We have lots to be grateful to a basketball/leadeership/teaching brain like Dean Smith was. For me he gave me one thing i particular. Many years ago I bought one of his books where he explained coming to North Carolina and at that time the university was all about fotball and basketball was not highly thought of. The had been banned from TV games for a couple of years, so recruiting wasn`t the easiest the first years.

What Dean did was no cry about, he tried to find solutions. Basketball program needed money, so for example he had them put in special comfortable chairs for sponsors.

He had the locker room re-designed so it would look more like a PRO locker room to make recruitment easier and his reasoning was. The LR is the first thing a player sees everyday and the last thing the see. He tried simply solutions to promote his baskeball program and it eventually became one of the powerhouses in college basketball.

With this I learned it is all right to complain, but make sure you do all you can o find a solution so that your team, club and especially your players can be succesfull.  Your job as a coach is not just to coach the players on the court.
You need to create a learning/suiting enviroment so they can develop and become winners in basketball and life.

Thank you!