Mistake #12 - Not cutting players & people

Coach,

I was inconsolable the day my college coach cut me from the team in my sophomore year.

I was also shocked. At the time, I was the best player on the team—averaging 28 points per game and 4th in the country in 3-point shooting. I couldn’t fathom why a coach, who was supposed to want to win, would cut me and make the team worse.

It turned out that he believed he was making the team better.

It came down to this: he thought I was holding the team back with my selfish attitude, and he just didn’t want to coach me every day. I was making him miserable.

After being cut, I dropped out of school and moped around, generally miserable. After a few weeks, my dad gave me an ultimatum:

I could make excuses, or I could change and get better.

So I did. I humbled myself. Owned up to my mistakes. Got in the best shape of my life. I worked my butt off. All of that over the next 6 months, it led to a scholarship to go play at a bigger school in a higher division—and competing for national championships.

Without my first college coach cutting me, I would not have leveled up as a player, person, or leader.

Many coaches wrestle with this:

Do you cut a player with a bad attitude if they’re also your best scorer?
Do you cut a senior who may not play much?
Do you keep 10 players in a small school if the last two aren’t committed to working hard and getting better?

Here’s what I’ve learned—cutting someone, done right, can be a turning point, not a punishment.

If you do it in love—for your team, your standards, the player, and the game—the hard choice and the painful conversation can actually create deeper trust and relationship.

Beauty comes from elimination. To build a beautiful program, you will have to remove some things and some people. The best leaders do it for the benefit of everyone involved. They do it without apology, and with courage and conviction.

And remember: it’s not the end of anyone’s story. Done right, it can push them to higher standards in their next chapter.

The mistake some coaches make is cutting based only on current ability. That’s not the test.

The real questions are:

1. Are they above the line or below the line? The line are your standards, you know in your heart right away if someone is above or below that line of excellence. 

2. Is the room better or worse because they’re in it?

3. Do you want to spend this season of your life with them?

Low achievement isn’t the problem.

Lack of commitment to the shared vision is a problem.  You can coach a bad shooter. You can’t coach someone who refuses to commit to chasing rebounds, sprinting the floor, or encouraging their teammates.

If someone is below the line, making the room worse, and you dread spending a season with them, you’re not helping them or your team by keeping them. You’re just lowering the standard.

Answer those three questions, and you’ll know what to do.

Stay SAVI,

-Tyler

P.S. Man, writing this story brought up a lot of old emotions. In fact, this whole month has been an emotional rollercoaster for many of us at SAVI Basketball .

Today was day 12 of our “30 Mistakes…” series. Coaches from across the world have been sharing the mistakes they’ve made, and we’ve all been connecting in ways that have surprised even me.

It’s been a great reminder of how powerful it truly is to have a great team around. And thanks to that one day in my life… I have that with our coaches and community, and with you.

If you’d like to participate the rest of the month, you can start a 7-Day Free Trial by clicking below and selecting “Start Free Trial.”

We’d love to have you on the team.