Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May.

2016 May 14

     Today starts off with a flurry of well wishes for my birthday: text messages, Instagram mentions, one random telemarketer. All well intentioned, except the telemarketer, but it was 3:30 am. The fear of oversleeping ruins any chance at deep REM sleep the last two hours. I am up packing and getting ready to take on the day by 5:45. First on the schedule is the bus to Changxing City. I am pretty sure catching some Z’s on the bus is in order. Four hours later, we arrive.

     One of the major worries on a trip like this laundry. We have a full load of sweaty uniforms, socks, and unmentionables (which I just mentioned). Add to that, the regular streets clothes and one can see how much laundry is created daily. When we first check in, all the guys go to their rooms and get the laundry out into the hallway ASAP. Because we are only here one night, and didn’t get in until noon, the staff has to turn it over quickly. When we get it back several hours later, it is still wet. Not five more minutes in the dryer wet. I mean, we may need to call the repairman wet. It’s a lesson on materials. The lighter compression type stuff is dry. The medium weight jerseys and shorts are damp. Anything with cotton needs to be hung until the morning. My bathroom looks like a closet as I race against the clock and hope it all dries before I have to stuff it into the suitcase tomorrow.

The free afternoon I had is redirected to separating and folding the aforementioned laundry. If you want the good view you have to pay the price. I am able to get a quick nap, then shower and shave and down to pregame meal. The routine of the days is starting to set in and some guys are buying food while they are out and skipping pregame meals in order to nap longer. Finally, it’s time to board the bus and to the arena.

     The dark hardwood of the floor shows how long the building has been in service. It’s a bandbox that seats maybe 2,000. I anticipate that it will be really hot and the smoke will be really bad. I was half right. It was hot. The floor is narrow so corner threes are out, but running the defense to a trap there is in. There has been much ado in regard to playing time. I split the roster differently for the start of the game. I know the deficiencies of both clusters and figure we will struggle in the first half, be down a few maybe 10. I do this because the best way to find out who your leaders are is to start a mutiny. The players start off sluggish, the Chinese team is shooting the ball well and running a basic three man weave and our guys are staying screened. We give up way too many 3’s and by the half we are down 25. Full Blown Mutiny. Even Robert and the promoter are having a heart attack. I dawdle to the locker room to allow for the players to scream and holler at each other until they decide it is all my fault. The one thing they vehemently agree on is I have no clue and if they are going to win this game they are going to have to band together and get it done. By making myself the center of attention, I have directed their focus to a more team oriented approach. It works perfectly.

     The second half we outscore them 58-33. We take the lead with 5 seconds to go and make a final defensive stand to win. I went with a more standard lineup. Shortened the bench to about 8 guys and left the Chinese team, 2,000 fans, Robert and the promoter wondering how the hell we just did that. That’s why I get the good view.

You are never too old to set another goal or to dream another dream

2016 May 13

     This hotel is luxurious. At breakfast, some of the players ask if we can stay put and fly in the other teams for the rest of trip. It’s tempting to stay put, to keep everything the same, but time marches forward and what’s ahead may be even better than this.

     The first item on the agenda today is a trip to a sponsor. JELPC makes steel cylinders for manufacturing and construction applications. Think shiny metal tubes that manipulate hydraulic arms on construction equipment. When we arrive, there is a welcoming committee of executives. On the balconies of the all five floors employees are watching us walk in. There is a flag raising ceremony at the entrance to the plant and I was asked to flip the switch to start the automated process. There were five flags at equal height, a minute later all the flags were higher, and the Chinese and United States flags were the highest. We were escorted inside by the JELPC president. There were at least a dozen photographers catching all the action. Once inside, the Cheer Squad coordinator and I were asked to autograph a large commemorative plaque (think tennis tournament championship check) documenting and celebrating our visit. The president then signed it and there were more pictures of the three of us holding it up.

     The plant tour was great. We walked upstairs to the manufacturing floor, then to the employee gymnasium. The guys were in there less than a minute and they were playing ping pong and badminton like it was frat party. We were soon joined by the company’s employee basketball team. Which truly looked like a mix of accountants and machinists in uniforms. They had a red team and a white team complete with corporate logos and headbands. A friendly scrimmage had been prearranged, so I had 7 volunteer players do battle with Team JELPC. The first possession Tyler Strange, Gardner Webb Univ., steals the ball and floats it out to Kyle who dunks it with authority. I am pretty sure he didn’t just dislodge the rim, I am pretty sure he broke it, but we carried on. A two minute game with the white team, followed by a two minute game with the red team. Like t-ball baseball, there was no score kept, but anytime an employee did something decent the USA guys really harassed each other for allowing it to happen. A good time was had by all, and there were lots of pictures taken on the court. We were escorted to the rooftop deck for refreshing hot tea and chit chat with the highest level executives. This deck was a garden oasis with a hardwood gazebo, meditation gardens with water features and a great view of a mountain off in the distance. It was certainly an inviting place to work.

     After the plant, sightseeing was next up. I had no idea where we were going. We drove a short distance and stopped for a red light. Diagonally across the street was a KFC. BJ Young rushed to the front of the bus and begged the promoter to stop and get food. The bus moved about 2 feet, pulled over and the door opened. I thought to myself, this can’t be happening.

     Turns out, it was our stop. We did not go to KFC, we just unloaded and started walking down a River-walk with shops and lots of people and scooters, the ever present scooters. At one point, Tyler rides past me on the back of scooter with a Chinese guy driving. We drew an incredible amount of interest as the giants walked down the avenue. Lots more pics. When we reach the end, we are hustled into a building that looks pretty old. I had recently read an article (Dec. 2015, Travel + Leisure Magazine) regarding Chinese architecture and how during the 1970’s the new buildings were designed to look like old buildings. It was called “fanngu.” So I thought, maybe this was that. It was not.

     Walking in the palace of Chiang Kai-Shek was amazing. A faraway place with a strange sounding name. The kind of thing the 7th grader in me would be looking out the window and thinking about. Now, I was standing in the center of the home of one China’s most famous political and military leaders. It was the same tourist friendly layout as most exhibits: personal belongings, plaques explaining, life expanding.

There is nothing on our schedule after lunch. Everyone goes their own way until pregame meal.

Game time

     Tonight’s opponent is a better team than out first game. We mix and mingle with them at the pregame meal and they are tall. At least 3 guys are over 6’10”. They are the tall skinny type, but still makes me think rebounding is going to be harder than game one.

     We get to the arena, it is buzzing. A good sized crowd tonight and the smoke is not as bad. I don’t think less people are smoking, I think this arena has better ventilation.  The pregame features a terrific, double dancing dragons performance. The Cheer Squad does their thing and the players are introduced. It’s time for the anthems. It feels great to be standing there, looking up at the flag, hearing the music, and knowing that we have a chance to represent the USA. By the end I am singing aloud… “and the home of the brave.”

      The tip looks ceremonial. A fellow wearing slacks and loafers brings the ball to center court. Just like many picture ops before, but Robert stands up and yells at me to let the guys know this ball is in play. Jordan Railey, Washington St. Univ., looks disinterested until he hears me tell him the ball is live. The tosser of the ball actually does it pretty well, and scampers quickly off the court as the game begins. Jordan wins the tap, we run down and score and we are off.

     We open up 6-0, then they get back, then we get back up, and keep ourselves ahead until halftime. Our biggest problem in the first half is hurt feelings. I changed the starting lineup, changed the substitution pattern and there grumbling behind me for 20 minutes. When the break arrives we are up 8, and down emotionally. Yes, really.

     The halftime dunk contest takes forever, and two of our second half starters are gassed before we even get under way. Sloppy play, quick fouls, early substitutions to combat the tiredness, and trying to find a balance of playing time which is both effective and player friendly. I admit, one of my shortcomings in life is being very competitive. If I am playing, I am playing to win.  I want to find the right combination that will rip the competitive spirit out of an opponent’s heart.

    Our defense was pretty good, shooting went from acceptable to making lots of layups as the Chinese team ran out of gas. We are up 18 with 5 minutes to play. We coast to the finish line and win 100-81. It wasn’t the prettiest win, but I never met a win I didn’t like. Two games, two wins.  We play tomorrow night and have to take a 4 hour bus ride to get there. Let’s see how the team responds to back to back, with travel, and chip about playing time.

     After the game there is always a crowd of people on the court trying to get close to the players and the Cheer Squad. The sponsors, JELPC, stay long time. They were sitting courtside and now have plenty of reasons to be happy. When the crowd thins, I ask Robert to come with me to thank the president again for hosting us. The president tells me he is quite happy. The game has been all over the television news, everyone from his city was there, the company got great exposure and in his words, “the team played perfectly.” Cha and Ching. Those are the kinds of comments I like to hear. Happy sponsors tend to invite people back.

Traveling leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller

2016 May 12

     Knowing I have to wake up early usually means not sleeping very well in anticipation of oversleeping. This was not the case. I conked out quickly, and awoke what I thought was 47 seconds before the alarm. Upon further review, I misread my timer and tried to fall back to sleep for 47 minutes but that wasn’t happening. Not to worry, today is a grueling travel day.  A two hour bus ride to the airport in Changsha, followed by an hour and half flight to Hangzhou, and the final leg is a three hour bus to Fenghua City.

     It seems to me that my friends in education could be doing an awesome “Where’s Coach” project highlighting the towns and points of interest, miles covered to date, potential future locations and of course a little statistics with wins/looses, margin of victory/defeat, and an over under on how many of the dozen ties I brought will actually make it home.

     Add International Smuggler to my growing list accomplishments. I had completely forgotten I had packed a cigar to enjoy after my first victory, and a lighter, and an incredibly nice new monogrammed cigar cutter (a present from Rich and Maureen). It made it to LA, Shang Hai, and the first time through Changsa. But, it got popped by the agent today. Fact of the matter is, I didn’t even get to use it. The hour or so I was going to enjoy and relax with the cigar, was erased by the impromptu dinner party last night. Not to worry, every hotel room has matches and ashtrays in it, even though they sit on the same nightstand as the “NO SMOKING” sign.

     The hotel in Fenghua City is great. The Huaxin International Hotel (www.hxgj.com). Top notch. We have a little free time to stretch our legs and enjoy the sunshine and then dinner and a shoot around at the arena.

     The guys grumble about having a shoot around, and I cannot blame them. However, our practice time for tomorrow was cancelled and a promotion visit was inserted in that time slot. So tonight is our chance to acclimate to the arena. This one is bigger than the last. There is a monstrous TV at one end. It will be difficult to shoot there and I have asked Robert to pull some strings and switch our bench from the left side to the right, which is an indicator of which direction the team play offense. I would like to shoot at the blank background in the second half. We will see how it goes.

     We start with the warm-up routine and it’s starting to look smooth now. Then walking through what Defensive problems arose and how to correct them. Then walking through Offensive problems and how to correct them. Then I split us into two groups. I didn’t tell the players the common element of the split and told them they had to figure out why they were clustered this way. The teams competed in a jump shooting contest. First to five, just like 5^th grade phys. ed. And it was fun and games until the first group won the first three rounds. The second set was closer, but again the first group prevailed three times. The second group decided they could win the imaginary title if they were the first to hit a half-court shot. The first group agreed and it was bombs away. It took 15 shots but the second group got it done. Some half court 3 on 3, some foul shots and we were done in an hour.

     

     Last night, there were introductions, but not anthems (not uncommon in China), but tomorrow there will be. I know this because they played it over the PA system for about 10 seconds to confirm they had the right song. Last time, I was in China as the head coach for Australia and I could see on the player’s faces that their anthem stirred emotion. I already have butterflies about hearing mine.

*height: the common factor for the clusters tonight was the program listed height for each player. Players with even inches (ex.6’10”) were one team, and the odd inches (6’9”) were on the other. Nope: no one got it.

Perception is reality

2016 May 11

     Waking up in a bed felt wonderful.  It was the first night I had slept flat since Los Angeles. I purposefully left the window open to awake to the sound of this city. We are a block from the main street, so the sounds were like morning birds singing a new day into existence. Today’s schedule is pretty mundane. Breakfast. Practice. Promotional appearance. Lunch. Free time. Light pregame. Game. Post-game meal.

    

     Moving these guys is difficult. It’s not always the same slow pokes. It is disappointing to watch as I have told them the opportunity exists here to make money. The tour promoters are looking at them on and off the court. China is willing to pay top dollar for talent, but they do not want to buy problems. I don’t blame them.

     

     The mundane wears off when we drive toward City Hall for our promo appearance. There are gigantic blow-up arches across the street leading to the plaza. The plaza is filled with people and the music is pumping. Security parts the crowd so our bus can pull up to the red carpet leading to a podium. There is a narrow path being opened by two officers in front of me as I lead the team from the bus to the podium. It was thrilling. It looked just like every championship ceremony you have ever seen on ESPN, except we have not played one minute of basketball. The Americans were here, and Hunan City is excited about it.

     The players really had no idea something like this was going to happen. BJ Young, a point guard from Univ. of Arkansas, had been here before and was trying to tell the others, but they weren’t buying what he was selling. When the fireworks display began, they all knew this was something they would never forget. The Cheer Squad arrived shortly after us, and they too were greeted warmly. They performed on the podium, and then the entire US Basketball traveling party went into City Hall. I had been in here the last time and it was still impressive. Several group photos, pictures with dignitaries, and thousands of selfies with fans, and yes some people even asked for one with the coach. Now we have been treated like big time players, tonight we have to live up to the hype.

Game Time

     It’s fun to watch an arena fill. The early birds trying to get some up close time before the ushers shoo them away. The slowly building rumble of feet and a thousand conversations. The oohs and aahs as the players get some shots up during the free shooting. And in this case, the swell of cigarette smoke. In China you can smoke just about anywhere and the arena is no exception.  It’s interesting to me how it seems so out of place, but this was the case in the USA not that long ago. Red Auerbach would light up a cigar on the bench when he knew his beloved Celtics had the game in hand.

     

Underestimating the Chinese players is easy. They don’t look like players. Even the tall guys. When the game gets underway however, they are skilled fundamentally and very good at shooting from the perimeter. We take an early lead, and have to fight them off to hold onto a 1-point lead at the half. The second half was back and forth and the crowd was really pulling for the home team. They would explode every time the US dunked or made a fancy pass, but the longer the Chinese team hung around the more they wanted the upset.

     

     We are up 9 with two minutes remaing. The tour promoter and the translator are sitting on the bench. The promoter calls time out for me and tells Robert, the translator, to make sure I tell the team not to lose focus and protect the ball. While that is true, it was strange to have someone other than me call a time out. We do what we need to do and win the game 97-88. One game. One win.

     

     To celebrate, the promoter decided to take everyone out for “a good American meal.” That was a great idea. Except, we didn’t get back to the hotel until 10:30, the guys were not down in the lobby until 11:15 (which at 2 players per room and only one shower was pretty good), and the restaurant was a 5 minute walk through downtown (which was surprisingly quiet at that hour). Robert had gone ahead and made the reservation and placed an order, when I arrived with the players he sent everyone upstairs and asked me to stay with him. We went to a mini-market and got lots of pastries and juice for our early morning ride. He knew we wouldn’t be getting breakfast. A quick clear out of everything that looked breakfasty, and we joined the team. By the time we got there it was already a little crazy, none of the preorder food was ready, some of the guys didn’t know there was a preorder and had ordered from the menu. The Cheer Squad had elected to go right from the arena so they were already there. The slow delivery of food lead to the inevitable: cocktails. The Cheer Squad had a dignified glass of wine with their meal, but when the guys arrived it quickly turned to shots of Fireball with laughing and celebrating and basically young adults doing what young adults do. Apparently, the promoter (by the way, I have not been told his name, he prefers to be called Bossman which to him seems distinguished, but I am not feeling it) doesn’t hang out with the young adults and mid-party shuts the whole thing down claiming everyone was drunk and disorderly. The food trickles out of the kitchen and by the time I leave to walk back to the hotel it is 1:00 am.

In and of itself, that late night isn’t too bad, but the morning bus is at 5:30 am. Ouch.

Side notes:  I have never had a side note section, but there were a couple of tidbits I thought deserved mention.

*during the game, Kyle Casey (Harvard Univ)  was so overwhelmed by the smoking in the arena that walked off the floor to our bench while play was live, bent over and threw up into a cardboard box formerly full of bottled water. As he came to the bench, I inserted Calvin Godfry (Memphis Univ)...the guys joke how they look alike, and the refs didn’t notice the hockey like exchange at our bench. As soon as we got possession, I called time out, and we officially inserted Calvin into the line-up.

*one of the players forgot his uniform top at the hotel and we had to send the bus driver to fetch it from the hotel.

There is no time like the present.

2016 May 10

     My last entry cover the events leading to the flight to Shang Hai. I did not spend much time with May 9, 2016. In fact, I basically lost it. By the time we landed, it was May 10.  I am sure May 9^th was a fine day, it just didn’t get much love from the travel schedule.

     When you land in China, everyone has to complete departure card. It asks simple questions like where are you staying, why are you here, when will you be leaving?  Nothing too tricky if I was on vacation, but I don’t know all the places we will see and don’t really know if I am here for business, visit, or other. I had told the team I was on a trip like this a few years ago, so I was supposed to be the voice of experience. It is very hard to be tour advisor when you are not tour coordinator. Apparently, I guessed correctly as all the guys moved through customs fine. Only Aly Ahmed, an Egyptian National was slow to move through. He was pulled aside and asked a couple extra questions, but when they opened his well-traveled passport and saw the variety of European countries and the US visa, he was welcomed in.

     We were not walking as a group, shocker, and I was trailing back making sure everyone was ok. By the time I made it to the gate for our connecting site, I was only American at gate 251. I don’t blame the guys wanting to hit the head or get some food, I supposed they would be back shortly. That would be an incorrect guess. With about an hour before the flight, my phone starts to blow up. Coach Young back in the USA was concerned about our progress and wanted to make sure we had met with our contact, Robert. Robert said he was looking for me at the gate (I can assure you I was quite easy to pick out at the gate). I went to the ticket desk just to confirm I was in the right and had been in the right spot for close to two hours by myself. I text back and forth with Coach Young, Robert turned the corner, and Joan texts me to see if I can chit chat at that moment.

     I am relieved that Robert is now in charge of herding the cats, and I feel like the Calvary has arrived. The guys trickle in and our group is starting to garner attention. The gawking kicked into high gear when the NY Knicks Cheer Squad arrived. Seemed to me they were marching in step and giggling at the same time. They completely embodied the difference between men’s and women’s activities. They picked a spot, sat in a circle and broke out a deck of Uno cards. That just about sums it up.

     After and extra hours delay, it was time to board. There had been many people asking for pictures with the guys. They were very patient and kind with everyone. I was glad to be moving. Except, there were now only 8 guys. All the other passengers file through the gate and still no players. Robert looks at me and says, “Come with me.” He takes me to the ticket, tells the airline people that I was going to make an announcement for the tardy players…and they say yes. I am about to be the voice of Shang Hai Pudong Airport. Without hesitation, I take the mic and say, “Attention: will player 1 and player 2 please report to gate 251 immediately. Will player 1 and player 2 report to gate 251 immediately.” So, there’s that new little wrinkle in the resume: International Pager. When I was done Robert said, “You speak perfect English.” I thought duh, yeah, I am kinda from there. He further said he was impressed with my pace and tone and voice quality. My guess is those are the graded elements of Chinese English classes. Within seconds the two appeared and away we went, with player 1 commenting that the voice was so clear he got scared when he heard his name, and then looked shocked when I told him it was me on the mic. Maybe I should be calling PHL for some side work.

     The plane ride to Changsha City was uneventful, other than a chatty Chinese businessman who was excited to see American basketball players. His English was quite good also. He was patient while I tried to slip in the few items of Chinese I know and he said he could tell I had practiced and the items I knew sounded quite good.

     A couple hours later, we were on the ground, claimed the luggage and out to bus for quick 3 hour ride to Hunan City. I am pretty sure I stayed in this hotel the last time also. There is a bustling downtown a block from the front door. We had some dinner and went to the arena for a shoot around. When were pulled into the parking lot there were at least 50 people waiting there. Seriously? To watch us walk from the bus and through a gate? Crazy. We took the floor slowly: shooting, stretching, and getting oriented to the setting. When everyone was set, we started. The middle school passing drill, combined with a half court shooting drill we practiced Sunday, become the beginning of a well-choreographed pregame warm up.  They players had no idea they had be learning the system from the moment they met me. Add a stretching segment and a lay-up line and we will be ready to play. A quick review of offenses, inbounds, press break, followed by lots of free throws and we were done. An hour. Like clockwork. All the while, the Cheer Squad is doing their thing. It builds to blaring arena speakers of danceable music while I handed out uniforms on the sideline.

     Tomorrow will be our debut. It should be quite a show. I wish all of you could tune in. Maybe someday, I will be involved with a team you can watch.

     Tonight the players have free time. A decidedly dangerous thing. As we pulled into the hotel parking lot I told them, “Free time is valuable, misspent free time can be costly. Make professional decisions about how you spend your time.”

Without tension, there would be no story.

2016 May 08

     Waking up was easy. Today was going to be a fun day. Waking up at 5:30 was a problem.  I know it will be a late night and I need to sleep as long as and well as I can.  Not going to happen.  The first thing on the schedule is to meet with Tracy, the LA based travel agent in charge of booking our group.  I still lots of questions, but I knew she would have more answers.  That is not until 10. So, I wait for the hotel breakfast to open. The anticipation of working the fresh waffle maker is good enough to hold me until 6:30 when I head down.  The lobby is empty and so is the buffet. More for me. 

     Meeting Tracy went quickly, a small middle aged Asian lady with a bodyguard looking hubby. She has a FedEx envelope and two large boxes.  She tells me to deliver the boxes to Robert, our tour contact in China, and the team’s passports are in the envelope.  She left. Total meeting time 2 minutes. I assumed the brevity was due to detailed correspondence in the envelope.  I lug the boxes to the room with the envelope tucked under my arm.  I open the envelope. Just passports. Well, passports held together by rubber bands to be exact. A group of 5 and a group of 6. No itinerary. No boarding passes. Not the name of the airline even. That feeling of shock you just had reading the previous sentence; I had that also. A series of text messages followed and the details emerged, including a picture of a well outlined plan on company stationery the she, and everyone else, must have thought I already had. 

     With little situation done, I decided to nap a little. Not sure how well I will sleep on the plane, I could be sitting between two very tall guys. Just as I start to doze, the cleaning lady knocks. I tell her we have late check out and she seems satisfied. At 12, there is another knock, it is clearly the maintenance manager and she wants to know about this late checkout. I repeat about the team, and leaving later, and she asks me to check with the front desk. I go down to the desk and the guy informs me that 1 o’clock is ate enough and all rooms should be cleared out by then. Now I have yet to meet the team and they have been told the first thing on today’s list is meet in the lobby at 4. They could be anywhere. I text them the new reality and hope for the best. My things have been packed for hours so I make the two trips from 317 to the lobby lugging my suitcase and shoulder bag, then the two large boxes. I see a couple other bags in the area the manager agreed to store things for us, so I take that as a positive. 

     So, being evicted and on the streets of El Segundo, I decide to take a walk to the park and sit on a bench. Other than napping on a bench at the mall, which I have done, nothing say old man better than a walk to the park bench.  This was about 20 minutes away and had a great view of planes taking off at LAX. It was sunny, but not warm. It was nice to get a little exercise. I lasted there for a little more than an hour. Basically, if you have seen one plane lift off, you have seen them all. Back to the hotel.

     By the looks of it, the “basketball boot out” had worked well. There was a group of guys hanging out in the lobby and the patio area.  When I walked in, all eyes were on me.  I had to spill the beans about being coach.  The wait was worth it as one of my shuttle buddies got a broad smile and exclaimed, “Man, I have seen you about 5 times already and had no idea who you were.” I told him that I too had noticed him, and that our interactions had always been polite. To which he said proudly, “man, that’s why I am always careful about what I say, you never know who you are talking to.” To which I just smiled and completely agreed. The group watch the Cavs-hawks playoff game and then went to the practice facility.

     The receptionist was a smiley girl who informed me that practice was slated for 6-8, not 5-7. And we couldn’t start until the fee had been paid. See, there it is again. That feeling like some days are better than others.  I called the coach who is organizing the trip, he spoke with them and we were all set. Not sure what magic he pulled out of his hat, but we were back on schedule. 

How was practice? It was like a meeting your wife again for the first time. In my mind, I had played it over and over again. But to be standing at mid-court with 10 of the best players I have ever been charged with was exhilarating. Just for nostalgia’s sake, I started off with my middle school, introductions passing drill. With one ball, it’s laughable. With 4, it’s dangerous. With that, we were off. Passing, running, scheming, tweaking, learning, enjoying. Free of all that the world loads us down with. Lost for 2 hours of pure basketball.

     Basketball players are notoriously slow to transition from sweaty to clean. All of our luggage was with us in the gym. I told them to take what they needed to locker room and I would stand guard until they had all come back to retrieve their luggage. They knew we were leaving for the airport right after and that our flight was at 1 am. The last bag was dragged out of the gym at 8:30. One player had his dad with him and let me know they were getting some food and he would meet us at the airport. I was nervous, but he is a grown man. When I got to the lobby of the facility, 8 of 9 players were lounging and ready to go. I called the missing player and he told me that he too had left and meet us at the airport. Again with the feeling, this is one persistent feeling.

     The airport traffic is insane. The airport terminal is equally insane. The line is the amusement park serpentine type. While we are in line, one of the guys asks if I still have his passport. I do, no big deal, I had it to him. It is then that I realize, I still have one of the self-driven player’s passports. That’s a big deal. I cannot pass through security with it, there is no way the counter guy will hold it, and there is no telling how long the player will be. Pass the Xantac please. There is a long line leading to security. I text and text again and call directly to the player. No response. I get into the line hoping he will arrive before I get to the point of no return. Nope. I talk the agent into allowing me to stand aside while gaining instant access when my friend arrives to get his passport. Standing there is probably against the rules but not the biggest I would break in the next couple hours. I wait until finally there is a call. The player say he expect to arrive about 11. It is currently about 10:15. I let him know the dire consequences of not being here. The other players have entered the gigantic security line and I alone waiting for him. I will wait until 11 and then I too will enter the line of no return.

     It was like waiting for dark to descend while waiting for the fireworks to start. Is it dark enough yet? No. now? Nope. What about…I call the player to say the clock has struck proverbial 12. I got in the line. He is having trouble find Tom Brady Terminal and I can hear him running and asking people directions as we talk. I am at mid-point of the pre-line and he arrives, like lost comrades in in a spy movies he is describing the building and I am giving him directions to me. He take his passport and heads back to get ticketed. It is really late now and I am not sure I will make the plane either. When I see the monster my heart is again panicked. I see the cluster of above average height people and they are just about at the scanners, quick calculation tells me this line is at least 1 hour and 45 minutes. I must have that traveler in the headlights look about me because a TSA agent starts to talk about airline employees who walk the line for straggling passengers to help them make their flight. A small relief but now I am watching these poor employees with handheld flight cards like a hawk. I get to the end of the first turn and the guys are waving at me to join them all the y up at the front. How’s your tummy right now? I wave back and they are emphatic, the absolute signal that I should duck under the tape barrier and join them.  Jesus take the wheel. I do it. I duck under the tape, and walk past at least 1 million people to the front. I am stopped as I duck under the second tape feet away from the scanners. “Hey, what are you doing!?” this voice had clear authority in its tone. I stop of course. “You can’t do that, get back in the line or you will create a situation and make it worse.” The people at the front of the line give me get-in-the-damn-line look and I do. 7 people from the front. Not another word said until I get to the TSA passport/boarding pass checker. Her only question was, “Why did you stop?  I told your players you could come right up.” Ahh, possible international incident, the wrath of million unsettled travelers, and deep intention to do as told. She smiled and checked off whatever it is they check off and wished me well on the trip.

     Once I my seat it was time to take a head count. I was shocked to see Mr. Late passport already in the plane, apparently he cut the line as soon as he had a boarding pass. 1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.9. And then there was Mr. Awol.  He was poor communicating so far and now that we were at the moment of truth it was no different. I didn’t know if was going to make it. As they made the announcement that the doors were closing, my heart sunk.  The player next to me open his texts and reads it out loud. I AM NOT GOING TO MAKE IT. My feeling just punched me in the nose, how about yours? And then, there he is. Walking down the aisle. He did make. The player next to me lets me know the text was about 10 minutes old. So while I feel like I was a nervous wreck, I am sure those two players felt even worse.

     A quick 14 hour flight to the other side of the world awaits. Talk with you from Asia soon.

(The names have been purposefully omitted to protect the guilty. I will only use names when something good happens)

A journey of a thousand miles, begins with the first step.

2016 May 07

It’s been raining for a week, but it’s been a fast week.  Making sure everything was ready to go took until today. Suits. Shirts. Basketball notepads. Electronics. Reading material for countless hours of traveling.  It’s not easy to uproot and head across the world for a few weeks. Thanks to a terrific and loving family and the support of friends, I am off on a great adventure. Over the next couple weeks, I am going to try to convey what I see and do. I hope you find it interesting.

Currently, I am sitting at the Philadelphia Airport.  I thought it would be a good idea to get here early, get through security and have no worries. Do you want to know why security lines are long and slow? Because Spirit Airlines closes at 11:30 am and doesn’t reopen until 2:30. So, I will spend my buffer hours waiting at the baggage check in. Then lots of us will head to security at the same time. Jam up the line, worry about being late and grumbling about it.  Why Spirit why?

So, just for kicks I decide to call Spirit and see if there is something they can do. Navigating the electronic phone tree was easy. Which button do I press for an abandoned work station?  It took a few minutes, of which I apparently had plenty, but soon Hannah was on the line to help me.  She really couldn’t comprehend that not a single Spirit employee was there.  In fact, she repeatedly told me the situation I was describing was “impossible”.

The next passenger to arrive walked up behind me and asked if I knew when they would be open. I told him what I knew and he dropped is bag in the not yet formed line, and walked away to sit on a nearby bench. He clearly didn’t fully conceptualize the term “unattended bag”. The next two passenger arrived together and obediently stood behind the lonely bag.  Each passenger voiced concern over the lack of employees and tight timelines.  Each tried to call the posted helpline, but was unsuccessful.

Around 2:15, a guy wearing a blue, standard issue work shirt arrived. He open his work station and away we went. Security was a breeze, and the departure beer was cold. A fitting reward for waiting out the line crisis. On to Los Angeles.

When I had collected my bag, I ventured out to the taxi stand. I told the guy who hails the cabs where I was going he said, “Why don’t you just take the shuttle and save $20?” Oh, the shuttle. Cool. I’ll do that. Thanks.  The shuttle stops a several places before leaving the airport and we pick up a couple tall guys along the way.  I am sitting in the second row as the guys start to chat. Polite introductions, leads to small talk about international work experiences. They kibitz about parties, and teams, and foreign play styles, and how much foreign players hate when you curse at them in their own language. Neither takes notice of the people in the van as they relax their speech to include quite colorful language and details of life abroad for a young, talented, and American player. I cannot wait to see their faces tomorrow at practice when I am introduced as the coach. And yes, I specifically did not interject myself into the conversation for that exact reason.