Pat Summitt

The news about Pat Summitt having early onset Alzheimer's was just awful news. As someone who has grown up around and in the basketball community, you see and hear a lot about lots of coaches. Many of them to me come off as posers or flash in the pans. Yet, there are many who stand the test of time and are on another level. When I think of those coaches, I think of Dean Smith, Mike Kryzewski, John Wooden, Pat Riley, Phil Jackson, and Pat Summitt.

I was first really introduced to her and how she coaches while watching a documentary about one of her championship seasons. It was absolutely wonderful to get a back stage glimpse of that program, and I was forever turned into a Pat Summitt fan.

At the risk of taking a lot of criticism, I freely admit that I am one of those guys who likely would have had a tough time playing for a woman, but I would not have had an issue with her. Every time I watch her, toughness and competitiveness just ooze out of her. You can tell how demanding she is, but you also see how her players respond to her and give her everything they have.

Leadership like that is rare, and I think her success would have would have been attained no matter who or what she was coaching. I am pleased to hear that she is going to stay on as coach, and I hope she has many more years for us to watch.