Need advice about daughters coach

My 13 year old daughter just completed her AAU basketball season playing for an elite team. This is actually her third year playing for an elite team and without a doubt the worst season for us. She is a very talented and athletic young lady with the heart and desire it takes to succeed. However, this year we experienced our first taste of questionable coaching. This was his first year with this Elite program and from our knowledge got the position thru mutual friends of the director. From the beginning, he was a loose cannon. He seemed to single my daughter out by yelling and humiliating her. At our second tournament, another player passed the ball at the back of another girl, causing a turn orver and the other team scored. The coach called a time out and to much of ours and other parents surprise, he screamed at my daughter for not calling for the ball and being out of position. He yelled that she didnt come to play and dont raise her hand when he asks who wants to go in the game. After the game, he told her if she cant handle his yelling then she will never make it with her high school coach. This went on game after game. I talked to him and he would talk only about how much he has done as far as making her a better player. I also found out that he was sending text messages to three of the other girls on the team, outside of basketball. He would send them texts asking what they are up to or where they are and who they are with. It seems to me that it is inappropriate for a coach to be texting girls for anything not related to basketball. He would also stay at one of the players homes during a tournament as well. This girl could do no wrong. However,, when she did do things wrong, he found a way to yell at my daughter for something that had nothing to do with the play. This same player got incredible play time and when she did something that any other player would have gotten yelled at for, he would pull her to the side and talk to her. My daughter or a few other players would something wrong and would be pulled, yelled at and benched for at least 5 mintues. My daughter never cries and I found myself consoling her on several occations this year. Now, I am torn between going to the director of the program, who has a close friendship with the coach, and is involved with my daughters high school program. Has anyone experienced this or do you have any advise for me?
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One of the good things about

One of the good things about AAU/ travel teams is you only really have a one year commitment, and yours is done. Thank goodness. It sounds like a difficult situation. On one hand, it's good for your daughter to get a "different" form of coaching, because she may indeed run into a high school coach like this guy. Some coaches yell. You'll really find out if she really likes basketball. I've always felt kids who really love the will put up with any style of coaching. The excuse "I didn't like the coach" holds very little with me.

One thing I've noticed, especially with girls, is that they don't like to be singled out. You can almost see their ears close when you instruct them because they don't listen to a word you say, they only are embarrassed because you are correcting them in front of everyone. You have to make a mental note of it and speak with them later to get the full effect.

That said, there are couple of concerns you bring up with the coach texting some of the girls, but not all. I think a coach runs a big risk in doing any individual things with girls. Also, some guys who don't have daughters and coach young girls teams are at least on notice with me. Something is a little wrong with that. I won't paint everyone the same way, but I think a person in that situation has to be very aware of the risks.

Politics and Abuse

AP: Thank you for your letter. Your daughter is not alone-sadly this type of situation goes on all across the country and you are all caught in the middle. She was the lightning rod for this coach. Coaches who yell at children are being abusive. They may not think they are abusing someone but verbal abuse is many times worse than physical abuse.

Please look at all of our articles on abuse (go to the Health and Safety Channel and click into the Emotional Injuries Topic Center for over 100 articles)  and if you still need some help I am happy to talk by phone.

Brooke de Lench

Publisher /Editor In Chief

MomsTeam.com

Author: Home Team Advantage: The Critical Role of Mothers In Youth Sports   (Ha

why do we always assume the coach is wrong?

It's always very hard for us to be objective about our own children.  Quite rare is the coach who doesn't want to see ALL the players do well and improve.  Unfortunately, when we write emails or post on a site, we get wrapped up in our emotions and it appears that you've done the same.  I find it hard to believe that any coach could so obviously single out one particular girl for everything that goes wrong during the course of a game.

As for texting and staying over a players house...an absolute NO-NO so I completely agree with you on that point.

Coaching Style?

Screaming and yelling as a coaching style?  

We are all parents, when I'm screaming and yelling at my kids it means ONLY one thing, "I've lost control." 

This coach has done the same.  Beat feet and get the heck outta there!! 

If your daughter loves the game don't let this push her out.  I disagree with the other poster talking about how much the kids really enjoys it will determine if they stay.  Baseball is really big where I'm from, and a friend of ours son was good enough as a 10 year old to play baseball with the  11-12's (majors for the little league).  It is a huge honor to be played up.  Very few get the chance.  He was the top pitcher for the 10's, but thanks to the coach he got, sat that entire season on the bench.  Went to every practice, clinic and stuff required by the coach, but just didn't play.  He quit after that season.  The really sad part about it, was the kid and the parents were just happy the "nightmare" was over when he quit.

This was a kid who was significantly better than his peers and got pushed out of the game.