Everyone is a Towel Boy
Working in the NBA
It’s around this time of year when NBA players start heading back to their NBA cities and start playing pick-up hoops at their practice facilities. It’s informal but for someone like you… it can be an opportunity to shine.
September was always one of my favorite months of the NBA season. It was a little more relaxed. Players would come in and work their way into game condition by playing pick-up. And someone like me just might get to be the 10th man if there was need for an extra player. Trust me, I was thrilled… and absolutely freaked out when I got to play. I’m sure I’ve got a highlight tape of Greg Oden dunking over me somewhere.
Even in the summer time, one thing Trail Blazers former Strength Coach Bob Medina used to get on us about was to always be ready. For anything. Be ready to play. Be ready to rebound for players. Be ready to run the scoreboard. Be ready to wipe up the floor. Yes, it was fun. Yes, it was relaxed. But without the staff being ready, games would get messy, players would leave early, and there would be potential for injuries.
This coincides with a story I heard on the Lowe Post with Kendrick Perkins:
“Darren Erman was a lawyer, making 250k a year, stopped being a lawyer. Had a passion for coaching in the NBA. Didn’t take any shortcuts. Started at the bottom. Moved to Boston and rented out someone’s basement. His office was in the closet. He was at the gym from 5:00am till 11:00p waiting on any guy to come in and to rebound for them. Kevin Garnett only worked out with Coach Thibs. He did all his work with Thibs and Erman rebounded for him. Erm was always there when KG came in with a towel on his shoulder and ball in his hands. Me and KG were the biggest sweaters in the NBA… when someone dove on the floor for a loose ball, Erman would sprint on the floor and wipe it up and sprint back.
One day, KG comes in and he’s upset. He’s talking to Assistant GM’s on the floor, he’s talking to assistant coaches, someone fell on the floor during practice, Darren ran out to the floor and was scrubbing while everyone watched… KG said, “Hold up Doc, hold up, I got something to say…. Look, all you motherfuckers sitting around here, Danny I’m talking to you, all these Assistant Coaches, you see my man Erm right there, from now on, every time I walk in the gym, I need you with a ball in your hand and a towel on your shoulder or we gonna have a problem. Everyone needs to be invested like my man Erman. I was like, “Damn.” Next day at practice, everybody had a ball on their hand and towel on their shoulder. It was accountability. He wasn’t telling everyone to wipe up sweat, but we in this together, and no one is higher than the next person.”
Whether you’re on an NBA staff, a college staff, or anywhere, there’s always a chance to show you’re ready to do whatever it takes to make your team better.
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