Page 215 - How to Create a Winning Organization

Seek Significant Change
Starting in 1962–1963, my new policy was to go primarily with 197
seven main players—virtually, seven starters—in both practice and
games. My previous goal of doling out playing time in a democratic
manner was discarded. I changed a fundamental policy for how I
did things.
Once I decided on this new plan, it was reflected in how I orga-
nized practice. I would have five starters on the court, and rotate
in the “extra” starting guard and front line player after the starters
had made a designated number of free throws. I followed this for-
mula during the roughly one-third of the practice time devoted to
five-on-five work. The “starting” players who were being replaced
would come out of the five-on-five scrimmage until the replace-
ments, in turn, had made a specific number of consecutive free
throws. This pattern continued throughout the practice.
I didn’t intend to ignore the eighth to twelfth players, obviously,
but I let them know very clearly what their roles in the group
would be and for what purpose. More important, I tried very hard
to make them understand the great value of their role and how it
would contribute to the overall welfare of the team.
In part, this meant they would be the stone that sharpened the
sword, that is, the starting lineup. But it also meant being fully
prepared to step into a more prominent role if the opportunity
arose. Of course, this plan would be effective only if individuals
put the team’s welfare first—if team spirit really existed.
An extensive review of my notebook also revealed that when
UCLA qualified for the NCAA postseason tournament, I intensi-
fied our already grueling practices, working players even harder—
so hard, in fact, that by tournament time they were physically and
mentally spent. Once I saw evidence of this fact in my notes, I be-
came very prudent in conserving players’ energy prior to the
playoffs.