Representation matters in our coaching metaphors
Children want to emulate their idols on the sporting field, and coaches will often use this as a tool to create engaging learning environments:
“If you watch Kyrie Irving’s cross-over dribble, this is how he does it…”
It’s a really effective tool, igniting a child’s motivation and imagination by connecting them to one of their role models. But as a grassroots basketball coach, I see that the players referenced are almost exclusively from men’s competitions and there is a need for coaches to bring a greater representation of elite women athletes to their coaching metaphors.
Earlier this year I put the call out to the Australian basketball community on Twitter to help me create a ‘cheat sheet’ for coaches with role models from the WNBL to use when teaching a variety of skills.
They came up the goods! The resources below are free to download via the below link and I encourage basketball coaches within Australia to be use them as we head into the 2023/24 WNBL season.
