Coaching the Louisville Cardinals\' Men\'s Basketball Team

¶ … Team/Individual Case Study: Select a team individual -Season track progress issues encounter. You choose a team -season makes gather information recent season.

Journal entry 1: The question remains -- will the Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team become a victim of its previous success? It is very difficult to have an equally strong performance for two consecutive years in the NCAA tournament, particularly given the 'one and done' rule which results in such high levels of team turnover.

Journal entry 2: Louisville has had some impressive victories thus far this year but against comparatively weak teams. This may hurt them in the tournament and lead to overconfidence.

Journal entry 3: Everyone celebrated Kevin Ware's fortitude in coming back from the broken leg that he sustained during the Duke semifinal last year. Now it seems he will have to redshirt the season after being re-injured in the leg. Sobering to reflect that sometimes being a great player isn't just about skill but the ability to come back from an injury.

Journal entry 4: Russ Smith has really grown as a player this year, compared to his performance in the previous year's tournament. He has always been one of Louisville's best players but now he is much less selfish about sharing the ball. Not only does he make great shots, now he also assists in making great shots.

Journal entry 5: The Kentucky-Louisville rivalry is one of the most historic ones in college basketball. Also, Coach Calipari and Coach Pitino famously hate each other on a personal level. This will be interesting to watch 'play out' this year, given that Kentucky is much more competitive this year than it was during its 'rebuilding' last year.

Journal entry 6: Louisville was victorious over the Temple Owls but should have had an easier time of it. Their next game against the Memphis Tigers will be a true proving ground to demonstrate what seed they are worthy of in the NCAA tournament.

Team case study: The Louisville Cardinals

Sometimes success can be as difficult to deal with as failure. Such is the situation for the Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team. The Cardinals' first challenge was living up to their past success as champions in the 2013 NCAA tournament. This point touches upon the common sports psychology issue of motivation: sometimes, the pressure of high expectations can be more difficult to overcome than low expectations. The second was to ensure that the team's playing roster remained intact and injury-free, after the horrific injury of Kevin Ware during the 2013 semifinal last year. Not only this is a challenging physical issue but the psychological threat of injury can be a profound de-motivator for a team. The third was to maintain a positive coaching relationship between famed Coach Rick Pitino and the members of the team. The team is coming into its conference series on a high note, even though sustaining the excitement created by its NCAA win has inevitably been challenging. This touches upon the sports psychology of leadership and what type of leadership is useful for the team. Pitino is famous for a 'tough love' style as a coach.

At present, the Cardinals are ranked 7th in the ACC conference. They have been improving as the season has worn on, indicating heading in the 'right direction' in terms of success. "U of L. completed a perfect season against the five worst teams in the AAC, winning those 10 games by an average of 25.6 points. The Cards also went 7-0 in February, winning six of them by double figures" (Greer 2014). Yet concerns still remain given that in contrast to the thorough drubbing Louisville inflicted upon Temple earlier in the season, their most recent victory was far more hard-won. At present, the team is optimistic: after a weak start to the game, they finished 88-66 rout against Temple (Greer 2014). The team has been much-followed by its fans and this is reflected in the price of their game tickets. In their upcoming game against Memphis, the average ticket price was $125, "more than twice the average Tigers ticket…and pricier even than any Memphis Grizzlies NBA game this season" (Lintner 2014). But the ACC is not as competitive as the Big East tournament, the conference in which Louisville played last year.

Louisville has had its ups and down this season. For example, after coming back from his gruesome leg break in the Duke semifinal, Kevin Ware was forced to 'redshirt' the entire season after getting kicked in his injured leg (Goodman 2014). However, one of Louisville's players, Russ Smith, has matured and is in contention for the college player of the year title. "His field goal percentage is up from 41.4% as a junior to 46.4% as a senior" (Cassilo 2014). Smith has been praised for being a less selfish player than last year while still retaining his talent. Also, unlike other teams, the membership of the previous winning season's team has remained relatively intact: few have left for the NBA under the new 'one and done' rule in basketball.

Coach Rick Pitino has retained the loyalty and affection of his players. Thanks to Pitino's coaching it is said that "for the third year in a row, the Cardinals appear to be peaking at the perfect time" (Himmelsbach 2014). Pitino is known as a taskmaster as a coach, but he is not above engaging in some 'fun' such as agreeing, along with the other members of the team not to shave his beard until the Cardinals lose a game. Pitino's style has remained so consistent throughout his career -- a constant half-court press -- even his former players from his earliest days as a coach say it is relatively unchanged: "Around the country, from New York to Texas to California, former players and assistants watch his team's games and are transported back more than 30 years, with the only obvious difference, they say with a knowing laugh, being the quality of his players. They can predict a particular pressure unfolding before it does" (Shpigel 2013). Such consistency is Pitino's strength and also his weakness.