Glory Johnson talks about Dean Lockwood impact

#2
#2
For those of you who are so thrilled with Dean Lockwood and can't stop talking about what a waste he is on the coaching staff, I thought you should read what a star WNBA LVFL has to say about his impact on her career and her life.

Jim

JOHNSON CITES LOCKWOOD’S IMPACT ON HER WNBA CAREER
Thanks, Jim. Nice article. I always think it is the occasional fan, seldom fan or not a fan that throws out that garbage regarding coaches of the LV's.
 
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#6
#6
For those of you who are so thrilled with Dean Lockwood and can't stop talking about what a waste he is on the coaching staff, I thought you should read what a star WNBA LVFL has to say about his impact on her career and her life.

Jim

JOHNSON CITES LOCKWOOD’S IMPACT ON HER WNBA CAREER

I have never heard someone say Lockwood is a waste. I have heard some pretty negative things about CHW, but not CDL. I always thought he might make a good head coach. Who has been trashing him?
 
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#7
#7
me.

Which LDV post besides CP was competent both on offense and defense under Dean's coaching as a collegian? Harrison was probably the next best to CP. Most of the others had huge holes in their game. Johnson has remade her game as a pro.
 
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#8
#8
me.

Which LDV post besides CP was competent both on offense and defense under Dean's coaching as a collegian? Harrison was probably the next best to CP. Most of the others had huge holes in their game. Johnson has remade her game as a pro.

Uhm, Glory Johnson was an All American under his coaching...🤔
 
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#9
#9
me.

Which LDV post besides CP was competent both on offense and defense under Dean's coaching as a collegian? Harrison was probably the next best to CP. Most of the others had huge holes in their game. Johnson has remade her game as a pro.

And Glory stated that Dean has helped in that so- called remake as a pro.
I can't recall anyone else going toe to toe with Griner in the paint. She
was a bona fide dirt devil.
I believe that game was Coach Summitt last game during the "coach by committee"woes.
 
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#12
#12
Great recruiting article for potential Post players. Id like to see Mercedes get up their in the top 5 Picked for the draft and become an All star type player. I feel she just needs better foot speed and toughness.
 
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#16
#16
Johnson was like Graves--both very athletic, both excellent rebounders, both with very limited offensive games that did not improve much over their collegiate careers. They improved a little but certainly not a lot. Most players who are talented offensively--like Parker and Harrison--were talented when they got here. It's pretty rare to see a player who is really transformed by coaching over four years--it typically doesn't happen. The vast majority of players--at least for us--play as seniors pretty much like they played as freshman. True of guards, true of bigs. To really transform a player, coaches have to spot a player's weakness their first week of practice as freshman and then aggressively attack, so to speak, that weakness--through drills, pre- and post-practice work, off-season work--turning into a strength or at least not a liability. I'm sure all of that is done, more or less, but players and coaches tend to work around a player's weakness. Thus a player like Graves won't shoot the ball when the opportunity is there, when in fact she should shoot, starting early in her career, so that she can develop some offensive confidence. Graves eventually did start shooting--as a senior. But by then it's often too late.
 
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#17
#17
Johnson was like Graves--both very athletic, both excellent rebounders, both with very limited offensive games that did not improve much over their collegiate careers. They improved a little but certainly not a lot. Most players who are talented offensively--like Parker and Harrison--were talented when they got here. It's pretty rare to see a player who is really transformed by coaching over four years--it typically doesn't happen. The vast majority of players--at least for us--play as seniors pretty much like they played as freshman. True of guards, true of bigs. To really transform a player, coaches have to spot a player's weakness their first week of practice as freshman and then aggressively attack, so to speak, that weakness--through drills, pre- and post-practice work, off-season work--turning into a strength or at least not a liability. I'm sure all of that is done, more or less, but players and coaches tend to work around a player's weakness. Thus a player like Graves won't shoot the ball when the opportunity is there, when in fact she should shoot, starting early in her career, so that she can develop some offensive confidence. Graves eventually did start shooting--as a senior. But by then it's often too late.

Bahsara and Johnson were actually more opposite than similar.

Glory Johnson was one of the most gifted athlete's to put on a Tennessee Lady Vol uniform. Glory was a 7x Tennessee track champion. Johnson's athletic ability (fastest, strongest, highest jumper) allowed her to not have to have so many offensive weapons because she could just out hustle her opponent.

Graves was thicker, not has fast, and couldn't jump as high, but she was tougher than most of her opponents. Because she lacked the athletic ability, her offensive ability came from her strength and post moves. She had to compensate, unlike Johnson, her offense and that is why she was so successful her first two years. I think her problem was teams caught on and watched tape. I don't think Graves got worse, Graves maxed out her potential (which is great), but teams just adjusted to her.

Johnson had to develop her offense, Graves had to develop her athletic ability. Coach's can develop offense, but can't develop athletic ability. That falls on the player and athletic personal.
Please don't interupt my following statements as a bash - disrespect - or any malice behind this ... I think the impact of CPS disease during the last 2-3 years of her coaching had a negative impact on the coaching staff. I say 'think' because I don't know. But, I do wonder how much of a distraction it really was for the coach's around. I know the talk was, 'nothing is changing', but it reality, CPS was changing and I believe her disease did have negative impact on the team as a result of this horrible disease. I think the biggest impact though was on the coach's.

When my grandfather was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, I can honestly say my family, and especially myself, wasn't at our best during this time. We were up against a fight, and that is where our resources went at that time. Especially the first couple years when he was high functioning with the dementia symptoms.

Back to the topic ....
Johnson is a starter and a double double machine in the WNBA right now, she is completely right to thank Dean for her work and her development of her offensive skills.
 
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#18
#18
Johnson was like Graves--both very athletic, both excellent rebounders, both with very limited offensive games that did not improve much over their collegiate careers. They improved a little but certainly not a lot. Most players who are talented offensively--like Parker and Harrison--were talented when they got here. It's pretty rare to see a player who is really transformed by coaching over four years--it typically doesn't happen. The vast majority of players--at least for us--play as seniors pretty much like they played as freshman. True of guards, true of bigs. To really transform a player, coaches have to spot a player's weakness their first week of practice as freshman and then aggressively attack, so to speak, that weakness--through drills, pre- and post-practice work, off-season work--turning into a strength or at least not a liability. I'm sure all of that is done, more or less, but players and coaches tend to work around a player's weakness. Thus a player like Graves won't shoot the ball when the opportunity is there, when in fact she should shoot, starting early in her career, so that she can develop some offensive confidence. Graves eventually did start shooting--as a senior. But by then it's often too late.

Harrison looked like a deer in the headlights as a freshman, but was vastly improved by the time she graduated. She is a LV who least supports your theory.
 
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#20
#20
Harrison was fun to watch because she started "deer in headlights - freshman" to steady improvement each year as she developed and then mastered offensive moves. IMO her game improved as much as any LV - she was simply dominant her senior year until her injury.
 
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#21
#21
IMO, the biggest determining factor in how much or how little a player develops while in college is that player's maturity level.

Sometimes a player who was dominant in high school gets to college and then thinks she doesn't really have to put in as much work as some others do because she's always been naturally athletic enough to dominate without having to put forth any extra effort.

Sometimes a player needs to grow up a bit before she realizes just how much better she could have been in college if only she'd put in a lot more hours in the gym besides just what was scheduled.

There have been quite a few players like this to come through the Lady Vol program.
 
#22
#22
Johnson was like Graves--both very athletic, both excellent rebounders, both with very limited offensive games that did not improve much over their collegiate careers. They improved a little but certainly not a lot. Most players who are talented offensively--like Parker and Harrison--were talented when they got here. It's pretty rare to see a player who is really transformed by coaching over four years--it typically doesn't happen. The vast majority of players--at least for us--play as seniors pretty much like they played as freshman. True of guards, true of bigs. To really transform a player, coaches have to spot a player's weakness their first week of practice as freshman and then aggressively attack, so to speak, that weakness--through drills, pre- and post-practice work, off-season work--turning into a strength or at least not a liability. I'm sure all of that is done, more or less, but players and coaches tend to work around a player's weakness. Thus a player like Graves won't shoot the ball when the opportunity is there, when in fact she should shoot, starting early in her career, so that she can develop some offensive confidence. Graves eventually did start shooting--as a senior. But by then it's often too late.


Very smart talk!
 
#23
#23
IMO, the biggest determining factor in how much or how little a player develops while in college is that player's maturity level.

Sometimes a player who was dominant in high school gets to college and then thinks she doesn't really have to put in as much work as some others do because she's always been naturally athletic enough to dominate without having to put forth any extra effort.

Sometimes a player needs to grow up a bit before she realizes just how much better she could have been in college if only she'd put in a lot more hours in the gym besides just what was scheduled.

There have been quite a few players like this to come through the Lady Vol program.

They are kids. They're 18 to 22 year old kids. It is up to the coaches to help them experience progression if you leave it up to the kids you're right it ain't going to happen. It is up to the coaches.... if it was all about the kids maturity level and nothing else, then how do you explain the kids that geno gets ... are they'
all just that much more mature than the kids we get?
 
#24
#24
Another Lady Vols post player, Candace Parker, and her LA Sparks will be playing on ESPN-2 at 6:00 PM Central Time this evening.
 
#25
#25
Uhm, Glory Johnson was an All American under his coaching...🤔

I would have thought Coach Summitt would get the cred for that, since she was responsible for how Johnson was coached. Now that she is gone, where is Dean's All Americans?
 

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