It takes a lot to impress me nowadays – especially when it comes to basketball. Having coached high school ball here in Atlanta for over twenty years now I’ve seen it all, heard it all and done it all. The month of June each year means basketball practice and basketball camps. Although there is no place in the world I’d rather be than in a gym helping my team get better, the rigors of the off-summer schedule aren’t as fun as they look.
Basketball camps are normally a grind for the players and the coaches. The typical schedule includes games at 9 a.m., noon, 3 and 6. In between those games is the usual mile walk under the hot Georgia sun to and from the cafeteria where the food is usually horrible. For coaches it’s a time to evaluate. Some players will impress you, some will disappoint, but it’s what they do with the opportunity that you are most concerned about.
Speaking of opportunities, that brings me back to my story. It was the second day of team basketball camp at Georgia State last weekend, when I was approached by a young lady who extended her hand and thanked me for bringing my team. At first I thought she was a parent that I hadn’t been introduced to yet. Then, before I could put the pieces together, she introduced herself. “I’m Mary McElroy, the athletic director here at Georgia State.” You could have knocked me over with a missed three throw (which happened way too much for my team). That was a first.
Now you can usually count on the head coach of the college basketball team to greet everyone at the pre-camp meeting and you sometimes run into him in the gym and get the mandatory “how’s it going Coach?” But never before have I seen an athletic director at a major college make an appearance at a camp, much less introduce him/herself. I was in awe. After a few minutes of chatting about GSU sports and hiring Bill Curry I had to end the conversation so I could coach. Out of the corner of my eye I watched Mrs. Elroy continue to work the room liked a skilled politician. Going from parent to player to coach always extending her hand, smiling and receiving a smile in return, Obama and McCain could learn something from this lady.
As for our record at the camp, I’m not going to talk about it. We go to camp to give everyone a chance to play. Some took advantage of the opportunity. But my favorite camp memory will be meeting Mary McElroy. To many of you she’ll be known as the person who brought football to Georgia State University. For me, she’ll be a role model I can use to demonstrate to my players what the word “success” really means. Keep her in your sights as I see her having a great future in D-1 sports or possibly politics.
But that’s just my opinion.
Dankosky can be reached at kdankosky@scoreatl.com.
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