Great Players can be Great Coaches

The old adage that great players don't turn into great coaches is demonstrably untrue in some circumstances.  At small Valparaiso University in northern Indiana. former NCAA and NBA star Bryce Drew is proving it.  In reality, Drew and his father and brother are also seemingly proving that coaching ability is a hereditary trait.  Homer Drew was the coach at Valparaiso for forever, and for a small school, the Crusaders won so many conference titles they lost count.  

When Bryce came out of high school all the big schools recruited him like he was the greatest thing since sliced bread  He turned them all down and played for his dad.  Together they won a bunch more conference titles and quite a few will recall the 1998 version of March Madness when Drew took a length of the floor pass and nailed a long three point shot at the buzzer to beat Mississippi.  ESPN still ranks that play and the ensueing celebration as one of the greatest sports moments of all time. It was the embodiment of unrestrained joy.  With Drew leading the way, the Crusaders fought their way all the way to the sweet 16.  He went on to be the 16th player taken in the NBA draft and played six seasons in the Big Show.  In one game he hit nine straight three-point shots.  He interned for the top coaching job by assisting his father for six years.  In his first year at the helm he was named Horizon League Coach of the Year after leading the Crusaders to 22 wins. This initial coaching campaign was headed for the NCAA tournament after the Crusaders won the Horizon League regular season title, beating out Butler and Detroit, among others.  Valpo whacked Butler in the tournament semifinals and were up on Detroit in the title game until disaster struck.  Horizon League Player of the year Ryan Broehkoff sprained his ankle just before the half, and with Detroit and its huge front line the opposition, he was the one player the Crusaders could not afford to lose.  To his credit, Broehkoff played in the second half but was only a shadow of his athletic self and Detroit, with Ray McCallum, Jr., son of the Titan Coach and a doyen of NBA scouts, rallied to win.  Scurry forward from that March night to this January night, move from Valpo's gym to Callahan Gymnasium at Detroit, and put the Titans up 22 points with 17 minutes left.  the ESPN announcers had moved on to other topics but on the Crusader Bench, Drew wasn't in panic mode.  Neither were his Crusaders.  Suddenly Ken Van Wijk and Broehkoff started hitting their shots.  Matt Kenney hit four three point shots and the 17 point lead started a quick shrinking act.  When Broehkoff nailed two free throws with 17 seconds left, the Crusaders had their first lead.  The Valpo defense then had its turn to come up big and they didn't disappoint.  Drew, for his part, switched to a zone for this final act and it worked to perfection.  The final: Valpo 89, Detroit 88.  

Bryce Drew's brother, if you didn't know, is Scott Drew, the head basketball coach at Baylor.  They play in the tournament almost every year and have made the final four recently.  It's in the genes.