The Ultimate Assist

Greg Nared

Description

"The tremendous knowledge and sage wisdom Greg provides is worth the price of admission." -MICHAEL JORDAN, NBA Hall-of-Famer

"Greg Nared has written a highly readable book about how to raise kids in an era where sports are so important in their early lives. It is a value to all parents." -PHIL KNIGHT, Co-Founder & Chairman Emeritus, Nike, Inc.

"The Ultimate Assist is... about instilling values and habits in our children that will give them the courage to take the shot, the skill and will to sink it, and the ability to rebound gracefully if they miss." -CYNT MARSHALL, CEO, Dallas Mavericks

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WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO RAISE A SUCCESSFUL ATHLETE?

More importantly, how can we, as parents, help our daughters and sons transfer the skills gleaned from athletic success to a successful life outside the lines?

In The Ultimate Assist: Helping Our Kids Succeed in Sports and Life, Greg Nared equips parents to support their child's pursuit of athletic success, while also teaching the art of leveraging the youth sports experience to develop healthy, successful, and socially responsible individuals.

Nared draws on a well of not only over thirty years of sports industry experience-working at every level from youth to professional athletics- but also from his time raising two successful daughters, Jackie and Jaime, both of whom reached the pinnacle of the athletic journey, professional sports.

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Armed with a passion for supporting young athletes and their parents, along with his decades of sports industry experience, Greg Nared is dedicated to equipping individuals, families, and organizations as they pursue their athletic dreams. As an author, speaker, sr. vice president with the NBA's Dallas Mavericks, and father of two elite athletes (both of whom played professionally), Greg offers unique perspective and insight to an athlete's journey as they move through youth sports to collegiate athletics and beyond. His extensive experience in the sports industry includes considerable work in youth sports, coaching, athlete management, sports marketing, and leadership.

Sujets

• Sport
• Autres sports
• Vie de famille
• Parentalité et Éducation des Enfants
• EPS et coaching
• Athlete
• Coaching
• Success
• Recreation
• Parenting
• Phil Knight
• Sports

Informations

• Publié par: Greg Nared, Drew Tilton
• Date de parution: 27 juillet 2021
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780578923680
• Langue: English

Extrait

“The tremendous knowledge and sage wisdom Greg provides is worth the price of admission. In The Ultimate Assist , Greg not only passes along his learnings from a life spent assisting athletes on every level, but also humbly offers his successes and failures in parenting his two daughters, who played at the highest level.”
MICHAEL JORDAN
NBA Hall-of-Famer
“Greg Nared has written a highly readable book about how to raise kids in an era where sports are so important in their early lives. It is a value to all parents.”
PHIL KNIGHT
Co-Founder & Chairman Emeritus, Nike, Inc.
“ The Ultimate Assist is more than a book about raising athletes to become high-level people. It’s about instilling values and habits in our children that will give them the courage to take the shot, the skill and will to sink it, and the ability to rebound gracefully if they miss.”
CYNT MARSHALL
CEO, Dallas Mavericks; President & CEO, Marshalling Resources; Retired AT&T Executive





Copyright © 2021 by Greg Nared
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any manner without the prior written permission of the copyright owner, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
To request permissions, contact the publisher at [e-mail] .
Hardcover: 978-0-578-92254-6
Ebook: 978-0-578-92368-0
Library of Congress Number: 2021912382
First hardcover edition: July 2021.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com
The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Published by Greg Nared
GregNared.com


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I dedicate this book to my wonderful daughters, Jacklin and Jaime. Thank you for your ongoing support in all that I do. You, more than anyone else, are the reason I had the ability to write this book.
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CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
Parenting Athletes
CHAPTER 1
Understanding Your Role
CHAPTER 2
Building on a Foundation of Respect
CHAPTER 3
Pathways to Greatness
CHAPTER 4
Building Discipline
CHAPTER 5
Understanding Your Child’s Development
CHAPTER 6
Emphasizing Skill Development
CHAPTER 7
Raising a Good Teammate
CHAPTER 8
Living the Balanced Life
CHAPTER 9
Preparing for the Next Level
CHAPTER 10
Life After Sports
COACHES’ APPENDIX
Partnering with Parents
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS


INTRODUCTION
Parenting Athletes
With a few seconds left on the clock, my eldest daughter, Jackie, advanced the ball up the left side of the floor. My heart was pounding, my stomach in my throat. St Mary’s was down two. I felt the nervous energy building in McKeon Pavilion, even through the pixelated online stream that brought me the game. With each dribble of the ball, the crowd grew more uneasy. I leaned forward in my seat.
The Lady Gaels were off to a hot start this season, 10-1, and this was the first conference game of the year. They took on West Coast Conference powerhouse Gonzaga, coached by the now-legendary Kelly Graves. The Zags were the nine-time defending WCC champs and ranked 24th in the nation for NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball. In this game, St Mary’s had more than held their own and so had Jackie. As usual, she led her team in scoring and everyone in the gym knew who was taking the final shot. One last chance to slay Goliath.
The Gonzaga defender met her just above the three-point line. Jackie stepped back, calculating her move. Sliding over to her spot on the right wing, her teammate positioned herself to screen the tenacious defender. I stood.
“Now’s the time, Jackie!” I exclaimed for no one to hear. There were only three seconds on the clock. Crossing over, she made her move as her defender played her tight, fighting over the screen.
Two seconds.
Stopping on a dime at the top of the key, Jackie’s quick pump fake sent the defender sailing by as she set her feet underneath her.
One second.
She released a three-pointer. Jackie and I had spent countless hours over the course of her life practicing this very shot: a straight-on three-pointer with a hand in her face. Feet set, elbow in, flick the wrist, let it fly. The ball hung in the air, sucking the oxygen from my lungs. It was like a small smooth stone hurling towards the forehead of a giant.
Swish!
The home crowd erupted as Jackie’s teammates nearly tackled her. I screamed at my computer screen, hands in the air, “Let’s go, Jackie!” I felt such tremendous pride in my daughter. Not just for the incredible moment she had just experienced, but also for the moments that brought her there. The work she put in: the early mornings and late nights, the hundreds of thousands of shots she had put up when no one was watching, the painstaking hours she spent studying the game. I was proud that she was living her dream. That she had worked to develop the character, discipline, and perseverance it takes to be the best on the court. I was, and still am, proud of the woman she has become.
If you are reading this book, I can only assume that you are a parent of an athlete yourself. If so, you likely have stories like mine, ones that make you extraordinarily proud of the child you are raising. Maybe they haven’t yet reached the level Jackie had, but they remind you all the same of how blessed you are to see them push, struggle, and ultimately triumph. We, as parents, get a front-row seat to our kids’ growth and development in sports and in life. And I want to help you make the most of it. That is really the heart of this book. To encourage and direct you as you navigate the crazy world of youth sports with your kids.
A big part of my job with the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks is overseeing the strategic direction of our youth sports initiatives. I love it! Being around young people brings a spark to my heart and a smile to my face. I truly believe one of my gifts in life is to help young athletes reach their full potential on and off the court. When at a camp or tournament site, I high five every young athlete I pass and work hard to be available to give guidance and encouragement when necessary—to both athletes and parents. Young people are just plain fun, and I am thrilled to play a small part in their development.
That being said, youth sports is a unique and, at times, crazy world. I get asked by parents of athletes at least once a month, What should I be doing to help my kid? How can I help them get the most out of their youth sports experience? It is tough to know how to navigate the youth sports experience with your kids, especially considering how much it has changed over the years. These are not the same city recreation programs that you or I grew up with. These days, youth sports is a multibillion-dollar industry. It raked in an estimated $19.2 billion in 2019 in the United States alone. 1 The average young athlete will spend over ten to twelve hours of their week 2 pursuing athletic endeavors and parents can spend thousands of dollars 3 a year on their children’s athletic “careers.”
My heart goes out to you as parents and to the young people you are raising. I remember what it was like to be an Uber driver, coach, chef, mental coach, personal trainer, number-one fan, and ATM, all while trying to balance the rest of my life. I’ve been in your shoes and I know what it is like to feel out of your league when it comes to your child’s athletic journey. I admit I was somewhat caught off guard when my eldest first stepped into serious athletic competition, and I myself had to seek the advice of those who had been there before me.
My name is Greg Nared. I grew up a sports lover and competed at a high level. I had a verbal commitment to play quarterback for Ohio State, but instead opted to follow my passion by playing basketball for the University of Maryland. I have spent over thirty years working in the sports industry as an athlete business manager, agent, coach, and now the senior vice president for the Dallas Mavericks.
At my core, though, I am a parent just like you. I have simply been blessed to have connected with countless elite athletes in my lifetime and to build friendships with some all-time greats from every corner of the professional sports pantheon. In the process, I have learned a lot about raising athletes and the unique challenges their parents face.
On top of all that, I have had the honor of raising two daughters, Jackie and Jaime, who have both surpassed my own athletic achievements—and I am going to brag on my kids for a minute, if you don’t mind.
Jackie holds the single season scoring record at SMC, has played professionally in Europe, and now coaches Division I NCAA Basketball at the University of Oregon. My younger daughter, Jaime, played basketball for the University of Tennessee, was drafted 13th overall in the WNBA draft to the Las Vegas Aces, and is currently playing professionally overseas.
I am pretty proud of them, if you couldn’t tell.
I myself found sports at a young age, and it has without a doubt changed my life. It has taken me around the world, introduced me to amazing people, and given me incredible experiences. To this day, it continues to teach me about life, joy, and finding purpose. It has blessed my daughters beyond measure and connected us in a way I cannot express.