By Rob Schellenberg

T

o be good at basketball, you have to work hard at it.

That was the message that Jerry Krause, a hall of fame basketball coach, gave to coaches and athletes attending the basketball clinic at the Margaret P. Reimer Memorial Gymnasium at Briercrest College and Seminary last weekend.

Close to 100 athletes and coaches came to learn from Krause at the camp put on by the Douglas College Sports Institute.

In addition to being the coach of NCAA Gonzaga Bulldogs, Krause is the most widely published coach in basketball history. He’s written 27 books on coaching and produced 30 instructional videos.

He was hoping to motivate coaches and athletes to invest the time and effort it takes to excel at the sport.

“The challenge for many young players today is that they’re not motivated and inspired to do their best in anything let alone in basketball, so I love to see when a player enjoys what he is doing,” he said.

“Know yourself, develop your unique talents and serve others–that is what it is all about.”

Gene Wolverton, Clipper men’s basketball coach was one of the beneficiaries of Krause’s experience.

“Coach Krause’s wisdom is very valuable for a young coach like myself,” he said. “The early years of a coaching career [are] spent figuring out your coaching philosophy, system and program development strategies. I was able to absorb his teaching in all those areas this weekend.”

Wolverton added that our school philosophy matches Krause’s.

“We want to have a program that builds champions both on and off the court, and that has been coach Krause’s aim throughout his coaching career.”