Professional sports is an open forum for trash talkers, as many players build their reps not only on their physical abilities but on their ability to stick their opponent with a strategically placed zinger. Trash talking at this level is truly an art form…Michael Jordan and his legendary jaw-jacking sessions with grocery boy John Starks, Larry Bird whispering trash in Dr. J’s ear, prompting the good Doctor to take a swing at him and of course the G.O.A.T, Muhammad Ali whose fast paced rhyming couplets and verbal barbs were just too much for his punch drunk opponents.

One of the key elements of trash talking is being able to put your money where your mouth is and back up all that noise you are making. If you flap your gums without being able to back it up you are no more than a carnival barking loud-mouth, and has we all know those are a dime a dozen.

So let’s say you are a coach of a high school team and your team plays in weak district and beats everyone but never makes it out of the region during playoffs. And let’s say you have a game against one of top teams in the region with one the most respected seasoned coaches in the country. Why would you of all people talk trash in the local newspaper?

http://www2.insidenova.com/isn/sports/high_school_prep/article/mid-season_matchup_will_test_stonewalls_mettle/49981/

Such is the case with Coach White from Stonewall Jackson Manassas,VA who deemed it necessary to let loose about his team, himself and his daughter before their game with Riverdale Baptist in the press.  As an adult he could have exercised some restraint but he should have never allowed his players to get involved by making comments like this:

They’re a really good team. They hustle, they’re physical and they play good defense. They play a lot like us, actually..We should beat them, though

Coach White may claim that he was a ‘victim of the press’ but he is a notorious chest-thumper and based on the tone of the article it is pretty obvious that he stayed true to form.

I think we’re better skilled in five positions. We don’t have any weaknesses right now

Without a true center RB players were able to control the SJ big girl in the paint…she had her shot blocked several times by shorter players

Stonewall Jackson went 0 for 10 at one point from the foul line

Stonewall Jackson got called for a couple of 10 sec violations at crucial points in the game

The coach threw in the towel and stopped coaching late in the game

Not sure what you call them but these look like major weaknesses, Coach!

Kyani is the player who attracts double teams and gimmick defenses on a nightly basis. And even that doesn’t slow her down.
“She’s a problem for everybody,” coach White said.

She didn’t seem to be a problem for 5-4 sophomore Teshya Heslip(and who is she??) who completely locked her up defense. She couldn’t turn the corner on her or on any of the Riverdale guards

I have one of the best guards in the country

According to which scouting service? Blue Star, All-Star Girls Report, ESPN Hoopgurlz

They have one girl(Franklin) who can stick it consistently and she’s going to be trapped all night

So how did trapping Franklin work for you…because  Diana Logan(8th girl off the bench) hit shots from any and everywhere

I think the upper echelon teams in the state right now are Princess Anne, Indian River, us, Cosby and Hampton

Wonder how the Lake Taylor mob feels about that statement

So the lesson to be learned from this Coach White is that as a coach you never want to sell wolf tickets that you or your team can’t cash in. It is OK to create an atmosphere of competitive swagger amongst your team but save the sound bytes for the locker room. Coach White, you put your players (especially your daughter) out there and by the 4th quarter you stopped coaching. It was clear that your team wanted to compete but  their energy just drained when they got no direction from the bench.

Leave the trash talk to the professionals, it has no place in high school basketball at this level.  Hopefully, you can learn a lesson from this after losing the game 58-46 and finally coach your team to the state championship, where the accolades will be deserved not manufactured.

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