Hustle. It’s not something that can really be taught. Instead it’s a mentality or something that is bred into someone. For teams without an athletic aptitude or a fusion of depth, hustle is the difference between winning and losing.
One quick look at the 2011 San Benito boys basketball team, it becomes obvious that they aren’t lacking hustle. And it’s pretty obvious why they aren’t: Head coach David Kaplansky.
His energy on the sidelines infuses his team, and pushes them despite the score or situations. One play – which came in the season’s third game – shows why the team will never lack that hustle under Kaplansky.
Against Aptos in the opening round of Gilroy’s Bob Hagen Memorial Classic, the Balers were struggling finding an open shot and sinking it. Midway through the second quarter, the Baler deficit was reaching double digits.
Despite trailing to a good Aptos team, San Benito never seemed out of the game, mostly thanks to the manic nature of their head coach.
And it seemed to spark the Balers’ come-from-behind 55-51 win.
On a loose ball – after a tough defensive effort by the Balers – Kaplansky reached and screamed “grab the ball.” As the ball floated near the sidelines where Kaplansky stood – and as the Balers on the floor tried to track the ball down – the coaches knees bent, his hands moved forward and he pretended to clench the ball.
But he was nowhere near it. Instead the ball was in the Balers’ Jordan Belton’s hands and the team was pushing the ball up the court. Kaplansky begged for the effort of his team to get the ball – even showing them exactly what to do – and it worked.
His attitude and mannerism almost seemed to will the Balers through the game.
It’s easy to see by watching a Baler game, the fiery Kaplansky might not be for everybody. During the game’s 32 minutes, he constantly questions his team, their effort and whether they should be on the floor.
During time-outs, no secrets are kept. In fact, Kaplansky is an open book. If an opposing coach wants to hear what the Baler coach is going to do, all he has to do is listen.
With every timeout and every play, Kaplansky doesn’t seem to worry what others think of him on the sidelines. And neither do his players.
Belton, who leads the Balers in scoring through the team’s first nine games, explains the team’s love for the coach with ease. He doesn’t just want you to succeed – he wants you to show why he believes in you, Belton said.
“He wants you to prove him right,” Belton said. “And you want to make sure he is right.”
Through nine games, that belief is working. Just look at the scorecard.
Comparing this year’s stats to last year, one player really stands above the rest – Isaiah Acfalle.
The senior has been on the team for two years, but hardly saw minutes on the court under Carpenter. This year has been a different story as Acfalle has averaged more than 10 points per game.
Despite his limited minutes last year, and his unknown stature entering the season, Kaplansky always saw something in Acfalle. Two weeks before the season’s first game, Kaplansky called Acfalle one of the team’s most important players.
In fact, Acfalle was the first name mentioned out of the coach’s mouth. Now nine games into the season, Acfalle has proved Kaplansky right.
And like Belton said, it’s hard not to want to prove the coach right.
Obviously, the team still has a long way to reach its goal of winning the program’s first TCAL championship since 2004. But with the defensive and offensive hustle implemented by Kaplansky and the new gritty mentality, it’s hard not see Kaplansky jumping and screaming on the sidelines come late and early March.
At the very least, it’ll be a fun year.
