George Karl (@CoachKarl22) is a basketball lifer. He learned his basketball playing and coaching from Dean Smith, the late, great University of North Carolina coach and PCA National Advisory Board Member. Karl became just the seventh coach in NBA history to reach 1,000 career wins. He earned the NBA Coach of the Year Award in 2013 and has served as head coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors, Albany Patroons (CBA), Real Madrid (EuroLeague), Seattle SuperSonics (which he led to the NBA Finals), Milwaukee Bucks, Denver Nuggets, and Sacramento Kings.

In this video, Karl recalls Coach Smith asking him why he was so animated while coaching. When Karl explained he was just showing his passion, Smith reminded him, "The best games I've ever coached were the games I didn't have to coach because I'd done my job in practice."

Karl took that to heart and now believes too many coaches try to direct or control every play and every possession to the detriment of their teams. Youth coaches who let their players play help them develop as athletes and as people, giving them experience in thinking on their feet that can translate into other aspects of life.