2 Graduation Gifts For Basketball Players That Will Have An Impact

I’ve bought and read a lot of different books on coaching and sports in general but there are always two books I come back to as life changing and they are Season of Life by Jeffrey Marx and Lead For God’s Sake by Todd Gongwer. Other books I’ve taken the time to read aren’t bad, but they don’t have the same impact in my opinion.

If you’re looking to continue to make a difference in your athletes life as they start their next journey you’ve found a way to do this. These books will allow your legacy to flourish even once your players graduate and move on in life.

You’ve had the luxury of having seniors on your team. They’ve brought their maturity, refined skill set, drive to do their best, and have given their blood, sweat and tears just to wear the school colors on the hardwood one last season. Having seniors also means they’re about to embark on a new journey and they’ll be moving on into the next phase of their lives soon.

As invites to graduation parties come in you’re now left to decide what to get your seniors as a parting gift – one that says thank you and also moves them forward in life. Each year I do a quick search online for graduation gifts but come up empty handed. I always fall back to what has proven to be an enjoyable and life changing gift in the following two books I’m going to share with you.

Now, I can’t guarantee every player has read the book they were given, but I know the ones who have because I’ve received so many letters, text message and personal thank you’s over the year’s from player’s that I know their lives have been impacted in a positive way.

The Gift I Choose To Give.

What I choose to give to my parting seniors is a book. I’ll share with you a couple of great books in just a second, but first I want to tell you why a book is my go to gift.

I have four reasons why I choose books:

1. They can hear a similar message from another coaches point of view. There are books out there that align with my ways of coaching and building a team and I think it means a lot to a player to hear the same message from another coaches point of view.
2. A lot of players think they may want to go into coaching or are pursuing sports at a higher level. (If I knew a player was into something else that also fell in line with the values I tried to instill I would grab a non-sports book as well.)
3. Foster a love of reading that has been lost by too many men. One of the tragedies in young men is they don’t read enough. Grabbing a book to read opens a lot of doors and ideas that make people think critically. The love of reading is something our boys have been robbed of and in a small way I hope to help them find a love for reading.
4. Books create connections. I had player who was a 12th man on the team who wanted to go into coaching, so I gave him a book as a gift. As he read the book at Michigan State University in one of the common areas he was approached by one of the MSU basketball players. The player asked him what he was reading and they struck up a conversation. This led my former player being invited to attend Bible study with a bunch MSU players. He attended his entire freshman year. If one of your players could hang out with some of the nations best collegiate players and future NBA players would they? Of course they would. These experiences were created because of a book he was given. Wow!

My Recommendations

There are a lot of basketball or coaching books that just teach basketball and I want my players to get more than basketball from me and the program I am building. I want my players to be better people who truly believe in their values and want more than just good stats to remember when it’s all said and done. Of course, I want them to be good players with great skill, but one day no one will care about their basketball skill and this is when I hope they look back and truly appreciate their time in my program.

The two books I use as my go to gifts are Lead for God’s Sake, by Todd Gongwer and Season of Life, by Jeffrey Marx. Both books are sports related and have a message that goes beyond winning and losing.

Lead for God’s Sake is great for players who are all about basketball. Season of Life is a football book for those kids who love sports, but maybe basketball isn’t their first love. Either way, the players I have given these books to have given me great feedback and enjoyed them both.

I’ve included a snippet on each book and a link to a video that explains the book way better than I could in a blog post. 

Book #1

Lead For God’s Sake, Todd Gongwer

Steve Rocker, one of the most successful high school basketball coaches in Kentucky’s history, is about to enter into the most difficult season of his career. With expectations at an all-time high, his players have lost their will to win and their passion for the game; none of Coach Rocker’s tried and true motivational methods are working, and he doesn’t know why.

Check out the interview with former Ohio State Football Coach, Urban Meyer, on why this book is so great for people to read and I think you’ll see why I think this book is great to get in your peoples hands as they graduate high school.

Book #2

Season of Life, Jeffrey Marx

Most amazing are the stories of the team Ehrmann coaches–a football team on which life lessons are more important than tackling fundamentals. The lessons extend to Marx himself, who describes how he was moved by Ehrmann’s example to work on his relationship with his father. A sports story, yes, but much more, too. – Wes Lukowsky 

This book is not a basketball book, it is a football book, so if you have players who look to football as their main sport I highly recommend Season of Life. Take a listen to Joe Ehrmann’s TED talk and you’ll see how powerful this book is and why our young men need it in their hands.

One thing I can promise is when your players pick up the book you gave them they won’t be the same person once they turn the last page. The legacy you will leave them with and the impact you’ll have on them will extend far beyond the plays and skills you taught them in practice. This is why I choose to give books, especially these books, as graduation gifts to basketball players once they are done helping us win games.

If you’re looking for something to set your team and program apart I challenge you to read these books as well. As coaches we need to push ourselves to do things better and with greater impact, these two books have done this for me and that is why I these are my go to graduation gifts.