Re: Lake braddock girls basketball
Posted by:
Rocky Carter
()
Date: January 04, 2012 05:15AM
Yes this is Rocky Carter, teacher and assistant boy's basketball coach at Lake Braddock.
I was initially told about this thread by a friend of mine this Saturday in which Leigh Janis ( Kampman) our Girls Basketball Coach, was being slammed by people. I didn’t pay attention to it. Didn’t care about people and their opinions on message boards.
Then yesterday I was greeted at 7:30m by a teacher also telling me about the same thread, but this time I was told about how my name was brought up and why I wasn’t hired, and how there were more qualified candidates than Leigh, how she is a bad coach, and just otherwise ripping her apart. The teacher also implied it looked as though I posted things on there. That really bothered me as I don’t post on FFU and stopped posting on VA Preps sometime back.
I went to my AD and told him what I was told. I gave him my word as a man I have never, nor would I ever, say anything to, or about, anyone on some message board. I had already told him I was very disappointed in how Leigh was being treated before I even knew of this thread. I said I was going to look at the thread later and probably respond. He was very much against my doing so.
What has been written about Leigh, in my opinion ONLY, is both not true and absolutely UNFAIR to her and her players. It isn’t right. I hurt for Leigh in how she is being what I consider slandered by parents/coaches/applicants, etc. It doesn’t matter who they are. It is just plain wrong. She is the same age as my own daughter.
Having an opinion about someone is fine. But I want to make sure the truth regarding me and LB basketball is known:
I work for whom many consider one of the best basketball coaches around in Brian Metress and I am having a complete blast, and have done so for the past (6) years. I have not been involved girl’s basketball since 2005, except for training a young lady in the summer for free in 2009.
Yes I applied for, yet did not get the GBB coaching job at LB. And yes there were others who did the same, and they too did not get the job. Yes I was disappointed. So what? It wasn’t the first time, and it surely will not be the last, I was disappointed in someone’s decision about me with what I wanted to do. It happens. I’ve moved on.
Sadly, parents from the LB girl's BB team few years ago wanted to get rid of then-coach Carl Harris, who I consider a great man and mentor of kids. They blasted him constantly to my AD. Unfortunately my AD made the decision to release Carl from coaching. He then hires another coach and now a different group of people is upset and wants that coach out. Frankly I don’t understand it.
Leigh Janis is going to be a very good coach. Just last night they beat WT Woodson. They are getting better. Anyone can see it. I personally think she is great for these kids. She has great passion. I honestly told her just a few weeks ago that it was my hope she coaches just how she played; aggressive and with passion. And she is doing just that. I am proud she is our coach. She deserves the chance to be successful. I promise, if she is given that chance - and I know she will be given that chance by administration and others – she will do great things for Lake Braddock Girl's Basketball.
I ask everyone to please stop posting such nasty things about her here. At the very least she deserves the respect of having people tell her face-to-face instead of saying it anonymously on some message board. She has no way to defend herself, nor should she want to on such a forum.
Again, she is doing her very best for your kids. She wants to, and expects to, win every game. She absolutely deserves each parent’s support, along with the community’s. She has my unwavering support, though she doesn’t need it nor has she asked for it. She has some great young ladies on that team who, if they are just left alone and given the support from everyone around them, will become very good basketball players and have fun in the process.
Remember this – Leigh was not responsible for Carl getting fired. Leigh was not responsible for me or any other applicant not getting hired. She applied just like everyone else and was the one chosen, period. Besides, who’s to say things would have been any different had myself, Dave McRae, Crenshaw, or any of the other applicants been hired? No one knows what would have happened.
Leigh is a very capable and good coach. She deserves the opportunity succeed, and she will, with or without people’s support, though it would be much more fun if she had it. She deserves it.
Let men pose this question: What if it was your daughter in her shoes? How would you feel? What if it was you?
I just ask that you take a step back and reflect. Is this fair?
If you have any questions, please don’t put it on here. Email me at tarheelsaaubasketball@ live.com as I won’t respond to FFU.
Rocky Carter