I Got Your Back: Part 2

I wanted to make sure the friendship stayed alive. I'm an early starter. I believe in the beginning of the day. Your mind is clearer then. Things don't get a chance to fester if you start out early. What's more, I wanted to establish discipline with Andre who claimed he never practiced before 2pm. That's why I set our first practice for 11am. I was not going for dominance. After all, Andre was the boss—he could fire me if he wanted. But I wanted to forge a new kind of professional relationship. At the same time, Andre and I were friends, and I wanted to make sure the friendship stayed alive. Some coaches need to keep the lines clear. When work is over, they go their separate ways. When Chris Mullin first started playing for Golden State, he'd say, "On our team, we have five guys, five cabs." To me, that sounded like the root of all evil. I knew I could never work with somebody unless we could hang out all the time: joke together, relax together, watch some ball on TV. Positiveness is all-important, and relaxation is a huge part of positiveness. Chris had so many coaches in...