Musings at Altitude

After unprecedented success in his 3 years as the head coach of Butler, 33-year old Brad Stevens accepted a 12 year extension this past week, putting an end to any rumors that he might be jumping ship and heading to one of those arguably higher profile jobs at a “big name”, “big conference” school. 

He was undoubtedly the hottest coaching prospect perceived to be on the market. 

He was also undoubtedly one of the few coaches today who show loyalty to those who give them a chance, open that door, put them on a big stage, and typically, conventionally, more expectedly, pave the way for them to advance quickly by choosing some other path towards whatever greatness they may be seeking.

Others fit this category too:

• that great athlete that stays in school instead of leaping at a chance to be a certain first rounder in whatever sport they show such great talent in
• that husband or wife that experiences great success, great excitement, great visibility, and great temptation on a big stage at work and decides to stay faithful and stay committed to their family
• that politician that’s an up and comer in service to their state, mentioned constantly as an obvious choice for more responsibility at a national level, yet stays focused and purposeful, fulfilling the mission for which they were elected
• that superstar in business who is given that once in a lifetime chance to do a once in a lifetime project that leverages the cheers and the resultant wave of opportunities to instead take that next tough step on the learning path to success at a much bigger corporate level

There don’t seem to be many of these folks around anymore.

Brad’s one of the few.

I applaud him for doing the unconventional and unexpected thing.

Wouldn’t it be cool if lots more followed suit!