1. Be positive with your athlete. Let them know they are accomplishing something simply by being a part of the team. Don’t put them down.

2. Don’t offer excuses for them if they are not playing. Encourage them to work and do their best.

3. Don’t put their coaches down. Remember, the coach represents the “boss”, the “authority”, the “parent”, the “teacher” and the “law”. If you are bad mouthing your athlete’s coaches constantly, how can you expect the youngster to play for them?

4. Encourage them to follow the rules. Whether they are a first stringer or a seventh stringer, players must follow rules. Basketball is a very demanding sport and coaches must concern themselves with a players’ off-the- court activities in order to get maximum physical and mental performance out of the players.

5. Insist on good grades. If they don't have passing grades, they don't play.

6. Don’t try to live vicariously through them. Basketball is a kid’s game: let them play it. Don’t show animosity or jealousy to any of your athlete’s teammates. This type of envy can rub off on them and devastate the team. Who cares who scores as long as everyone does their job to the fullest?

7. Don’t be a know it all. The coaches’ work with the players 9 months a year and they know what each kid can do and what they cannot do. As a fan you are entitled to scream your head off, but please don’t become belligerent and arrogant toward the players. They are amateurs. Coaches know their talent. Respect that knowledge.

8. Insist on your athlete’s respect for team rules, school rules, game officials, and sportsmanship. Don’t let them make fools of their family, school, and team by some “uncalled-for” gesture. Self-respect begins with self-control.

9. Encourage your athlete to improve their self-image by believing in themself. Every person has been created with worth and value. Always remind your athlete of this fact. Tell them that they are special and that they are only limited to the degree that they limit themselfs.  Don’t compare or contrast your athlete with family members who played previously. Every youngster is different.

10. Encourage your athlete to play for the love of the game – not for a scholarship or something that is in the hands of college recruiter. Insist on unselfishness. Usually good things happen to unselfish and hard-working people.

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