The way you carry yourself both on and off the court will go a long way toward defining what type of player you are. No one is impressed by a talented player who treats opponents, officials, coaches and even his or her own teammates disrespectfully. Very simply, there is a right way and a wrong way to behave at practice, and before, during and after games.
Winning and losing are fundamental elements of basketball. It is unacceptable to use defeat as an excuse for acting irresponsibly. Blaming an official for a bad call (even if you truly believe that your team has been treated unfairly) or complaining about the coach or your teammates is no way to act when things are not going your way. These are the times when you need to gain control of your emotions. Even in victory, good seportsmanship is important. Bragging or making fun of an opponent is not appropriate behaviour.
THE GOLDEN RULE
Treat teammates, coaches, opponents, and officials the same way that you would like to be treated - fairly and with respect.
WHAT ABOUT THE OFFICIALS?
Smart players treat the officials as friends, not foes. An official's job is to ensure that the game is played fairly. Like anyone else, officials can make mistakes, but it is never in an attempt to help one team over another.
Young players can even learn from talking to the officials. Sound funny? Watch players in the NBA and WNBA and you'll notice that the players are constantly chatting with the official. Although the official don't care which team wins or loses, many of them will make helpful on-court suggestions to young players. If nothing else, exercising common courtesy with officials can make the game experience even more enjoyable.
