There’s a little bit of rabble-rouser in Dwane Casey, the most successful and longest serving coach in Toronto Raptors history.
It’s nothing done in a mean-spirited way — because the 59-year-old doesn’t have a mean bone in his body — but he is wily enough to know that provoking people every now and then is good for the soul, good for the team, good for the “program” as he likes to call it.
He’ll be in meetings or on the court and all of a sudden it’ll come to him: “Let’s get a discussion going, let’s have some creative tension around here.” Sneaky, but effective.
“I’ll ask questions I know the answer to just to get an argument going because somewhere in the middle is the truth and the right answer you have to have,” Casey said. “If we had everybody singing the same song or agreeing, you’re not going to get the right decision. Every coach I’ve worked for has had that philosophy; you start arguments, you argue with each other but once you walk out of the room, you’re on the same page.
“That’s from George Karl on down to Rick Carlisle and myself.”
To read the full article, click here: Raptors coach Dwane Casey inspires by listening