The players on the UNI basketball team will continue to hear about this year’s NBA Finals even though the series has now wrapped up. UNI coach Ben Jacobson says he’s already talked to his players about how the San Antonio Spurs limit their turnovers. “The Spurs, the way they pass the basketball, the unselfishness is there, but they do such a good job of passing and catching, and they don’t turn it over,” Jacobson says. He says they talk about how hard it is to defend the passing attack.
Jacobson says he’s also made note of how Heat star LeBron James carried himself throughout the playoffs, and especially in a losing effort in the Finals. He says the leadership and teamwork that James shows and the energy he provides shows how he leads when he doesn’t have the ball. Jacobson says those traits were evident this year he talks to his team about the way James approaches the game.
Jacobson was particularly impressed with how James continued to lead the Heat even though many of his teammates were not playing well. “it really speaks to how advanced his leadership and unselfishness is. To not get bogged down by some of your teammates not doing their best,” Jacobson says. He says James elevated his leadership instead of going the other way.
Jacobson will enter his 9th season as UNI’s head coach this fall.
(Reporting by Jesse Gavin KCNZ Cedar Falls)