“I really want to say something” | Relief

From time to time, Relevo receives more or less disappointing news about the behavior of parents at children’s competitions. This usually happens in football, where many parents simply believe out of disappointment that they have a star at home and forget the most important thing: the joy of their children. The reality is that similar situations happen in other sports as well. Jose Manuel Calderon He suffers from this from time to time. The Spanish basketball legend stopped by Relevo’s Locker Room to tell jokes he found along the way, where He had to bite his tongue to avoid a scene in the stands.

You can see Quique Peinado’s full interview with Jose Manuel Calderon in El Vestuario here.

Hey, your kids love basketball, but you’re not the typical dad who hands out a badge, they liked it a little bit because it was in the environment, but you didn’t force anything on them.

No, no, no, and I still don’t put pressure on them. I’m a father, they want to play basketball, I support them and go to basketball. If they ask me, I’ll help, of course. But They played tennis or football, but I was still the same, the same father. In fact, many conversations are held with coaches, for example: “Why don’t you come one day and help them?” And I say, “If my son asks, then yes, but why don’t you ask other parents?” In other words, I try not to get involved in anything that they don’t think is something they think I should be involved in. They come to my campuses, have a great time, are both very excited, but nothing more. I sometimes train with them because they tell me, “Hey, dad, let’s go.” But I never pushed them, I don’t force them to train or work. They go at their own pace, they do it better or worse. Is It was very clear to me from the very beginning that they were going to do what they wanted.. Of course, they will do anything for me, they know that, I help them as much as I can. And if they ask me, I will teach them. And if not, then they have their own coaches, whom I support without any problems. And I love watching them train.

When you see some of these crazy parents talking too much about referees, coaches, what about it?

Fine I really want to say somethingbecause in the end, especially when you understand what’s going on, you have a different point of view, You realize that what they are saying doesn’t make any sense, and The problem is that there are often people who don’t know who you are.who can tell you and of course…

Of course, you won’t play in the NBA like that.

And of course, imagine, right? And you say: what should I do?

In other words, there are parents who argue with you.

There are people who say, “Look at my son, and I don’t know how long.” And you say there: “Let’s see, my son is having a great time. Your son…”

He’s not going to play in the NBA, man.

And the worst thing is that the boy knew it.And. What are the situations: “Calm down, enjoy your son who is smiling”. The coach does his best to make sure everyone has fun and they try to play as a team. Yes, some are better, others are worse. Sometimes they pass the ball to you, especially to your son. In other cases, they don’t pass it. But that’s all. And they’re like, “Don’t you think that if we put that much pressure…” and sometimes You stand there and think, “Does he really know that I played this, or does he really have no idea?” I go there to have a good time, to see my son have a good time, and that’s all. But there are situations where you go, “Wow, this is awesome.” If I were like him, like that person… it’s not good for my son either, but I certainly can’t tell him, “Hey, watch what you’re saying, let him have fun.” Sometimes we as parents get too involved in things we shouldn’t be doing. And the same thing coach, you really have to let him do his job.And if you don’t like the way it works, you’ll still have to look for other equipment that adapts to what you want for your baby.

There’s a joke in your book that I think is powerful, and I’m going to ask you to tell it too, because you tell it very well: You went to Toronto with your son, and one day, when you retire, you see the Raptors play.

Yes, other than that, it was a “game” because it was Kawhi Leonard’s game. He came and we were sitting there at the game and they were playing videos of (Calderon’s) plays and people stood up and applauded and everything and Manuel (his son) says, “But Dad, there’s something here that I don’t understand.” . about how good you were? I mean were you as good as Stephen Curry, LeBron James. There was something missing for people to do this to me, he didn’t tell me it was a package (smiles) but like? he understood? He would understand and say, “Yes, you’re in the NBA and you’re playing with LeBron James, but you’re not LeBron James. For me, that anecdote was incredible for that reason because it was like, how good are you? I mean, Were you the real star or was it someone who was there?

What did you say to him?

Well, I told him that it’s neither one nor the other, I think I told him that I was a very good player, that I was a team player, that I adapted to all my roles.which had moments when he was the second most important player teams, in my good years, Then I was third, then fifth, and then there came the moment when I was still eleven. Then every time they grew up, they realized it because they watched my videos: My son, now little, comes and says: “One time when you played against I don’t know who, you scored 20 points and 13 assists.”. lThen with the Spanish Hall of Fame they thought: “There were more of you in Spain, but perhaps not in the US.” The reality is that you explain to them a little bit what it was like, and I think each time they realize more and more the importance of what we did.