Charles Sweeney, the equipment manager for the Grizzlies, was featured in the Memphis paper yesterday. I worked with Charles when I was an assistant in MEM. He's a guy who works hard and genuinely loves what he does. He really has one agenda: Do whatever it takes to help the Griz win.
The world needs clappers, see. Everyone can't be the fairy princess in this life. Everyone can't be the star of the production. But the production wouldn't go on without the butterflies and the trees and the rest of the cast. The clappers are as important as anyone.
Guys like Charles have a bigger impact on a team's success than they get credit for. What's interesting is that though coaches (and their assistants) come and go, in many cases, the support staff, strength coaches, video coordinators, and equipment managers (and their assistants) remain.
If everyone in a team's travel party was tied to winning, the loyalty factor would creat a stronger bond. As it stands, since the people I listed above know they're likely to stay on even after a coach and his staff are fired, they're not necessarily loyal to the current staff.
Charles Sweeney wants to win, there's no doubt about that. I wonder if the same can be said for every one of the NBA's equipment managers.
Happy Memorial Day
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