Bill Schultz is the founder and leader of the Miracle League in Dane County, WI. He joined us to tell his own story of growing up with physical disabilities, staying resilient, and ultimately impacting many lives in positive ways. The Miracle League provides children with disabilities -- and their families -- with opportunities to play sports and have fun together. Bill's story is inspiring. Our SGG conversation included conversation about: 1. Bills sports experiences when he was young. 2. The coaches and adults who impacted him growing up. 3. His experiences as a manager in college. 4. His career. 5. How the Miracle league came to fruition in the Madison area. 6. What happens at Miracle League games. 7. A couple of "miracle stories." 8. What comes next.

George Dohrmann is senior managing editor for enterprise and investigations for The Athletic. Previously at Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Times and the St. Paul Pioneer Press, where in 2000 he won a Pulitzer Prize, he is the author of multiple books. Play Their Hearts Out, George’s book stemming from a ten-year immersive journey with an AAU team, was winner of the 2011 PEN/ESPN Award and was named by GQ as one of 50 best books on literary journalism. On this SGG episode, we discussed: 1. There’s a picture of you coaching kids in soccer on your website. Do you coach? What’s your coaching style? (2:40) 2. What drew you to the topic of your new book, Switching Fields? (5:25) 3. Historically, what have been some of the signature differences between how men’s and women’s developmental systems have worked in American soccer? (7:47) 4. How UNC coach Anson Dorrance created a successful soccer program (10:27) 5. What was noteworthy about the development of American soccer in Southern California? (14:30) 6. Why have there historically been so few Black soccer players in the USA program? (20:40) 7. Who else has been left behind… and why? (21:30) 8. You documented some really horrible coaches in PTHO. But it sounds like you’ve found hopeful coaching models in these years that’ve followed. In soccer, what are the promising youth coaching practices that you’ve found? Would these translate across sports – including to youth basketball? (25:05) 9. Latino influence on coaching (29:10) 10. You’ve long been advocating for “junior NBA/WNBA leagues.” Why? Is this a logic of talent capitalization? How can we concurrently democratize healthy, high-level sport opportunity? (34:20) 11. Looking back on what you know now, would your analysis of the PTHO kids’ world change in any noteworthy ways?  What are the “big questions” we should be asking to make youth sports better in the US? (39:53) 12. What would he do differently if he could do Play Their Hearts Out again (43:10)

We continue our SGG conversations with Sidney Moncrief, whose perspectives on leading for justice are rooted in years of competing, leading, and learning at the highest levels. In this episode, we discussed: What Made Don Nelson special: he understood the value of having a good support team and he made sure to be authentic during his interactions with both his assistant coaches and his players to create sincere relationships with them. (9:08) “The wisdom that I had when I played came from humility and self awareness” (13:30) “When he became a leader on the Bucks he eliminated hazing because he wanted the new players to be able to come to him and not be looked down upon or pass judgment… he would just give them the facts” (15:23) “It’s easy for anyone to become insecure about a number of things and as a coach you really need to guard against that.” (19:38) The negative effects of social media on athletes. (24:47) His perspective of diversity, equity, inclusion throughout the sports landscape while playing at Arkansas. (28:30) Learning from his experience playing tennis with Sam Walton. (32:27) “When you're in your 20s you really don’t have the wherewithal, it’s all about ‘me’ and … you are not leveraging potential relationships to do good things for others” (36:00) “I don’t care how famous you are or how many followers you have, always speak from an educated perspective know both sides.” (38:24) You have to use both your public and your private platforms. (39:58) Learning from his conversation with Senator Kohl. (41:33) Learning about intentionality as a part of his GRIT concept. (43:00) How sports give him the platform today. (45:47) “Our job as older players is to make ourselves relevant… take current issues and collaborations to make things better. (46:39) The effect of his mom keeping composure during times of crisis. (48:28) Why coaches have to guard their players too much information. (52:23)

Tony Granato’s accolades and accomplishments in hockey are remarkable. A highest level champion of the game in every way at college, NHL and Olympic levels, Tony is recognized as one of the great teammates, competitors and leaders in the game. As head coach of the Badgers, Tony continues to positively impact countless lives each year. He joined SGG, where we discussed: 1. The shared passion for hockey among the Granato siblings. “NHL games” in the family basement. Core values and love developing in the basement. 2. Coaching principles “come from that basement.” 3. Benefits of free play. Learning about leadership and how to be a teammate. 4. Learning about courage and perseverance from his sister Cammi. “She fought through lots of barriers and obstacles.” 5. Learning from his brother Donny about overcoming hard things. 6. Learning about the core values of individuals that his team recruits. 7. One of Tony’s bell cows (models): Bob Johnson – “His enthusiasm and passion for hockey was what I thought it should be. He brought that spirit to wherever he was.” “His style was unique back then. Coaches were hard-nosed and tough. Stand-offs. Screamers and yellers…Badger had the opposite. He loved and appreciated players for who they were.” 8. Another bell cow: his dad. “He didn’t know hockey very well…But what I learned from him was love and care for one another. Respect and care for each other and the game.” 9. Positive mindset. Taking positive things from other players. 10. “I don’t want to be respected because I was a good player. I want to be respected because I was a good teammate.” 11. Personality of a team. “It has to be a natural thing.” 12. “Great character” vs. “great characters” in the game of hockey. 13. Values/principles of his program: work ethic; passion/love for the game and people. 14. “When you’re appreciated, you’re willing to go through the wall for somebody.” 15. Differences in international models of sport and development. 16. US Hockey’s new model for developing the game. 17. European focus on tactical and skill work. 18. Talent capitalization. 19. Starting points in leadership development: Core values. Compassion. Relationships. 20. “The part I’ve enjoyed most about my journey in sport is the fact that I’ve been able to share it with my brothers and sisters and dad and mom. We’re all connected by sport.” 21. His dad never pushed hockey upon him.

Naismith Hall of Famer Sidney Moncrief – a former Bucks all-star and assistant coach – joined us (2nd time on SGG!) to discuss leadership across different eras. He identified a critical shift in player-coach relations that occurred in the early 2000s and offered broad insights on leadership across diverse settings. We discussed: 1. How do relationships look in the NBA? In the 1980s: Corporate. “There were no relationships. You were told what to do. In the 2000s “there was a new source of empowerment among the players.” At that point, if you were an assistant coach, your sole purpose was to develop a relationship with players. “They were no longer doing what you told them to do because you were the leader. They wanted you to earn their trust.” 2. The impact of the rise of AAU. 3. One thing that has not changed in coaching: “Once players know that you care…right away, the trust goes up. And the respect goes up.” What matters most: caring, transparency, honesty, integrity. 4. Coaches showed care behind the scenes. 5. Principles are important in action, not just in what you say. Great coaches “walk the talk.” (Don Nelson. Del Harris, Rick Majerus, etc.) 6. Sidney’s “Cs of Leadership:” Competence, Character, Consistency, Communication. 7. The 1980s was the era of excess in the league – not an era of social consciousness. “We had conversations behind the scenes. But if you had those discussions in public…it would have been detrimental to your career.” It was easier to have those conversations in the 60s and 70s. 8. The importance of “Magic vs. Bird” in shifting from team to individual branding. 9. “Coaches play a major role in giving players a base for being game changers in society.” 10. “You should never be afraid of stepping outside of the box as a coach.” 11. Don Nelson understood that he needed to get the star players on board with ideas first. “He would come to us and ask for our opinions…Great players must be part of your internal team.” 12. “Being a social justice person.” Sidney’s thoughts on order and action in a sports context – a sensitive and complicated matter. 13. Could Coach Eddie Sutton coach the same way today? “He made some adjustments but his standards never changed.” 14. “GRIT:” Growth, resilience, intentionality, tenacity. 15. Body language. Reading cues. 16. Authenticity. “The worst thing as a leader is for people that you lead to not know who you are and what you stand for.” 17. “Empathy should have no age limit.” 18. Having a purpose. 19. The diversity in the game. 20. Principled coaches are “setting their players up to be social game changers in society, to accelerate their life’s purpose.”

Marisa Moseley’s journey through college basketball includes remarkable success as a player, assistant coach and head coach. She joined SGG to discuss leading the Badgers program. We discussed: 1. What is a “bell cow”… and who were some of Coach Moseley’s bell cows? 2. Having “unfettered” access to Coach Auriemma. 3. Jay Wright. “You watch his teams and they’re so fundamentally sound…I was very much an admirer of the way he coaches and teaches.” 4. John Thompson. “How he transcended the game, how he was unapologetically black, how he led…how he was authentically himself.” 5. How do you decipher what’s “for you” as a coach? 6. Determining “our style” as a program. “I knew what kind of person I was as a person, as a coach, as a leader, as a teacher… But we needed to develop a style as a program.” 7. How program “style” affects all parts of the program. 8. Indicators of the Badgers culture: a loud gym, energy, open communication, helping each other up, quick pace, urgency. 9. Popovich: When you join this team, you don’t change us, we change you. 10. Consistency and high expectations. 11. Coaches who talk too much at practice. 12. Learning to let players play through mistakes. “It’s a delicate dance.” 13. The program pillars: Winning mindset, Integrity, Selflessness, Communication, Legacy. 14. Connectedness around the pillars. “If you are really, really connected, you have some of your best teams. 15. A simple gratitude exercise with the team. 16. What team members owe each other. 17. Deepest aspirations as a coach: “helping people become the best version of themselves.”

Javonte Lipsey was a five-time All-American track athlete at the University of North Carolina. After his decorated career, Javonte embarked on a doctoral research journey at Ohio State University. His dissertation study examined servant leadership in collegiate athletics administrators. On this SGG episode, we discussed: 1. Growing up in the loving Lipsey family that adopted seven children: “My existence in the family was created in their willingness to serve.” 2. Witnessing his father and mother as servant leaders. 3. The servant perspective “gave me a huge amount of humility” in athletics. “It’s about being part of a community that’s part of something larger.” 4. The impact of his high school coach. “He was much more than a coach…He was there through every phase of my life, not just on the track.” 5. Why he pursued the Ph.D.: “My parents told me that are two things to take with you wherever you go: salvation and education.” 6. What is servant leadership? 7. Doing what is right because it is right (as opposed to having ulterior motives). 8. Listening to hear, to understand, to serve. 9. One of Javonte’s research questions: What are the antecedents of servant leadership? 10. Another question: On a day-to-day basis in college athletics administration, what does servant leadership look like? 11. Third question: Are there experiences that helped shaped servant leadership behavior? 12. The research design. 13. Servant leadership is animated by humility. 14. Religious affiliation and servant leadership. 15. Exemplars of servant leadership: Tony Dungy, Muhammad Ali, LeBron James, Steph Curry. 16. “I challenge people to ask ourselves, ‘How can I serve others?’”

As I was editing the third and final SGG episode with UW’s Walter Dickey, I was speaking with former Big Ten Conference Commissioner Jim Delany and asked for his perspective on Walter. Jim described Walter as a “straight shooter” and “one of the most able and honest people that I ran across in my 31 years in the Big 10.” These words of high praise are included in the introductory remarks of this episode. And then, focusing largely on some of his key partners from over the years, Walter and I discussed: 1. Working together with Frank Remington. “He was incredibly generous with his time and his knowledge.” 2. Other partners from the Law School and Corrections over the years. 3. Lesson from Frank Remington: “Helping young people develop is a calling.” 4. “I’ve always thought the development of others was one of my principal responsibilities.” 5. Close observation and imagination. 6. Developing a sense of judgment. “If you’re going to develop a sense of judgment, you need knowledge of the system you’re working in.” 7. “The ability to understand people and empathize with people is vital.” 8. “Working in harness with another.” (more fun, better ideas) 9. Becoming a leader in athletics. 10. Working closely with Jim Delany. Loyalty and discretion. 11. Jim Delany’s skill in getting groups get where they need to go. 12. Different ways to disagree. 13. Beginnings of working with Barry Alvarez. 14. Working with Chris McIntosh. “I quickly realized how intelligent and perceptive he was…I took him everywhere.” 15. Transitioning away from being on campus every day. “It was hard…I spent my life poised for action.” 16. Realizing that “I’ve done my part.” 17. “The future will rise up before us.” 18. Family.

In the second part of our three episodes that focus on the great law professor, public leader and athletics leader, we discussed: 1. The importance of reading over the years. “It fed my curiosity and desire to learn…It helped develop in me a sense of idealism in the world and possibilities in the world…It led me to have some illusions about what was possible in the world.” 2. Keeping a journal every day: “What I think about. What we do.” 3. “I’ve done my part.” 4. Attempting to become more present. 5. “Poised to learn.” 6. A goal for law students: growth for the rest of their lives. 7. “The law in action.” 8. A sound structural education in law school. “The bones of the law.” Principles and specifics. 9. A metaphor for lawyer prep: playwright vs. critic. 10. Being both a law professor and the head of corrections. 11. “On the ground understanding.” 12. Developing trust as head of corrections. 13. The value of “unglamorous” jobs as a youngster. 14. The influence of Jesuit education. 15. Law and leadership as a “helping profession.” 16. “Creating value” as a leader. 17. The importance of communication as a leader. 18. Learning how to navigate multiple contexts as a leader. “Assess it. Look at it as carefully as you can. Then figure out what to do.” 19. “You can’t become too attached to your own view.” 20. “The anchoring effect.” 21. Diagnostic interviews. 22. Moral authority. “It’s earned. You’re not anointed with it.” 23. “A degree of humility is incredibly powerful.” 24. Living a balanced life. “The lives of our children and grandchildren are of first order importance.”

Walter Dickey recently retired from a long and distinguished professional life at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Among many other accomplishments and experiences, Walter was a tenured law professor; head of the Department of Corrections in Wisconsin; Chair of the Wisconsin athletic board; representative to NCAA and Big Ten Conference, and deputy athletic director. He’s published extensively and shaped his fields in many positive ways. But Walter’s much more than these achievements or positions. He’s been a son, brother, husband, father, friend, colleague, and mentor. He’s a man with broad experience, deep perspective. Walter says that he never spends much time thinking about his career or having been a leader, but in this three part series, we examine how this legendary UW leader has indeed lived an interesting and impactful life of leadership. In part 1, Walter described the time that he and his wife Mary spent in Ghana, just after he’d completed law school. He highlighted some of the impacts of that time in their lives and how it contributed to his development as an observer of the world. Walter then described the importance of partnership in his journey and he provided insight into how one of his key partners, Professor Frank Remington, went about mentoring with humility and generosity. Over the years it’s been a tremendous honor and privilege for me to get to learn from Walter – so learning more about his story was a very special opportunity for me.  We discussed: 1. Deciding to go to Ghana – “the adventure of our lives” and the “turning point of our lives.” 2. Not being part of the “American Embassy crowd” in Ghana. 3. Living in Ghana: heat, a coup, grocery shopping, time, food, etc. 4. Being an observer. 5. “We were completely reliant on each other.” 6. Walter and Mary in Ghana: “We developed confidence in ourselves. And we developed trust and confidence in people around us.” 7. Returning to the U.S: No money, a Ford Pinto, a broadened perspective, and an uncertain future. 8. Why every American should take advantages of opportunities to live abroad. 9. “I’ve never thought of myself as having a career.” 10. Learning to live amid doubt and uncertainty in a condition of not knowing (Shakespeare). 11. Contrasting Oedipus & Socrates coming to a fork in the road. Socrates reflected and considered where the two roads might go. 12. Mary: “As the future rises up before us, we’ll figure it out.” 13. “Carefully observing the world and people around me. And then figuring out how to best proceed.” 14. The raw materials of leadership: observing and active imagination (and reading). 15. What Walter learned from reading as a youngster: the triumph of virtue after struggle. Idealism. 16. C.S. Lewis: reading teaches us that we’re not alone. 17. “Solving problems is fun. Spouting off theoretical things isn’t, at least to me.” 18. Working for UW Law Professor Frank Remington, who was “incredibly intelligent, observant, and humble.” 19. Diagnostic interviews: “a legal physical.” 20. Frank Remington as a mentor. “Humility was his hallmark.”