Mr. Gianni Dumitrescu, a social studies department teacher of U.S. history and law enforcement. He coaches the Girls Varsity Tennis and Girls JV Basketball. He goes over his experience as a coach and what he hopes for in the future as he continues coaching at Bryant!
Introduction
Fawzia Ikra
“Please introduce yourself Mr. Dumitrescu.”
Mr. Gianni Dumitrescu
“I am a Bryant alumni , and a proud father of a four year old that just loves to be a part of the Bryant community. Extracurricular activities such as attending my students’ music concerts, sharing a meal with my colleagues and students at the Thanksgiving breakfast, and watching my students engage in competitive debates such as Moot Court and Mock Trial makes the profession of teaching all worth it.”
Interview
Fawzia Ikra
“How long have you been coaching the Girls Junior Varsity basketball team?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“This is my first year coaching JV Girls Basketball, so about 3 months.”
Fawzia Ikra
“How would you describe yourself as a coach?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“I would describe myself as dedicated, persevering, and extremely patient.”
Fawzia Ikra
“What is the most memorable moment so far in all your years of coaching?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“My most memorable moment as a coach is seeing the smiles on my players’ faces whenever they felt they made an achievement or were successful. This boosted their confidence as well as their spirits.”
Fawzia Ikra
“How do you keep your players motivated, both during tough games and throughout the season?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“I tell them to keep trying. Try your absolute best. The goal is to improve just a bit every practice and every game, and that is what my players have done.”
Fawzia Ikra
“What inspired you to become a coach?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“Being a former student at Bryant, I was on the tennis team. My most memorable moments of high school was being on that team. I just want to create and provide those same memories for my students and players.”
Fawzia Ikra
“What does a normal practice look like?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“Practices typically are about an hour and a half and consist of warm up drills, such as laps around the gym, or stretches, followed by fundamental drills such as y dribbling the ball, layups, free throws, jump shots, etc. Sometimes we switch to 3 on 3 or 5 on 5 scrimmages where I instruct and coach on play by play activities.”
Fawzia Ikra
“What qualities do you look for in your athletes?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“Some qualities that I look for in athletes are perseverance, integrity, and determination. Additionally, as long as you are willing to learn and keep trying, you are a good athlete in my book.”
Fawzia Ikra
“What advice would you give students who are trying to join the team?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“Make sure you will be committed to your sport, your team, and your grades. Part of being a model athlete is also being a model student.”
Fawzia Ikra
“What is the biggest challenge whilst being a coach?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“The biggest challenge as a coach is teaching my players that defeat isn’t always a bad thing. Teaching my players to stay humble, whether the outcome is a victory or defeat has been the biggest challenge.”
Fawzia Ikra
“What is an experience with the team that you have learnt from?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“Winning isn’t everything. Building bonds and connections with my players is far more valuable.”
Fawzia Ikra
“What’s a message that you can give to your girls returning next year or the new boys who will be joining the school’s team?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“A message I can give to my girls returning next year or the new girls joining is to be 100% committed to joining a team. Ensure that you can dedicate time to the team, your family, and studies. Otherwise it’s not fair to the team, and to yourself.”
Fawzia Ikra
“What is your process for developing individual skills and improving weaknesses?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“A process I use for developing individual skills and improving weaknesses is simply modeling for my athletes. If one of my players struggle with defense, or passing I ensure to focus on those skills by modeling for them, and then have them practice the skill over and over again.”
Fawzia Ikra
“How do you help players develop mental toughness and handle the pressures of competition?”
Gianni Dumitrescu
“One way I help players develop mental toughness and handle the pressure of competition is accountability. For example, if any of my players show up late to practice or a game, they are required to run extended laps around the gym. The pressures of competition are always difficult. I usually tell my players to take a deep breath and just tune out the audience and other factors that may reduce the pressure.”
Fawzia Ikra
“What advice would you give to someone aspiring to be a basketball coach?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“An advice I would give to someone aspiring to become a basketball coach, is that success doesn’t happen overnight. Just as athletes need to work hard everyday and try to improve everyday, so do coaches. This is still a learning process for me, and everyday I learn something new about the position.”
Fawzia Ikra
“What are your plans for next year to have a successful season?”
Mr. Dumitrescu
“My plans for a successful season next year is to start the recruitment process earlier, and embed more practices with my players.”
Fawzia Ikra
“What kind of leadership roles do you encourage among the players, and how do they evolve over time?”
Gianni Dumitrescu
“I encourage my players to never let their opponents get a rise out of them. Ignore all the negative noise and handle it with humility. The same goes if the opponents are not as competitive and are just learning the sport. By having my players encourage their teammates as well as underdeveloped opponents, it teaches them leadership and responsibility. I have witnessed first hand the impact that this has on my players, as a number of them have matured over the course of the season.”