The Bible And Basketball Don’t Make For A Good Mix

I am so sorry for this to be happening right now.

I've only had one interaction with Texas Tech basketball coach Mark Adams and that was enough for me to be "all in" with the coach. Adams is nice, genuine, and gives his whole heart to Lubbock and the team.

Adams is currently on suspension for trying to make a player more coachable by throwing some bible verses at him. At issue was a verse about "masters and slaves" that did not sit well with the player (like many, I'm assuming this was a player of color). You can argue all day about the use of religious instruction when it comes to coaching, but master/slave talk is off the table in any context whatsoever.

It's easy to get up in bible-speak, but "to everything, there is a season" and the season for this kind of thing passed long ago. I just don't understand how this wonderful man couldn't see that the direction this talk was taking wasn't a good one. It really makes me question a lot of things.

Adams continues on suspension, and with basketball being on shakey legs this year I'd say that things don't look good for him. It will not be easy to recruit in the future when someone says, "Texas Tech is where that master/slave thing went down".

Now to those who would single out or complain about the player, just don't. Don't even try. When something is or may be wrong, we need to encourage them to speak up. We need to respect an athlete that is in our care, just as their parents are told around recruiting time.

This whole situation is heartbreaking and I wish I had a bit of advice that would help. I'm sure Adams regrets what he said, but who is really going to ask him to recant a bible verse? If he is going to be asked to choose between Texas Tech and the bible, then Texas Tech will be looking for a new coach.