Jan. 11 -- We have a sign near the coffee maker in our home, "I thought I liked coffee. Turns out I like creamer."
I don't particularly like coffee. That sign is more for my wife and teenage daughters. Still, I enjoy the logic in it.
If I'm being honest, I could make one that said, "I thought I liked basketball. Turns out I like working with kids."
Last Saturday was a hoops marathon for me, seeing the game from very different angles at different times.
It started with a fifth-grade girls basketball game at 10 a.m. I kind of had to be there; my daughter's on the team, and I'm the head coach for our church's Catholic Youth Organization team.
Right after that, we headed out to the local high school for the junior varsity and varsity basketball game at 11 a.m. They recognized the youth players with a short ceremony on the floor between games, and I tried to keep my players out of trouble.
By 6 p.m., it was time to head out to Delphos for a varsity boys basketball game. I covered Delphos St. John's thrilling come-from-behind win against Shawnee in an electric, sold-out gymnasium.
One could argue each of those stops was just watching basketball. Still, each challenged me in different ways and made me think about why I do what I do.
I spent about a decade as a sports reporter and sports editor at four different newspapers in three states. Everywhere you go, people say it must be nice to get paid to watch games. When I moved to the news side, I stopped covering games.
I started back up a few years ago when we were shorthanded in sports at the newspaper, but I'm glad to help. I appreciate the entire process of covering a game. I dig digging up information about teams before I head out. I like being in the atmosphere of a gym. I enjoy keeping detailed statistics, including every shot taken and every rebound pulled down. It's a challenge to scribble down notes on key plays so I can accurately relay what happened and identify trends in a game.
The best part, though, is after the game. I really savor talking to the players and coaches, trying to see the game through their eyes. It rejuvenates me to hear how passionately they talk about the game they love and key moments within it. Then I relish the challenge of writing all that to share with our readers, not-so-secretly trying to be the first reporter to get my story finished and posted on LimaOhio.com.
Watching the game where my own team was recognized seemed a little dull in comparison. Don't get me wrong, I still appreciated the athletic efforts and the competition. The stakes just seemed lower for me when I didn't have to keep stats, identify trends or think about interviewing players and coaches.
As it turns out, though, my real passion seems to be coaching these players. I'm generally a reserved person, but coaching unlocks something where I can be a more gregarious version of myself.
To help them remember our different plays, I let the girls name them. I know our fans got a kick out of hearing me yell "Cheeseburger" repeatedly as we unveiled a new inbounds play last week.
A few years back, when I coached my now 16-year-old daughter's CYO team, the girls and fans loved it when I'd call out for our full-court press, "Snowstorm." That same strategy is called "Let the Dogs Out" this year. That silly name happened because my assistant coach and I taught them to usually stay inside the 3-point line on defense, as if it had an electric dog fence there. We even shook in practice as if we'd been shocked if a girl strayed outside the line. We didn't want someone dribbling right past her. This year's team loves it when we can turn off the electric fence and cover people all over the court.
I enjoy thinking up different ways to help them succeed during their games. It's not the X's and O's that make me appreciate those hours working with them. It's seeing them understand the concepts of a game I love but was never particularly good at playing. It's watching them get better and better as the season progresses.
At the risk of sounding like Ted Lasso, it's about helping them be the best versions of themselves, on and off the court. That's when I feel like I'm at my best too.
David Trinko is editor of The Lima News. Reach him at 567-242-0467, by email at dtrinko@limanews.com or on Twitter/X @Lima_Trinko.