Cheng going the extra mile

If you’re curious about what Nipissing Lakers men’s basketball head coach Chris Cheng is up to these days preparing for the 2014-15 season, it’s safe to say he’s hard at work.Cheng is recruiting vigorously searching for the right young men to suit up for the Lakers in their inaugural OUA season and he’s even gone above and beyond the typical off-season.
Cheng recently took a trip to the United States, all the way to Durham, North Carolina to learn and gain valuable information from the one and only, Coach K – Mike Krzyzewski.
The head coach of the Duke Blue Devils is one of the most successful coaches in basketball in the world, and is the most successful college coach of all-time.
Krzyzewski is a NCAA national champion, a gold medallist and one of the top basketball minds there is, so Cheng felt it was a great opportunity to learn from the best.
Cheng was able to make this trip because of a player he coached for five summers in Toronto, who has gone on to become team manager Krzyzewski’s squad.
Cheng said this was a trip that served several purposes and he feels it will pay off not only immediately, but in the long run, for the Lakers basketball programs.
"When I first got the job here at Nipissing, I wanted to make sure that I started our program the right way and that we were on a path towards excellence.  I also wanted to ensure that everything I did for our program was done with excellence,” Cheng said after returning from his trip. “I thought to myself that Xs and Os aren’t extremely important right now as this year is devoted to recruiting, building program awareness in the city and across the province and country, and to establish a program culture and identity.  So, I decided to go to the best coach that had success in all areas, growing success, in many different environments - Coach K came to mind."
Cheng said there isn’t enough time in the day to talk about all the great stuff he learned and the great experience he had, but he did note a few things stood out to him, things he will definitely be implementing himself when the program here at Nipissing is completely up and running.
"Being in the presence and learning from the best coach in the world and his staff and program was such an incredible and memorable experience for me as a person and coach. I had in-access to coaching meetings, film sessions, and practices.  What was most overwhelming was to have one on one time with Coach K each day.  He taught me the importance of daily communication with my staff, student-athletes, and administration, preparation for each daily task, and to have the commitment from everyone that is helping me with my program.  He stressed to always hold them accountable, empower them, and to motivate them,” Cheng noted.
“He said ‘even the people of power need to be constantly motivated.  It is the only way great things can be done.’ What stood out the most for me was his ability to always learn regardless from who and what coaching level and experience.  You think a man who is 66 and in his 34th year at Duke would keep to his ways.  He was extremely open to learning from me as much as I was there to learn from him.  He sought out my feedback about his practices and meetings and valued my feedback and used my feedback with his team.  I learned so much from Coach K and all of his staff members and I look to apply what I learned here to our newly established Lakers Men's Basketball Program."
Cheng has learned under another great coach and basketball mind as well, this time closer to home in Jay Triano, former national team head coach, whom Cheng worked closely with in the past.
Cheng got to see what very few people do, aside from the members of the Blue Devils staff.
He was in the heart of one of the top basketball programs in the world, something that’s not lost on him, nor was the opportunity to learn and take in as much as he could.
"I witnessed their daily operations and logistics of how their Men's Basketball Program operates.  It was most evident to why they have the success they have and the excellence of their program because of the teamwork, pride, and commitment displayed from all members of the staff, managers, student-athletes, study body, and athletics administration,” Cheng said.
This wasn’t just a holiday for Cheng, this was a business trip. And while it was, as Cheng said, a trip of a lifetime, there was more to it than a few days out of the country.
"I am extremely devoted to our Nipissing Lakers Men's Basketball Program, to Nipissing University, and to the City of North Bay, and seeking this professional development opportunity was one of the many steps I will take to ensure that we build a program, identity, culture, and overall brand of excellence on and off the floor,” Cheng explained.
"Overall, it was an overwhelming experience.  One that I will remember for the rest of my life,” he added.