Beilein With Words Of Wisdom: 'These Are The Teaching Moments Right Now'
The coronavirus has brought plenty of adversity and unexpected changes to the world, two elements that former Michigan Wolverines head basketball coach John Beilein (2007-19) knows plenty about.
Though he has been a head coach since 1975 (up until the last few weeks when he stepped away from the Cleveland Cavaliers) and has undoubtedly dealt with basketball adversity at all nine of the jobs he's had, Beilein faced his fair share of off-the-court adversity during the 12 years he spent at Michigan.
Rumors regarding his job security admittedly took a toll on him following his third year in Ann Arbor, in which his Wolverines finished with a disappointing 15-17 record after entering the year ranked No. 15 nationally.
"You know that if you don't turn it around, you could be in the same category as the last coach and looking for a job," he told Big Ten Network in its documentary on the 2013 team that went to the National Title. "As a result, it was survival."
Beilein also had offseason double bypass surgery in August of 2018, an operation that caused him to miss the club's trip to Spain later that month and admittedly hindered him physically well into the 2018-19 season.
No event was more traumatic, however, than when the team's plane slid off the runway in high winds as it was getting ready to head to the Big Ten Tournament in 2017, an event that could have been disastrous had the pilot not broken protocol and aborted takeoff in what was a split-second decision.
There were discussions the Maize and Blue wouldn't make the trip to Washington D.C. and play in the tournament at all, but they instead attended and won four games in four days to take home the championship.
To say Beilein has shown an ability to respond well in the face of adversity would be an understatement, which is why the message he delivered on Big Ten Network yesterday is so profound.
Recently hired to work as an analyst on the conference network, Beilein shared his thoughts on the cancellation of the Big Ten and NCAA Tournaments, and the coronavirus' impact in general.
“These are the teaching moments right now," he said. "This is actually the good stuff that you get to really get your message across.
"When the basketball stops bouncing, what do you got? Well, the basketball stopped bouncing.
"What type of life are you living? What type of values do you have? This is the good stuff that we can use to teach going forward.
"I think this is going to affect so many people in a negative way. I think it’s going to affect a lot of people in a positive way as well — with a different appreciation of life and how gifted they are, and all the blessings they have.”
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