An Enduring Brand

Pete Thamel's article about Kevin Durant in today's New York Times should be required reading for every young athlete in America. When I was the Athletics Director at Trinity Episcopal School, we had three words emblazoned on the wall in the Trinity Center for Arts and Athletics (right under the scoreboard): RESPECT, TEAMWORK, PERSEVERANCE. These words serve as Pillars that educators can "teach to" every day with quotes, stories, probing questions, and by the way they conduct a class or practice. Kevin Durant lives by these three words. Thamel's article reveals this with real life examples:

RESPECT
. "Durant treated the equipment manager and the trainer in Oklahoma City with the same kindness and consideration that he treated the coaching staff and front office."
. As a member of the USA Basketball team he defers to older players like Chauncey Billups and Lamar Odom. "There's a lot of guys on this floor who know more than me," he said. "They can help me a lot more than I can help the other guys."

TEAMWORK
. "While other elite NBA stars were making movies and taking vacations, he worked out every morning at 6:45am and cheered on the Thunder rookies and some future Developmental League Players."
. He refused to appear on the cover of a magazine at Texas unless his teammates were included.

PERSEVERANCE
. He worked out EVERY MORNING this summer.....without having to let the whole world know about it.

While other superstars strategize to build their brand, Durant LIVES HIS BRAND! Parents and coaches should take advantage of this golden opportunity to promote the actions of a mega superstar who actually walks the walk.