FAB Flournoy dedicated his coach of the month award to his colleagues after insisting they receive their share of the credit for Newcastle Eagles’ flying start to the campaign.
The New Yorker claimed the British Basketball League’s accolade for October following some confident displays from his Eagles side in recent weeks.
No doubt still seething after the rarity that is a trophy-less campaign for the Eagles last time out, Flournoy’s men have hit the ground running in fine style as they attempt to put that right.
The Eagles breezed through their BBL Trophy group – losing only one game en route to the semi-finals – and currently top the BBL league table after winning three out of three, including last week’s dramatic victory over Sheffield Sharks.
Quite rightly, Flournoy’s achievements – the latest in a coaching career laden with trophies and personal awards – in the game are being given due recognition but, modest as ever, the American refuses to take full credit.
The Eagles coach said: “I would like to dedicate this award to my video editing and scouting crew. Dave Forrester, Jeff King, Les Harrison, Stu Drybugh and Eric Wilson deserve enormous credit for all the hard work that they do to make sure that I can do what do well.
“While it’s great to win this award, I might have to split it into separate pieces because those guys deserve it as well.
“They spend a lot of hours putting together all the video footage of our games into a package for me and the players to look at.
“But what they also do is travel the length and breadth of the country scouting who our next opposition is and putting together footage for me to view so that I can prepare our players of how the team that they’re about to face are going to play.
“What is more impressive is that my crew do this without getting paid.
“They do this on a voluntary basis with all this travelling around the country scouting the opposition and putting together all the video footage to make me more efficient as a coach.
“Throw in the fact that they also organise it so that we can take our travelling support – the OOTA – along with us to our away games then you realise that they all do a remarkable job.”
The Eagles coach was understandably delighted after being informed of his success by The Journal.
He added: “I’m a bit taken back by the news but it is a honour to be recognised by this award. People will say it is a real testament to my coaching ability but it is also a testament to my players, who – like my backroom crew – make me look good.
“It is the players that go out there on to the court and put into practise what we work on in training and execute it as well.
“We are fortunate to be alive in all competitions so far this season and credit goes to my players for that.”
