Coach hides, then delivers reflection on White House visits
Some coaches hate to talk about politics. While Steve Kerr and Gregg Popovich won't hesitate to get political, there's way less risk for coaches when they "stick to sports."
South Carolina coach Frank Martin literally took cover at the sound of a political question on Monday, but after listening to what was asked, he offered a thoughtful reflection.
Martin was asked about his opinion on athletes skipping White House visits under Donald Trump's presidency and what he'd do if one his players wanted to skip the visit. Martin thought about it and ultimately said he would be disappointed.
Martin explained why:
"I haven't thought about it. Probably not. Probably not. I haven't agreed with every president that's been in the White House in my lifetime. But I love this country and I love what this government stands for as a whole.
"I'm not going to judge our country based on who I like or don't like. I think we do an injustice to young people when we make them think this country is run by one person. I think it's an injustice. And any time we take a stand against one person - we can do whatever we want to here. I'm not trying to tell people how to do things. You're asking me my opinion - I'm kind of sharing it with you.
"I think we do an injustice. The beautiful thing in our country is that we all have different voices. And we can all express our voices and our views. I think I would be disappointed if any of our players chose not to attend. If they were adamant about it, I'm not going to force them to go. I'm not going to put their scholarship on the line and make them do something that they feel that strongly about. But I would let them know as their coach, as the guy who tries to mentor them, I'd try to educate and try to prevent that from happening.
"But at the end of the day, they're human beings. They don't live in a country where you're forced to do what you don't want to do. I'd be OK coaching someone who would be against it. I would just be disappointed in their unwillingness to understand that this country has moved forward - contrary to what the media wants to get us to believe. We haven't moved backwards. We've moved forward is the last 50 years. Since my family arrived in this country, this country has moved forward. Does it move forward at a great rate, great pace? Is it perfect? No. But it's moved forward.
"For us to act as if one person runs or controls the decisions of this country is false. I think it would be a disservice to what this country stands for - what we're about. My love for what this country has given me. For me, to get selfish because of my personal views on one person and not be supportive of the thing as a whole."