Coach of the Month March 2020: Devante Heath

Congratulations to the BSN SPORTS Coach of the Month for March 2020: Coach Devante Heath!

Head Girls Basketball Coach, Medgar Evers College Preparatory
Bachelor of Science from Bryant University
Masters of Sports Leadership from Northeastern University
Medgar Evers alum; former boys basketball team member

1. What’s it like coming back to your alma mater to coach?

It’s nothing short of amazing…to be able to come back to my own school where I was a snobby kid, to now where I am a role model for students. I thank God and I thank the relationships that I’ve built with other coaches at school.

2. What’s your advice for men coaching girls sports?

Be who you are. Don’t coach them as girls, coach them as basketball players…I’m a feminist. I come from a single mother. At the rate the sport and girls are evolving, the opportunity is tremendous. We gotta give these kids our best. We can’t short-change them.

3. How important is social media for growing your program?

Being a young coach that’s connected to their generation, I’m able to use that as a levy. I know they love Instagram, I know they love social media. So, what about to they love? Images, graphics, fly gear. So I tell everybody, we’re the flyest team in New York City.

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With Thursday’s Win the MECPS Lady Cougars Repeat As Your Brooklyn A East I Regular Season Champs. The Lady Cougars Have Won 27 Straight Conference Games Dating Back To Last Year and are 36-3 Since Joining the Conference.⁣ ⁣ The Lady Cougars Now Await Seedings For the Playoffs. ⁣ ⁣ #whynotmedgar⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ #mecpsbasketball ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ #theroadtofordham⁣

A post shared by MECPS LADY COUGARS BASKETBALL (@mecpsladycougarswbb) on Feb 8, 2020 at 2:48pm PST

4. How do you approach academics with your players?

One of the biggest things we take pride in is academics. We do mandatory study hall hours and weekly progress reports. Any negative comment, whether it’s incomplete or they didn’t turn in homework, there’s a consequence. It forces them to make sure they’re responsible and respectful to their teachers.

5. What are your thoughts on sport specialization for kids?

When you’re forcing a child to focus on one sports, you’re crippling them. There’s gonna be a day when they fall out love with it, they just don’t like it anymore. Then they don’t have an alternative…You have to let a kid naturally fall into something.