Antoni Wyche is an assistant coach at Siena College and is a member of Coaches 4 Change.
- Why did you get into coaching? I got into coaching in order to use my experiences playing collegiately and professionally to help young men grow and develop during their college experience both on and off the court.
- How many years have you been coaching? 12
- Who has been your biggest influence in coaching and why? My college head coach John MacLeod & Fran McCaffery are my biggest influences in coaching as they both saw coaching in my future even before I realized it was something I wanted to pursue. A lot of the practices and principles I learned during my college days still shape my coaching style today.
- What do you enjoy most about coaching and why? Skill development - I believe players are most effective when they are content, and most times that comes from putting the work in daily to develop your skills. I love to see players who are committed to putting in the work grow and achieve throughout their career.
- What has been one of the greatest lessons you have learned about life through coaching? Please explain. Coaching has taught and reinforced the need for perseverance in life. I have experienced many highs and lows in this profession, but the ability to persevere through setbacks, have allowed us to succeed.
- What is your ultimate goal in coaching? Ideally I would like to become a head coach and run my own program.
- What has been your greatest lesson as a coach during the pandemic? Adaptability has been the greatest lesson I have learned during this pandemic. Nothing is guaranteed day to day from games to practices to quarantines. Have to focus on things that are in your control and be willing to adapt during these times, sometimes thinking outside of the box to get stuff done. There isn't a playbook for our experiences during this pandemic, so the willingness to try new/different ways of doing things has been a big adjustment this year.
- What has been one of the toughest lessons you have learned through coaching. Please explain. The toughest lessons I've learned through coaching has been that sometimes things are beyond your control. It may be an interview or opportunity for career advancement in which you are the best candidate, but are not selected for that opportunity for things that are beyond your control. Have learned not to let those situations consume me and move forward to prepare myself for the next opportunity.
- As a minority coach, what do you feel has been the biggest challenge for minority coaches in the profession? The biggest challenge in my eyes for minority coaches has been the lack of opportunities both as head coaches and also in administration as ADs.
- Tell us something about yourself that people would be surprised to know about you. My college coaches told me during my senior exit interview that I was going to become a coach when I was done playing. I remember especially laughing at them saying there was no way I'd ever coach, let alone be a college coach because of the time commitment I saw them putting in. I still laugh to myself ‘til this day about that meeting going into my 12th year as a college coach.