Frustration is common at all levels of sport. From youth leagues to the professional ranks, tempers are prone to flare from time to time. For example, the NBA returns to training camp next week and perhaps the league’s biggest story at the moment is Jimmy Butler’s frustration with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Some football players might get frustrated on the field and find themselves in situations where they would get unnecessary penalties that harm their teams. The frustrated players actions on the field may cause the head coach to sideline them to send a message that no one on the team is irreplaceable.

The player on the high school level typically acts one of three ways: They either transfer schools to play football somewhere else, they accept the punishment from the coach and wait until their name is called again or they just quit the sport altogether.

What must be understood by others is that these situations are not uncommon, especially in a sport as demanding as football.

The things that separate the average team from championship groups isn’t solely a couple of sour apples. Every team has to deal with different types of attitudes, scuffles and altercations. The championship teams understand those parts come with a long season and continue to focus on the task at hand on the field.

Going back to the NBA, Minnesota announced on Friday morning that the organization would not trade Butler regardless of his wishes, because the team values his talent. Butler had a back-and-forth over social media earlier in the week with one of his teammate’s brothers. Instead of going to a new team, next week Butler will have to face his teammate again and they will have to accept the fact that they are on the same team.

Now getting into the middle of football season, it’s imperative that teams in the Valley understand that no matter what differences might have developed, you all are still on one team chasing one dream. 

—

Rashad Milligan is the sports editor of The Valley Times-News. He can be contacted at rashad.milligan@valleytimes-news.com.