Ep. 3 - Mac, MAD Lions Head Coach, on 2020, roster-building, and talent development

MAD Lions Head Coach James "Mac" MacCormack talks us through his rookie team's 2020 accomplishments, his coaching philosophies, and his approach to talent scouting and player development.

Follow Mac at twitter.com/MacCLoL

Follow Tim at twitter.com/TimSevenhuysen

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Show Notes

0:00 Introduction
2:48 Perspective on MAD Lions' overall achievements in 2020

4:58 - Relating Structure and Environment/Experience to success of the year


6:20 - Messaging to give your team in difficult situations
9:00 - Coaching isn’t just about the game; messaging at worlds when losing
11:10 - Looking back on good moments
12:35 - Using negative feelings and losing as motivators
13:30 Mac's background for getting into coaching LoL
14:10 - Working with Intz, doing analysis/scouting
17:24 - Skillsets, improvement, and development as a coach along career
21:50 Building out the MAD Lions roster
25:25 - Scouting and free agency during the regular season
26:50 - Other players that MAD Lions was scouting in 2020?
28:15 - Talent in Europe
29:55 - Skills vs. underlying qualities for development (nature/nurture)
33:09 - Prioritizing individual skill vs. team fit
35:49 - How much can play style and champion pool be taught?
39:30 - Can certain play styles be taught/learned more easily?
42:38 Expected growth vs. overachievement for MAD Lions
43:54 - How explicitly does Mac set expectations for his players?
46:20 - Goal setting and targets for 2021
49:20 Mac's predictions for World Championships Finals
50:30 - JDG's play style
52:50 Questions from Patreon
Joshua Gutman: How did MAD Lions come together so quickly as a cohesive unit? When did you start to believe it was something real instead of just potential?
55:11 Outro