By Cooper Stanley
Shawn Dirden had almost everything on his resume besides being the head coach of a collegiate basketball program. But with his new position at Northwestern he can now cross that off the checklist as well.
From being an all-state player in high school to playing Division I NCAA basketball to playing professional basketball all across the globe to coaching collegiately as an assistant, Northwestern Oklahoma State’s new head basketball coach has his sights set now on putting the Rangers in the spotlight.
Dirden’s basketball career led him to play professionally in six countries overseas including China, Venezuela, Lebanon, Sweden, Korea and Holland. For Dirden, basketball wasn’t just a career but a means to enjoy many life experiences that he otherwise may have never had.
As a history major in college, he soaked up the rich history of all the places he played, but in particular he enjoyed China and Sweden over the rest.
“To go to China and know that their history dated back even further than American history and European history (was special),” Dirden said.
It was the little things about Sweden that Dirden remembered, the heated streets, and the overall vibe of Sweden being cool and laid back.
“The architecture and the structure and the simplicity of things were pretty amazing to see.”
Dirden is no stranger to coaching, with stints as a head coach in a of couple high school programs and experience at the collegiate level as an assistant coach in multiple programs, including the University of North Dakota, Montana State, and South Dakota.
He said the biggest difference between being an assistant and being the head coach of a program is “knowing not to second guess yourself, as an assistant you can blurt out anything, but its up to the head coach to decide if it works.”
Dirden also said that he made the decision that as the head coach he would always make a decision. He wouldn’t linger on a whether it worked out or not, and that being decisive is key.
And Dirden wants the Rangers to live in the spotlight this year, to prepare to be champions.
“The message has been consistently that if you want to be a champion then you have to practice and prepare and be a champion everyday in everything you do. “ Dirden said.
Dirden expects the Rangers to be a force in the Great American Conference this year, again adding that he wants the Rangers to crave the spotlight, to take the bulls-eye on their back, to not avoid it or talk about it from a distance but run to the spotlight.
Dirden said he can see a few Ranger basketball players following in his footsteps, and playing professional basketball.
Adrian Motley, who just joined Northwestern’s 1,000-point club, Zack Dumas, and Austin Klug, as well as a couple of other Rangers.
He added that anyone can make it, using himself as an example that as a 6-foot, 155-pounder in high school, he wasn’t even on the radar.
Dirden doesn’t only teach basketball to his players at school, but also to his 10-year-old son Damian, who is already well on his way to becoming a basketball star. However, teaching his son and teaching his players is completely different.
“He doesn’t listen to me.” Dirden said jokingly. “He listens to his mom more than me.”
According to Dirden, Damian’s best sport right now is baseball, but he’s torn between playing basketball, football, and baseball, and just being a kid right now.
And his 7-year-old daughter Taylor is even more athletic than his son, he said, and already the same size as Damian.
Athletic ability seems to run in the family with not only Dirden playing professional basketball, but also his father playing professional football in the NFL for three years.
Dirden has traveled the world, and has experienced basketball’s spotlight. But now he is in Alva, Okla. And he is ready to help bring that spotlight to shine on the Rangers.