After 8 seasons at Granby and the last 19 at Springfield's High School of Commerce, Gary Mindell has decided it's time to step aside.
For 27 seasons, Gary Mindell roamed the sidelines and endlines of high school basketball courts all over Western Massachusetts.
He won 332 games, including a Division I state championship in 2004.
Now, after eight seasons at Granby and the last 19 at Springfield's High School of Commerce, Mindell has decided it's time to step aside.
"I've formally put in my retirement papers from teaching, and I guess that means I've also decided to leave the coaching profession," he said. "I knew this day would come sooner or later. I guess this is my time to step away."
When Gary and I spoke earlier this week, he told me he was retiring the same way he told me how he prepared his players for the many Western Mass. finals he coached. He was very matter of fact, choosing his words carefully and economically.
And even though you knew there was real emotion there, Gary wasn't one to get overly emotional. He had made his decision. He was comfortable with it. And perhaps most importantly, he was – and truly is – ready for what's coming next.
"I want to let it all go and move on to the next phase of my life," Mindell said. "I'm looking forward to my freedom. Looking forward to spending time with my wife. Look, a coach is only as good as the players he has on his team. And where do I begin to name all the players who've meant so much to me and this program. Fact is, I know I can't."
Like most great American success stories, Mindell's career began humbly. As a $24-per-day substitute teacher in Springfield, he made the rounds teaching and coaching in places like the old Chestnut Middle School.
When Jerry Wrobleski was coaching Commerce in the early '80s, he hired Mindell as a volunteer assistant. One thing led to another, and Mindell ended up at Granby, taking over a program coming off three consecutive 0-20 seasons.
It took him just three years to turn a winless team into a 16-4 tournament team. But despite restoring "Granby Pride," Mindell's heart was still in Springfield. His opportunity finally came in 1994.
"I remember when Sam Provo resigned and I got the Commerce job and told people that Commerce was going to be the toughest game on everybody's schedule," Mindell said.
"In the eight years before I got there, Commerce had lost to Central 16 times. Then during my first season, we beat them twice. I remember the second game we didn't have our best player, and even without him, we beat Central again."
It took Mindell two seasons with the Red Raiders to win his first Western Mass. title. In 1996, he and longtime friend and competitor Bill Rigali of Holyoke squared off at what was then the Springfield Civic Center.
"That game was a classic, and I was so proud of my team," Mindell said. "We beat Holyoke in double overtime that day, and from there, Commerce was a major player for the next decade. From 2001-07, we were either in the semifinals or the final for Western Mass. every season. I took over a program that was so rich in history and took two years to win the Western Mass title. I feel very fortunate that I had the chance, the opportunity, to be the coach of this program."
"We grew up together as coaches, Gary and me," Rigali said. "Gary was always such a gentleman on the court. He wasn't a front runner or a showman. Gary always let the kids be the focus. He's produced so many great teams and great players. Look at what William Shepard just did at Putnam winning the state championship. Gary took William under his wing all those years ago and taught him so much. I'm really going to miss coaching against him."
All those wins, all those great players, and more to the point, all those unforgettable memories.
When we think of high school basketball in Western Mass., we think of names like Henry Payne and Gene Ryzewicz; Leo and Travis Best; and from Mindell's Red Raiders, Mike Vaz, Josh Tate and Will Dawkins.
You can add Mindell himself to the long list of players and coaches who have made the game so rich in the city where it all began.