In the quiet hours of a red-eye flight, when most passengers were lost in sleep or silence, Adrian “TRUFiT” McKenzie found something rare: clarity.
As a performance wellness innovator and founder of BizTech Wellness AI, Adrian was no stranger to stress and strategy. But that morning at 5 a.m., as he sat in a nearly empty airport, the problem on his mind wasn’t a corporate deadline or a tech rollout—it was a struggling youth basketball team.
His son’s YMCA basketball team, the Hornets, had just started the season with two back-to-back losses. The 0-2 record stung—not because of the score, but because of the untapped potential he saw in the kids. In that moment, somewhere between jet lag and reflection, Adrian began sketching what would become a game-changing solution: the AI Assistant Coach.
This is the story of how one father’s sleepless night sparked a revolution on the court—and how an 0-2 start turned into an undefeated season and a championship showdown.
Chaos on the Court: A Familiar Volunteer Coach Struggle
The YMCA Hornets’ season had started like many do in recreational youth leagues—without structure or stability. Players had only recently met. Practices were short and scattered. Lineups were unpredictable. Chemistry? Nonexistent.
As any volunteer coach knows, this disarray is part of the package. But for Adrian, this wasn’t just any team. It was his son Nathan’s team, and he was determined to give them more than just Saturday games and orange slices. He wanted to build something deeper—something that could teach discipline, teamwork, and resilience.
Adrian had initially taken an assistant coaching role with a different YMCA team, the Warriors. Ironically, that same team would eventually become the Hornets’ championship opponent. But early on, he realized the assistant role didn’t allow him the freedom to fully implement his vision.
“I wanted to build something from the ground up,” Adrian recalls. “To apply the same principles I’ve used in business and wellness to coaching—structure, systems, and purpose.”
When a head coaching opportunity opened up at a nearby YMCA location just days before the season, Adrian jumped at the chance.
The Rough Start: A Wake-Up Call
His first introduction to the Hornets was a whirlwind. A multi-team group practice gave Adrian only about 30 minutes to evaluate his roster amidst dozens of other kids. The season’s opening weekend brought a rare back-to-back doubleheader. Without knowing his players well, he scrambled to manage lineups, assess strengths, and set the tone.
The result? Two close losses.
Frustrated but far from defeated, Adrian saw flashes of brilliance and hustle. “We were right there. I knew if we faced those teams again, we’d win,” he says.
Immediately after the doubleheader, Adrian left for a business trip on the West Coast. But even while away, his mind was locked on the Hornets. What could he do to turn things around?
Finding Clarity at 5 A.M.: The Birth of the AI Assistant Coach
Sitting in an airport in the early morning hours, Adrian reflected on what had gone wrong—and more importantly, what could go right. He turned inward, drawing on his expertise in performance systems and wellness analytics.
That morning, he began laying the foundation for the AI Assistant Coach, a tool designed to bring structure, predictability, and identity to youth teams.
He mapped out practice plans, strategic player rotations, and motivational frameworks. But more than tactics, he knew the Hornets needed something to rally behind. That’s when the heart of the transformation emerged—a team mantra.
“Writing that mantra felt like writing a song,” Adrian says. “It had to be simple, powerful, and something the kids would own.”
The Team Mantra
“Who are we? Hornets!
What do we do? Hustle hard!
One, two, three—SWARM!”
It wasn’t just a chant. It was an identity. And it became the DNA of everything the Hornets would achieve.
The Turning Point: A New Energy at Practice
At their next practice, Adrian introduced the mantra. The team huddled up for the first time, hands in the center, voices uncertain but willing. The chant started quiet. But week after week, as confidence grew, so did the volume—and the meaning behind the words.
The AI Assistant Coach didn’t just provide strategy. It introduced structure, rhythm, and routine. It tracked player minutes, analyzed performance, and helped Adrian fine-tune rotations that maximized team chemistry.
More importantly, it freed Adrian to focus on coaching the people, not just the players. He used time-outs to teach emotional regulation. He developed role-specific drills that made each child feel seen. And that mantra? It became their battle cry.
The Hornets found their groove.
From 0-2 to Undefeated: The Hornets’ Transformation
Game by game, the Hornets started to win. Not just on the scoreboard, but in attitude, effort, and unity. The AI Assistant Coach was working. Kids knew when they were subbing in, where they were playing, and how they were contributing. They began playing for each other, not just themselves.
By the end of the regular season, the Hornets hadn’t lost a single game since those first two. They had become a well-oiled machine—with heart.
And now, they were preparing for a championship showdown… against the Warriors, the team Adrian had originally be asked to be an assistant coach.
Poetic, right?
A Legacy Beyond the Court
For Adrian, this story is about more than basketball. It’s about transformation through intention—about turning chaos into cohesion through the right mix of tech, vision, and heart.
The AI Assistant Coach wasn’t some futuristic robot shouting orders. It was a framework. A partner in purpose. A way to extend Adrian’s values to every practice, every huddle, every game.
Today, that same mantra still echoes in practices. New players learn it. They live it. And they carry it into their games—and maybe, into life beyond basketball.
“This was never about winning a trophy,” Adrian reflects. “It was about giving these kids something to believe in—something that builds confidence, discipline, and resilience. That’s the real win.”
Final Thoughts: What You Can Learn from the Hornets’ Story
Whether you’re a coach, entrepreneur, educator, or parent, there’s a lesson here: Clarity doesn’t always come during planning. Sometimes, it finds you in the quiet, unexpected moments.
What Adrian McKenzie did on that red-eye morning wasn’t magic. It was mindfulness, strategy, and belief coming together at the right time.
And from that, an entire team found their identity.
