Hughes Middle School coach John Tokeshi made big impact

Legendary basketball coach John Wooden once said, “Young people need models, not critics.”

And over the past 30 years, Hughes Middle School basketball and football coach John Tokeshi has been just that — a role model for his kids who come through the middle school pipeline.

“There’s been nothing more satisfying than being a positive influence,” Tokeshi said about his coaching career. “Watching the kids improve in between and outside the lines gives me great pride.”

After 30 years of making a difference in his players’ lives, Tokeshi is retiring from coaching, but not before leaving a legacy that will live forever in the record books and forever in his players’ hearts.

“He was like a father figure,” Long Beach Poly baseball player and former Hughes basketball player Nolan Brown said about his former coach. “He took basketball and used that to teach me how to be a better person. I’ll cherish his life lessons and think about them every day of my life.”

Tokeshi began his coaching career at Newcomb, the only kindergarten through eighth grade school in Long Beach at the time. They didn’t have a basketball gym, so his players had to practice outside and play all of their games on the road. His teams were overmatched most of the time, since his crop of athletes was limited compared to those from the other middle schools, but his players never quit on him.

In 1995, Tokeshi took over at Hughes. Since then, he won 16 All-City championships, including the last seven in a row for girls’ basketball. In that span, that basketball team won 49 consecutive games with their last loss coming in the championship game in 2009.

“We’ve had some really talented kids come through here,” Tokeshi said modestly. “Who’s the greatest coach? It’s the one with the greatest players. That’s what I’ve had.”

Yes, Tokeshi has had many talented players come through his programs, but there comes a point where his consistent success isn’t just the talent. It has to be something more.

Wooden says, “Wiing takes talent; but to repeat takes character.”

That’s what Tokeshi was able to instill in his players. He preached self-discipline, sacrifice and leadership, and for him, it all started with school.

“I hold the kids accountable,” he said. “Being on a team is not your right because you have talent. It’s a privilege that you ea in the classroom.”

Throughout his years at Hughes he introduced a three-strike policy for his players, policing their behavior on the court or field, in the classroom, and at home. The policy was inflexible and it ensured that his players were acting in an appropriate maer that positively represented their family, their school and their teammates.

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His ability to get through to his players was a huge reason why he brought success to the Hughes sports program.

“For some reason I’m able to motivate kids to work hard and be their best,” Tokeshi said. “My players buy in and they do it for the good of the team.”

Tokeshi wasn’t just a great mentor. He also knew his sports. He was always well-prepared going into a game, but he was also able to change his in-game strategy in an instant.

“His teams were always well-coached,” Stanford Middle School basketball coach Hank Waddles said about Tokeshi. “He had a system and knew what he was doing. When you play Hughes it’s like playing a high school team.”

Tokeshi was adamant that everyone on his team got meaningful minutes and it built confidence in his players, which led to depth in his lineup. That depth was important in big playoff games, as he was able to sub in a lot of players to keep his team fresh. Wiing was important to Tokeshi, but he always kept the game in perspective. Sportsmanship always came first with his teams.

“Win or lose he always was always able to keep a level head,” Tokeshi’s longtime assistant Chris Gray said. “He never lost perspective of what he was doing. He was coaching middle school sports, and he made sure he was molding his players to be better people first.”

“He’s the most principled coach I know,” Waddles said. “He was teaching kids lessons and he had expectations for his kids on and off the playing field. It’s not surprising that he was so successful.”

Tokeshi is stepping down from his duties as Hughes coach, but he’s laid the groundwork and expectations for every athlete that steps onto the Hughes campus. Hughes is currently in the process of renaming the gym after Tokeshi.

“The man’s a living legend and he doesn’t even know it,” said Gray. “He’s a great role model, mentor and friend, and I’m going to take the things I’ve leaed from him with me for the rest of my life.”