Hoop Dreams
In basketball, performance depends on the quality of management that you find on each team. I’m not just talking about the coach and how he runs his squad. You have to be a proficient leader to be an effective player. On your team, there shouldn’t be only one leader. Each player should in fact, be a leader in her or his own right. All the truly great basketball players are great leaders at the end of the day too. The National Basketball Association (NBA) announced the suspension of the 2019-2020 season on March 11, 2020 after Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for the coronavirus.
Leaders in basketball ought to be able to support their teammates in all facets of the game. To begin with, a leader must learn the basics so that they can share with their peers their expertise. In basketball, all progress comes from a mastery of the fundamentals. Every player is distinct, but the basics are a shared language that can be spoken by all leaders. Scoring in the NBA is also on the increase. Part of the trend can be traced during the regular season to players shooting more three-pointers than ever before and to coaches placing less emphasis on defense. However, defense is what eventually wins championships, as was the case during the playoffs and particularly the Finals. You can recognize where other players on your team can develop if you are fluent in this language and quickly teach them how to do so. Three-pointers in the sporting ranks are becoming increasingly prevalent.
Being a better leader, on and off the field, is about making the right choices. Basketball is a competitive game and each player has to be able to count on each other to be in the right position at the right time for a team to succeed. In my opinion, it’s pretty much impossible to fully prepare yourself for a win-or-go-home type game such as a game seven. This had me thinking about the thousands of games that the Warriors and Raptors had played in throughout their basketball careers prior to this huge moment. This involves recognizing the results of your decisions and learning how to work with teammates. I will be updating my blog every two weeks, so I’ll keep you guys updated.
* photo via Google Images under the Creative Commons license