One practice I asked another team I coached, "how many of you have dogs?" About half the girls answered yes. "Is it fun to have a dog?" All with dogs nodded. "Is there anything not fun about having a dog?" Everyone answered, "picking up the poop."
But if you want the joy of experiencing pets, then you need to manage the downside, literally.
We've all heard the line, "the only place success comes before work is in the dictionary." And it's not only work.
1. If you're going to get run over (you are) anyway, why not take the charge?
2. Contain the ball. "Fear is the mind killer" wrote Frank Herbert in Dune (1965). You either let fear (the offense) control you or you put fear into them. Trust the protection that your teammates provide.
3. Contest (challenge) shots. Everyone shoots worse with a hand in their face. You want to shoot in range, in rhythm, situationally appropriate, and not closely guarded. Why would you allow your opponent that privilege? The difference in NBA shooting percentage on threes is 40% when open and 32% when contested. With teams taking up to 40 a game, that's three (nine points) a game. The corollary says work to get open shots. Who has nine points to give away?
4. Be physical. "Hit and get" when rebounding. Set solid screens. Get on the floor. "Basketball isn't a contact sport; it's a collision sport."
5. Choose wisely. It's a mental game. Do the work. Rick Pitino wrote, Success is a Choice. We deserve our success when we do the work, have a process, and the discipline of implementation. I'm not saying that luck doesn't matter.
Pitino wrote, "We control our life. We control how lucky we are. We create our fortune with our effort." Brad Stevens says, "the magic is in the work." We control our attitude, our choices, and our effort. These dimensions backstop our process. And process drives our results...in our family, in our career, and in our avocations.
84 shots, 168 possible points. I call it either "Pitino 168" or the "Rozier Drill" because Terry Rozier worked it hard. Whatever it takes.
