Sunday, December 9, 2018

Basketball: Your Research Informs Your Story

"Just because you have the information doesn't mean that you have to use it...the most important thing...is editing, knowing what to leave out." - Dan Brown, MasterClass on Writing Thrillers

We write our narrative by applying research. Research brings results. Reading is research. Watching video is research. Cross-disciplinary study (e.g. MasterClass.com) is research. A world of lessons awaits us. Are we open to learning? 

Research sources material for Dan Brown's three C's - clock, crucible, contract. 
Clock research. Our big picture clock informs our legacy. Do people remember us as innovator, teacher, mentor, friend, schmuck? Intermediate-term time uses urgency to develop our players for the next level (whichever that is). A game management clock asks whether our teams and players understand using type to shorten or lengthen games, using pace as ally. And the shortest version of time defines situation, doing the right things at the right time - the end of clock, quarters, and games. Too many good players corrupt the game by abusing time. And ironically, how our players spend seconds and situations informs our legacy. 

 We invest our time or we spend it. We build our world (real or fictional) through time, space, and relationships (or characters). 


Crucible. Crucible includes the stakes and the fire to which we subject our teams. Fire tempers steel; fire warms and cooks; fire destroys. UNC soccer coach Anson Dorrance describes the competitive cauldron that tempers champions. Dorrance measures everything. Twenty-two NCAA championships validate his process. The best players ignite the fire when teams need fire. 

 Stakes matter. Golf legend Lee Trevino said, "pressure is playing a five dollar Nassau with two dollars in your pocket." Pressure means jobs and minutes for professionals. Rising in the crucible describes the arc of a career and outcome of a game. Coach Lane reminded us, "it's not who starts the game, it's who finishes." Earning a coach's trust ups the ante. 
Contract. Our contract is our word, our bond. "I give you my best." Our contract implies reciprocation..."I demand your best...you promise to give me your best." When we demean a player or physically or mentally check out, we violate our contract with them and the game. We have an implied contract with our boss, players' families, and our community. 

 Today's research informs tomorrows outcomes. Get after it. 

 Lagniappe: via Chris Oliver






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