Monday, September 4, 2023

Basketball: The Unknown Unknowns


Secretary Rumsfeld took grief for the unknown unknowns, perhaps unfairly. 

Known unknowns. Although more exist, three big ones are:
  • Usually, we have limited scouting of opponents. Hard to limit their strengths and target weaknesses without information. 
  • Early on, we don't know our response to pressure both physical and psychological. To tame either challenge, practice advantage-disadvantage. "Make practice hard to make games easier." 
  • How players will adjust to new, higher level of competition also belongs to the known unknowns. 
Unknown unknowns. 
  • Players or teams struggle. Find out, "are you okay?" Players may not bring family, personal, or academic problems to us. With younger players, we had no captains to serve as liaisons to help us realize the struggles. 
  • Character. At every level of play, from youth to professional, coaches know less about 'character' than we think. With young players, mostly no track record exists. The Patriots' assistant Michael Lombardi, got insight with relationships with SEC sororities. What coaches might not reveal, sorority members willingly reported. 

"There's no such thing as a sure thing." 

Lagniappe. 

Lagniappe 2. 

 

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