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Monday, February 17, 2025

Basketball and Mark Twain

Basketball lessons surround us. Mark Twain (a.k.a. Samuel Clemens) is one of our greatest authors and humorists. His wit and wisdom offer instruction for everyone.

  1. "Books are for people who wish they were somewhere else." Reading takes us anywhere, everywhere, and into the minds of great players, great coaches, and great characters living or dead. Books give us insight into Newell, Wooden, Smith, Knight, Carril and others worth study.

  2. "Action speaks louder than words but not nearly as often." Success intersects character and competence. Brad Stevens seeks what he calls "competitive character" in players. How we impact teammates and winning becomes our legacy.

  3. "Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great." Speaking 'greatness' to players doesn't guarantee they will fulfill their dreams. Become a person who lifts others up. People say "lift yourself up by your bootstraps." Sometimes we have to give people boots. In Adam Grant's book Give and Take, he explains that the people who do best are ambitious givers. 

  4. "Do something every day that you don’t want to do. This is the golden rule for acquiring the habit of doing your duty without pain." David Mamet taught his children, "do something every day for your craft and something for your business." Commit to personal growth and that's likely to cause ripples that help others do the same. 

  5. "Never argue with stupid people, they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience." The person who "knows everything" deprives themselves of learning. The great philosophers often express their understanding of their limitations. Curiosity is the gift worth giving to our players and our peers. Players should never fear asking "why" we're doing something. 

  6. "Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please." Knowing our limitations in knowledge and experience isn't hard. Walk into a library. Adopt and adapt from other coaches. Bill Parcells had a saying, "you are what your record says you are." 

  7. "Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear." Turn anxiety into excitement. At the end of a close important game, Dean Smith told his players, "Isn’t it great to be playing in such a great game?" In Toughness, Jay Bilas explained how Duke lost a possession because he didn't go to the floor for the ball. Players have to learn to master fear of injury, fear of pain. Coach Saban explained to his players, "it takes what it takes." 

  8. "Give every day the chance to become the most beautiful of your life." John Wooden said this another way, "Make every day your masterpiece." Adopt "The Four Agreements," the fourth being "always do your best." Ideas surround us, a firehose of information. Learn to filter and drink from that. 

  9. "Continuous improvement is better than delayed perfection." I love practice. It's not only about the destination but the journey. Our best efforts applied daily allow us to approach the 'asymptote of excellence'.

  10. "Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you would rather have talked." Know the expression, "better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt." Stop underestimating life skills. Listening is a skill. Hard work is a skill. Kindness is a skill. Toughness is a skill. Being happy for another's success (mudita) is a skill.

Lagniappe. Practicing "live" with stakes is necessary for growth.   Lagniappe 2. I remember hearing a coach say that he saw a high school player working out thirty minutes before basketball camp practice getting up shot after shot.  The player's name? Stephen Curry. 

Lagniappe 3. Coaching is not a popularity contest. Parents will have reasons, sometimes good ones to be unhappy with our coaching. I think Coach Saban said something that if you want to make people happy, sell ice cream. 


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