Assigning blame for losses is popular. In a game with 150 possessions, convenience finds a late shot or failed blockout "easy" causes for a late loss.
Distinguish root (underlying) causes from immediate causes. Until we address the underlying causes, many ways to lose appear.
We replay the final possessions or minutes and find scapegoats. What are the core causes?
- Management (player acquisition, program development)
- Talent (nobody wins big without talent)
- Coaching (player development, strategy, game management)
- "Connection" (the parts may not fit together well)
- Resilience (mental toughness, experience)
- Randomness (luck, health, a call - block or charge)
We need diagnoses upon which to apply treatment. I saw a team lose 50-49 despite shooting 22/45 from the line and committing 25 turnovers. Sometimes the answers are easy.
Ask some of the following:
- How can I teach better?
- What can I simplify?
- Have I given and taken enough feedback?
- During practice are we prioritizing our strengths and working to limit our weaknesses?
- Are we practicing situations (BOB, SLOB, ATO, offensive and defensive delay games) pivotal to winning close games?
- Will analytics (e.g. the Four Factors) reveal something I'm missing?
- Can I get honest, objective advice from a trusted colleague?
Lagniappe: ChatGPT (AI) gives an interpretation of proximate and underlying causes.
The proximate cause and underlying cause of basketball losses refer to different levels of explanation, much like the difference between symptoms and root causes in medicine.
🟢 Proximate Cause
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Definition: The immediate or surface-level reason for a loss.
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Examples:
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Missed free throws in the final minutes
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Turnovers in crunch time
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Poor shooting percentage
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Failure to execute a final play
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Defensive breakdown on a last-second possession
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These are what happened during the game to result in the loss.
🔴 Underlying Cause
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Definition: The deeper, systemic issues that lead to the proximate cause.
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Examples:
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Lack of mental toughness or late-game composure
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Inadequate practice of end-of-game situations
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Poor conditioning or fatigue affecting execution
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Team culture that tolerates low accountability
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Inconsistent coaching messages or strategy confusion
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These are why it happened—the foundational or structural issues that contributed to the outcome.
🏀 Basketball Analogy
Proximate Cause: We lost because we gave up a wide-open 3 in the final seconds.
Underlying Cause: We don’t communicate well on switches because we don’t consistently practice closeouts and late-game defense under pressure.
Coaching Application
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Address proximate causes to improve execution.
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Solve underlying causes to improve culture, preparation, and consistency.
Both matter—but only fixing proximate causes is like applying a Band-Aid without treating the infection. Strong teams address both.