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Monday, August 11, 2025

Basketball Excellence without "Elite" Talent

Players carve out exceptional careers without "elite" talent. That usually means unusual basketball IQ and will.

What commonalities did players like Steve Kerr, Andre Miller, and Shane Battier share? 

  • Elite preparation: Exceptional knowledge of opponents’ tendencies

  • Exceptional decision-making: Didn't beat themselves with forced shots or passes.

  • Positional mastery: Used angles, footwork, and leverage instead of speed or vertical.

  • Communication: Relocated teammates, orchestrated defenses, and served as on-court coaches.

Excel in your role with game understanding and leveraging skills within what the team needs in a specific game. 

Steve Kerr would practice literally sitting on the bench and coming into the game to make a perimeter shot. He understood that would often be his role, so he worked to maximize it. 

Marcus Smart leveraged toughness and dogged defense into three top ten Defensive Player of the Year awards including one DPoY. "But he couldn't shoot threes." His career three point percentage is 32.4 percent. Michael Jordan's career three point percentage was 32.7. Take advantage of your "primary skill." 

That doesn't mean complementary players lack skill. Use your ability as a difference maker outside of putting up traditional gaudy numbers. 

Lagniappe. Find a few priorities to instill.  

Lagniappe 2. One job? Improvement matters but so much else does. 

  • Make everyone around you better. 
  • Impact winning. 
  • Be a great teammate. 

Lagniappe 3. If you're going to rip high, be aware of the potential to nail the defender. You won't do it twice in a world of frontier justice. 

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