"And That Was the Difference"

This was the comment made by an ESPN announcer during the NBA finals when Dirk made the game winning basket. To me that was a silly idea - I mean really?! Only that shot made the difference? Not the all the other shots, not the turnovers, not the offensive rebounds, not the good screens, not sharing the ball, etc? Only the last shot mattered, right?



What does this have to do with coaching?

Well, this is an idea that is engrained in the brains of our players. How many players are crushed when they miss the last shot? What about when the opposing team hits the last shot on them? Almost all of them, right? But are they as crushed when they turn the ball over in the first half or give up an offensive rebound the second posession of the second half? It's a small thing but what we have to teach our players is that wins and losses don't ever come down to the last seconds - it's really about all the seconds before - it's about every posession. Once a team gets that, they really become great. Below is a link to a poem I use to illustrate this point with my players. I would encourage you to give it to all of yours.

http://www.teamarete.com/itonly.html