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| Values of the Game |
Basketball Page: Read reviews on Bradley's book, view pictures of some of the NBA's greatest, and read my slant on values to be learned from this great American game. Oh, and find out about my "15 minutes in the sun."
Bill Bradley, hopefully our next President, recently wrote a book that inspired this page. It is called "Values of the Game," a beautifully written book with excellent pictures chronicling his love of basketball. His years with the Knicks proved him to be the strong leader and sacrificing team player that will serve him well in his campaign for the Presidency. With a foreword written by Phil Jackson, his teammate on the Knicks and the coach of the Jordan-era Bulls, it is very similar to "Spiritual Lessons of a Hardcourt Warrior," Jackson's book on the Zen techniques he used to mold Michael Jordan into the ultimate of team players.
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For another more detailed review with pictures, click on Bill's picture. |
Personally, I can relate to these lessons that the game teaches. Like Larry Bird, both my brother and I were not the most gifted athletes in high school, (we had that infamous 4" vertical going for us!) although we both had a good shooting touch and were virtually "gymrats". And we both got cut from the team, as did Michael Jordan. Yet neither of us gave up on the game that has come to mean so much to each of us. Randy is now the main force behind the PrimeTime Summer League in Iowa City, working closely, and still playing too, with local coaches and players at both the high school and college level. And I have had my 15 minutes in the sun in a benefit game played against John Taylor and the 49ers.
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"Tired, exhausted, and soaked with sweat, Al Larson was not intimidated by the 49er's. Scoring 14 points on 5 for 7 shooting, the hustling Larson put the Armijo faculty up by two points early in the game with a breakaway layup. As he walked to the free-throw line, Harry Sydney of the 49ers gave his shorts a playful tug to the amusement of the packed gymnasium. Taylor scored 17 points, several on crowd-pleasing dunks." |
| Jeff Hornacek is another good example of how hard work and basketball savvy can make an excellent player out of someone with average physical abilities. Not even recruited at Iowa State, he was a "walk-on" who later led his team in scoring and has now been one of the highest percentage shooters in the NBA for eleven years. He also won the three-point contest two years ago. |
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Pistol Pete Maravich was another. How could this skinny kid with the floppy hair and the saggy socks ever come to hold the collegiate record for scoring? Playing for his dad at LSU, Pete averaged 44 points a game his senior year. Many consider him to be the greatest passer the game has ever known. Some dare to compare Jason Williams of the Sacramento Kings to Pistol Pete with his flair for brilliant ballhandling and spectacular passes. |
| Who can not appreciate Muggsy Bogues? At 5'3" no one believed he could play in the NBA. And yet, despite an inconsistent shooting touch, he is one of the most pesky defensive guards to ever play the game. |  |
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Finally, Larry Bird, the man who made the most of his ability. Despite his somewhat arrogant and trash-talking demeanor, most players concede that he could back it up. Even his arch-rival Magic Johnson said, "I fear no man... except Larry Bird." Three time MVP and perhaps the greatest clutch shooter the game has ever seen, his career was cut short by back problems. Yet no one tried harder, and no one made their teammates better the way he did. One sign of his greatness was the Celtics' ability to win even when Larry had an "off" shooting night. |
There are many lessons to be learned in the game of basketball: to sacrifice for the team, or to hustle every minute, or to make your teammates look good. But perhaps most important is what Bill Bradley said: "If you're not practicing and working hard on your game, someone else out there is. And given roughly the same talent and ability, he will beat you." He uses the example of Sven Nater, Kareem Abdul Jabbar's backup center at UCLA who almost never got any playing time. Yet he worked so hard in practice that he was drafted into the NBA.
I think that is a lesson well worth learning. Don't you?
