“I’m the best player in the world.” This is what LeBron James said at the post game press conference after the fifth game of the 2015 NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors. I don’t think there is any question about the validity of his comment after what he accomplished in the series. When you…
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I recently read an article addressing high school basketball players in Philadelphia. It stated that the mainstream media concentrates only on the players who don’t qualify for college academically. It then went on to talk about four recent college basketball players from Philly high schools who earned their college degrees and asked why doesn’t the…
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On April 14th, 1926 God gave us a gift — and what an incredible gift it was. Other than our parents, Coach Gordie Gillespie may have been the most important and the most influential person in the lives of the 4 to 5,000 athletes who played for him. No one will ever figure out…
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Frank Kaminsky just completed a great year for the University of Wisconsin’s basketball team, culminating with the most prestigious award college basketball gives – The Naismith Award for the college-player-of-the-year. Throughout the year, his play demonstrated four characteristics that leaders may want to consider. Unselfishness. Frank was willing to pass up shots or go one-on-one…
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Vince Lombardi had definitive ideas about commitment when he wrote: “Total commitment means 100% effort, 100% of the time, no loafing, no idling, no standing around, no goofing off, no phoning in sick.” “When we make a commitment, in essence, we’re making a decision to do something. Now, the Latin root for decision is to…
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We lost a sports icon earlier this year in Ernie Banks. As I listened to the speakers at his funeral service, I reflected on an evening where I sat next to him at a banquet. Four things stood out in our conversation that night. Optimism Ernie was known for his perpetual optimism, both in baseball…
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You know you have achieved when you are known only by your first name. In basketball circles, if you say “Dean,” everyone knows you are talking about Dean Smith, the Hall of Fame North Carolina coach, who passed away on February 7th, 2015. He was a basketball coaching giant whom I had the pleasure of…
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Golfer Padraig Harrington recently said, “Statistics are often used as a drunk uses a street light – for support rather than illumination.” Benjamin Disraeli, former prime minister of England, wrote, “There are three kinds of lies: little lies, big lies, and statistics.” I do believe there is some truth in what both of these men…
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Do you trust people when you meet them? Or do you make them prove themselves to be trustworthy until you grant them your trust? Which of the two do you lead with? I befriended two pretty famous people years ago who were in the national spotlight and they had diametrically opposite philosophies on this question…
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Recently, a baseball scout was a part of a panel on ESPN’s Outside The Lines program and he made a statement that reminded me of Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger from the movie “Rudy.” The scout said, “Baseball is a failure game.” I have never heard baseball described as a “failure game,” but it sure makes sense.…
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