Blog Post #41, March 15, 2009

The Monkey Wrench and The Team

Category: Philosophy

Last week, after making a three-point shot , Toney Douglas, Florida State’s best player, ran down the court, pulling his jersey forward to show his number, failing to acknowledge the teammate that passed him the ball. In another game, Duke’s Gerald Henderson, after receiving a pass and dunking the ball, pointed to the man that made the assist. I can guess what Douglas was thinking: “Look at me, baby. I’m the reason we’re winning. Without me out here, this team is nothing.” That’s a guess, but I know for sure what Henderson was thinking: “The passer was equally responsible for the score. I need to give credit where credit is due.” Any player that draws attention to himself, helps destroy any “team” from reaching its “team” potential. When Toney pulled his jersey, he pulled the team apart. Henderson pulled his team together. In all fairness to Toney Douglas, he rarely does this. He’s a fine team player.

Someone once wrote, “It’s amazing what a team can accomplish when no one cares who receives the credit.”  It is when the stars begin to “get it,” that a group of basketball players have a chance of becoming a real “team.” A case in point is some of our Olympic basketball teams of the past. The United States sends great players; the other countries send great teams. 

When you have a talented player that fails to recognize he is only “part” of a team, it’s easy to condone him drawing attention to his greatness, isn’t it? After all, we marvel at some of the things they can do and we certainly don’t want to quench that competitive spirit. But we have to remember, it adversely affects the esteem of the other players. You can bet your bottom dollar, behind closed doors, they are making reference to the fact, the star would not be a “star” without them. Dissention and unfairness can and will result in team destruction. 

Making sure everyone knows your number is one of many ways a player can throw a monkey wrench into the wheel of creating a unified and unselfish team. Here are a few others:

After dunking, looking into the crowd, showing all your teeth and gums (“Take my picture so you people won’t forget who did that!”)

Raising your hands to get the crowd up on its feet (“They’ll do it for me, not anyone else. I’m so great, I can make a crowd do what I want them to, just like a rock star at a concert.”)

Raising your hand, after a tip-in (“It was me that scored! It was me that scored! Hey, scorer! Make sure you give those two points to me!”

Letting the official know you deserve better treatment (“Hey ref! These people paid money to see me play.”)

Pouting after you foul out, or after you’ve been taken out of the game (“Good luck, fellows; you’re going to need it without me in there.”)

Not working as hard as others during practice (“I’m tired! I scored 30 last night. I need to preserve my energy for the next game.”)

Late for practice (“I’m MVP of this team. I have earned the right to be a little late once in a while.”)

Pounding your chest after a great play (“Hey camera man. Focus in on me because I just made a fool out of somebody.”)

Staring an opponent down after you block his shot (“I wish I could grab the microphone and announce I’m king of the paint.”)

Rudyard Kipling, in The Jungle Book wrote,

“Now this is the law of the jungle—as old and as true as the sky;
And the wolf that shall keep it may prosper, but the wolf that shall break it must die.
As the creeper that girdles the tree-trunk, the law runneth forward and back—
For the strength of the pack is the wolf, and the strength of the wolf is the pack.” 

In basketball language that means, The Key to Stardom is the Rest of the Team.