BuckeyeParalgl
Walking down the winding road...
A talented mid-major basketball team was making it's first NCAA appearance in school history. Throughout the history of the school there had been some ups and downs, but the team had never won a conference title or made any noise in their conference tournament. Things changed this year. A young, talented coach was hired. Throughout the season he showed his players that they were winners, not losers, and that if they did just two things they could go all the way.
The first thing the coach taught his team was to play your role. If your role is to dominate in the paint and be an esteemed defender and shot blocker, then that's what you needed to do. But not only do it, do it well. His team responded. Each starter, and all the bench players went to work over the summer, and at the start of the season they excelled. They carried this momentum to their first tournament appearance.
The second thing the coach told them was to stick to the game plan. If they could do that, then they could take on any team on any court and win. It wasn't that the game plan was perfect, game plans rarely ever are. It was that when you plan ahead, and decide to go with zone or man, or even the press on defense you will have better success that way. The team listened to his advice and succeeded.
The team listened to the coach's words and took his advice all the way to the NCAA tournament. In the tournament they caught fire in the first and second rounds, and made it to the Sweet 16. In the Sweet 16 they lost to a traditional basketball power. Defeated, the team sulked in the locker room. When the coach gave the post game speech he said:
?We lost tonight. We lost to the #1 seed. But that fact doesn't change the fact that all season you played your role. All season you stuck to the game plan. When I came here this year those were the two things I taught you, and you guys did a great job at that. In life as long as you play your role and stick to the game plan, you can never be losers. You'll always be winners. Let's say one day you want to buy a house. If you play your role as a good employee and stick to the game plan of saving for that house, one day you'll get there. If you guys want to get back to the tournament next year, or succeed in life, those are the only two things you've gotta do.?
Maybe that's the meaning of life according to basketball. Follow the game plan and play your role. Play it well. If you can do that you'll never be a loser. Because if you go out in life and strive to succeed, and work to win, you'll always be a winner. It doesn't matter what's in your bank account. It doesn't matter what your job is. The only thing that matters is you.
The first thing the coach taught his team was to play your role. If your role is to dominate in the paint and be an esteemed defender and shot blocker, then that's what you needed to do. But not only do it, do it well. His team responded. Each starter, and all the bench players went to work over the summer, and at the start of the season they excelled. They carried this momentum to their first tournament appearance.
The second thing the coach told them was to stick to the game plan. If they could do that, then they could take on any team on any court and win. It wasn't that the game plan was perfect, game plans rarely ever are. It was that when you plan ahead, and decide to go with zone or man, or even the press on defense you will have better success that way. The team listened to his advice and succeeded.
The team listened to the coach's words and took his advice all the way to the NCAA tournament. In the tournament they caught fire in the first and second rounds, and made it to the Sweet 16. In the Sweet 16 they lost to a traditional basketball power. Defeated, the team sulked in the locker room. When the coach gave the post game speech he said:
?We lost tonight. We lost to the #1 seed. But that fact doesn't change the fact that all season you played your role. All season you stuck to the game plan. When I came here this year those were the two things I taught you, and you guys did a great job at that. In life as long as you play your role and stick to the game plan, you can never be losers. You'll always be winners. Let's say one day you want to buy a house. If you play your role as a good employee and stick to the game plan of saving for that house, one day you'll get there. If you guys want to get back to the tournament next year, or succeed in life, those are the only two things you've gotta do.?
Maybe that's the meaning of life according to basketball. Follow the game plan and play your role. Play it well. If you can do that you'll never be a loser. Because if you go out in life and strive to succeed, and work to win, you'll always be a winner. It doesn't matter what's in your bank account. It doesn't matter what your job is. The only thing that matters is you.
