Immunity.
Who knew that this word would be so controversial in 2022?!? But let’s not talk about viruses and visits to medical professionals today. Let us stick to what we know best, basketball.
Definition: Immunity is the ability of an organism to resist a particular infection or toxin by the action of specific antibodies or sensitized white blood cells.
In more plain language, if the body builds up antibodies (natural or foreign) to fight off a threat to the health system of the body, one will be immune to specific diseases. In an abstract way, we can relate this to basketball teams and players.
A zone defense might be considered a type of antibody created to fight off quick, slashing guards. A timely backdoor play is a quick shot in the arm to keep an overly aggressive defense in check.
Yet every coach will tell you that the most important antibodies a team needs in between the ears and in the heart of each one of his/her players. The viruses of selfishness or attention seeking are as common as they are old in the game. Like the common cold, these ailments will be with us for as long as human nature exhibits flaws.
Traditionally coaches have acted as a foreign agent to help overcome the sickness of narcissism or self-pity. In fact, the reason why sports have been a fabric within our culture is that it has taught our youth to blend their personal ambition with a purpose bigger than themselves. This lesson, if learned properly by a youngster, will serve him/her well with future life endeavors.
In Pat Riley’s 1993 book, The Winner Within, he described a common sickness as The Disease of Me. He listed six danger signals:
- Chronic feelings of under appreciation – focus on oneself
- Paranoia over being cheated out of one’s rightful share
- Leadership vacuum resulting from formation of cliques and rivalries
- Feelings of frustration even when the team performs successfully
- Personal effort mustered solely to outshine one’s teammate
- Resentment of the competence of another
Riley also says, “the most difficult thing for individuals to do when they become part of a team is to sacrifice, it is much easier to be selfish.”
Basketball season is on the horizon for high school coaches. Everyone is anxious and anticipating a new season. Building a team is one of the most beautiful things in sports. It requires not only effort, but brains. Coaches must find a way to connect with players individually and also find a way to relate to the personality of the group.
Basketball is not fair either. You can do everything right and not be rewarded. I have also seen teams and coaches do it all wrong. Some lean into exalting the star and ignore the role player and still win a championship. It is in these moments where you can tell which one’s coach for the right reasons and which coaches do it for glory.
Whether you are a coach or a player, the challenge this year is whether you will be an antibody for selfishness? Will your team have immunity for the Disease of Me? If you can obtain these antibodies, you will find a life more rewarding than you can imagine.
Jonathan Hemingway, also known as Coach Hemi, was a high school basketball coach for 15 years in Georgia and Tennessee. He has also spent more than a decade as a national evaluator and basketball writer for various websites. He is now a full-time father and a part-time farmer. You can follow him on twitter @JL_Hemingway or email him at CoachHemi@gmail.com
