The Successful Athlete
Brian McCormick
Through training hundreds of players, I discovered two commonalities of the most successful players: creativity and expectations.
The most successful players are creative. Some players do not follow directions because they do not understand. Some follow directions exactly because they do not understand. The best players follow directions, but they understand the purpose, not just the execution, so their performance differs from their peers. Those who do not understand the execution of a skill or a drill make physical mistakes. For instance, during a shooting drill, they travel because they do not understand the proper footwork. The players who do not understand manage to execute the drill or skill correctly, but they do not visualize its transfer to a game. During the shooting drill, every repetition looks the same, robot-like in quality. They lack imagination or thought as to the different ways a defender may play them. The successful players, however, not only execute the drill or skill, but imagine the defender’s presence and make game-like moves. Rather than doing six consecutive shots at the same speed, they change speeds during the repetitions, imagining setting up a defensive player and then accelerating past him. They not only do the drill, they prepare to transfer the lesson to a game. They use imagery, creativity and visualization to prepare for a live situation; others simply execute the drill with little thought, no imagery and no creativity.
Next, the best players do not allow a good performance to interfere with their attempts to be great. They hold themselves to a higher standard and expect perfection. While most players are complacent, great players set higher expectations and work to meet these expectations. While most players shoot a certain number of shots before practice, great players make a certain number. While the average player waits for practice to start and conserves energy, great players jump rope, lift weights or otherwise enhance their performance rather than chilling out.
I work with a player who will play DI next year. In between sets of drills, my clients make two free throws in a row. This kid swishes two in a row. If the shots are not perfect, they do not count. He not only forces himself to make the shot, but he wants the shot to feel perfect and look perfect going through the net. While I challenge every player, the most successful players expect more and hold themselves to a higher standard.
At Dave Hopla’s Shooting Camp a couple years ago, he told the players:
The biggest gap, and the hardest jump, is going from good to great. Your responsibility is to decide whether you like being good…or whether you can not live without being great.
At first glance, we all say we want to be great, yet only the select few truly understand that “good is the enemy of great.”
Good is the enemy of great. Most players think making two shots in a row is good. However, the future DI player swishes two shots in a row. A good performance does not interfere with his desire to be great. He is not satisfied with good; he strives for greatness.
Good is easy. Great is the hardest thing you will ever attempt in your life. Good is rewarding…great is everlasting. The transition requires more than hard work; it requires working hard on the right things; it requires working hard and working smart. You’ve got to practice with purpose.
Early in my coaching career, I worked with a player named Matt Glynn. Glynn was an average high school player. I worked with him daily during his freshman season at U.C. Santa Cruz. He committed himself to learning the proper shooting mechanics and becoming an excellent shooter. When we did form shooting drills, he would ask if his form was perfect. If I answered, “pretty good” or “better,” he asked for more feedback. He wanted perfection and he was relentless in this pursuit. After a Saturday night game in the middle of the season, Glynn borrowed the video camera and asked me to stay for an hour. While the other players did what college kids do on a Saturday night, Glynn shot in the gym and videotaped his mechanics so he could spend his off-day studying his shot and improving his technique with a ball in his dorm room.
Glynn pursued greatness. He started his freshman season as he fourth string point guard and finished as the starter. That is a good accomplishment. But, it was just a start for Glynn. He transferred to Puget Sound and became an NCAA DIII All-American. During his senior year, he was a “180 Shooter,” shooting over 90% from the free throw line, over 50% from the field and over 46% from the three-point line.
Glynn could have been satisfied with making himself into a starter at an athletic wasteland (U.C. Santa Cruz). Instead, he transferred to a tougher conference and led a once moribund men’s basketball program to consecutive appearances in the NCAA DIII Elite Eight.
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