Here’s a quick question: (It proves whether or not you handle success well)
When do you have more focus:
A.) Beginning of the game. Score 0-0
B.) Start of 2nd Half. Score 51-21
If you’re like most, the answer is A. Why? Because, when you’re up 30, it’s comfortable. So is success. Which shows again why success can be dangerous.
Brad Stevens (Head Coach: Butler) said, “In a game of 150 possessions, you’re going to have a lot of success and a lot of failure and you have to be able to move on from each.”
I think how you handle a lead or lesser opponents tells a lot of how well you handle success.
Here’s Butler’s Goal: To win each game one possession at a time. Why is this a great goal? It takes the scoreboard out of the equation and focuses on winning the possession. Every possession.
One of the things that I love to watch for is, how the starters act on the bench once they get pulled for the night in a blow-out. Do they:
1.) Stay engaged and give energy to their teammates who never get to play.
2.) Relax and think their job is done.
Ask yourself this question, when the best player of a team goes to the bench, what do you think it means to the guys who never get to play (who are expected to bring the energy from the bench day in and day out without seeing playing) sees you excited for their success? To me, that shows a fully functional team.
The best player typically dominates the personality of the team and how they handle success is often a key indicator on what kind of season they will have.