KOBE BRYANT, “IN HIS OWN WORDS”
Dime Magazine
Hunger defines me. I've always been hungry, but now my appetite has risen to a new level. My will is greater than ever. The motivation to succeed runs through me like blood. In this 10th year, my 10th season as an NBA player, the mountain I once climbed to reach the top looms in front of me again. I realize how hard it will be to climb it, how much I will have to sacrifice and overcome to get to the top again, how many people have told me I can't do it. But I savor that challenge. Feed off of it. That challenge helps give me purpose and inspiration. It helps me define life.
At the beginning of this season there was a question floating around in my mind. What is my purpose? On one level I understood the reasons for why I do what I do, but on another level I felt an even greater commitment tugging at my soul. I'm a ballplayer, a teammate. A leader. But is that it? When I look back at my rookie season, I realize that all of the faces that once surrounded me are gone. I was a kid back then, eager to please, eager to find my place in a world that seemed familiar but different. The game was my refuge. I'd been going to it ever since I was six years old, in Italy, playing alone on courts thousands of miles away from kids who shared my same love. In a way, my dedication to basketball defined me. But that definition has grown. The struggles I've encountered over the last few years have made me realize just how much more there is for me to accomplish. I've begun a new phase of my life; I've opened new doors. And with new doors comes a whole new world of challenges.
In my life I have won and accomplished much. I own three NBA championship rings. I've had plenty of endorsement deals and made a lot of money from them. But still, I feel as if I have yet to fulfill the blessing that God has given me in my ability to play this game. I feel as if there is so much more to do, on the court and off it.
I don't know if this is how I am supposed to feel. Did MJ, Magic and the others feel the same way? In our society it seems like athletes are expected to care about winning the game, pleasing the crowd, and signing deals. Period. But am I supposed to obsess myself with winning only to win, retire and wonder if all my sacrifices were worth it? Is it OK for me to sacrifice time away from my children, time watching them grow up, missing Easter, Christmas and other special moments, to win a ring?
What I have come to learn is that my desire to win, the will to pursue my goals with the highest level of intensity and passion, defines me. But I have been careful to keep my motivation pure. The distractions that come with winning, the idea of playing for the money or playing for the fame and prestige — I've watched all of these things consume other players. My thirst for domination is fed only by the game. I refuse to get distracted by outside forces.
This is a new book in my career. Volume 1 has already been written. Everything that I accomplished before is behind me: not forgotten, but placed on the shelf. My past success only serves as a measuring stick for my peers. A whole new crop of players has emerged since I came into the League. All of them want the honor of holding the title of "best all-around player". But I feel as if that quest is behind me now and a new one has taken its place. I am an underdog. A challenge was issued to me by everyone who said I would never succeed again, that I would never win another ring or enjoy another parade. I accepted their challenge. I accepted the doubt of every one who spoke of my downfall and used their words as fuel. I have a franchise to resurrect, a city of fans to uplift.
That mountain, the one that I climbed once and now face again, is huge. I'm looking up at it again. And because I know how hard it was to climb, I sometimes feel drained because I know how difficult it will be to conquer. It's much harder to go from top to bottom to the top again than it is to simply go from the bottom to the top. But desire is the ultimate fuel. Hunger changes any situation. My past experience gives me knowledge that backs up my will. I know what must be done. My team is sometimes unsure because my teammates have never climbed this mountain before.
At times it's frustrating and it tries my patience, but in the beginning years of my career my teammates were patient with me and trusted in the fact that I would figure everything out, so now I must return that favor to this generation of Lakers. This is our challenge, our mountain, and these are my brothers. I must guide them to the point we all want to get to. No matter what.
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I have been learning about the ambition inside me since I was a kid. It was there during the hours I would spend on a playground in Italy and a group of my friends would come to me and tell me I would never be an NBA player. It was there during all the time I would practice alone, imitating the moves I'd seen on television and creating new ones to go with them. It was there when nothing else was there, and I learned to incorporate it with the game, to wrap myself in the game and seek my future within it. Whenever someone would say what my Italian friends had said, whenever anyone told me what I couldn't do, I would grab hold of that feeling inside me and realize that it was there for a reason. I have always had a purpose, a need to succeed. People who try to discourage me only add fuel to a fire that has always burned. Every phase of my life has brought me new risks and new rewards; in many ways I have always been the underdog. And through it all, through every struggle, the game has always been there. It has never left me alone.
I love the game. I really do. As a kid, when things were bad for me at school or at home, I would go to the park and envision the dream. You've probably had that same one: I'd be playing for the Lakers, winning championships and hitting the game winning shots. I'd listen to the crowd roar when I put the dagger in the other team's heart, and on the road I'd hear the silence of other teams' arenas. I've actually done these things in my career. But I had done them before, because in my mind and in my heart it felt so real to me. So when I was there I had been there before.
What thrills me most about the game is the purity of it and the chance to master it. The process, the work, the beauty of it has always inspired me. I remember when I was 15 years old and wanted to be famous and be on TV. That desire didn't motivate me to play or overshadow the essence of the game, but like any kid I thought being a celebrity would be cool.
As I've gotten older and actually become famous I realize that it's not what I thought it would be. But this is a good thing. Because it means that, in my heart, I never played the game for "spotlight" reasons. I played because I loved it. I played because it meant more to me than even I knew. When I needed someone to lean on, a place to vent, a place to celebrate or a place to cry, the game became all of these things for me. And because the game has given me so much I know that I must give it the respect it deserves. I must work hard to master it, to show it my appreciation for all it has done for me as a person, as a man. That's the reason I'm able to play under severe pressure or stress. The game has actually helped me cope with it. It has helped me win. Not in terms of the points scored, but in terms of the struggles that I have overcome. More and more I feel like this is the reason I train so hard, why I push myself past every limit. The more obstacles that are placed between me and my goals, the hungrier I become.
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Desire is a double-edged sword. It gives you strength; it gives you motivation and focus. But occasionally, because your ambition is so great, you wonder what will happen if your goals are not fulfilled. My biggest fear is not winning another title. But fear is a great motivator. I'm determined to lead this organization back to the top. The people who once celebrated me are the same people who doubt me now. They say that because I don't have Shaq that I can't win, that it's over. The only thing I truly worry about is that my drive and my will are sometimes too much for my teammates to handle. Do I expect too much from them? How can I elevate them to play with my same passion every night?
What helps me understand and deal with this is the fact that I was once in their shoes. I once played a supporting role on this team. Back then I knew how much pressure Shaquille had on him to win a ring and I also knew I could help. So I studied the game offensively and especially defensively because I knew that if I could harass on the perimeter with him clogging the lane, it would demoralize our opponents more than anything we could do offensively. I also knew that the teams he played on in the past did not have a closer. No one could take the game over down the stretch or hit the game winner or make the key free throws. Those were Shaq's weaknesses, so I had to step up and make them my strengths. I knew how much more I could bring to the battle, but that wasn't my role. I was a scorer who became a facilitator in order to win. But now I worry because I know how hard that was for me to learn, how many sleepless nights I had and how much criticism and trade rumors I had to endure before I mastered my role. This is probably what my current teammates are going through. All I can do is pray that one day we will reach the same level of chemistry and understanding that existed between me, Shaq, Rick Fox, Derek Fisher, Robert Horry and all the other players I once went to war with.
The fears I have are soothed a little by the presence of Phil Jackson. Simply put, he is the best coach I have ever played for. Everything I have learned about the game can be traced to him and Tex Winter. They teach the game at such a deeper level than X's and O's. The game is a rhythm, a dance. Phil and Tex have taught me to feel the game. To think the game without thinking, to see without seeing. They taught me how to prepare. How to conceptualize the spirit of my opponents and attack them where they are weak. I've seen how prepared PJ gets before games, and as the on-court leader he is trusting me to do the same. So I do all the things he has taught me to do before tip-off and once the ball is in the air my mind is at ease and my body is ready to play. I take it to the other team on both ends of the floor. I take pride in being able to do that. I HATE being scored on, even by players who some say are "un-guardable". I don't believe it when they say "Oh, that player is just hot today." F--- that! Cool his ass off then.
When we play on the road and the entire crowd is booing me it doesn't bother me at all. What I think about is simple: "When these fans leave this game I want them to remember how hard I fought and the passion and drive with which I played." I have always played this game with passion. And I always worked hard. When I saw the movie Rudy I remember thinking, "What if I worked that hard?" God has blessed me both physically and intellectually to play this game, so what would happen if I push as hard as the character in this film? I would love for people to think of me as a talented overachiever. Even though those fans may chant "Kobe sucks", when they leave that arena I want them to walk out with a different feeling than they came in with. When they leave they'll leave with the understanding that they have just witnessed a player give himself completely to his passion; they have just watched an athlete pour every ounce of his heart and soul out on that floor. And hopefully, when the next volume of my life is all said and done, they will respect and appreciate the years that I spent giving all of me to the game that means everything to me.
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Being called a role model has become code for being "able to sell product." But the true essence of a role model lies in influencing our youth to be better, not perfect, not to buy sodas or fast food or whatever; but to be better, no matter the odds or the circumstances. As an athlete I am someone who is in a perfect position to inspire our youth. They look at us as heroes not just because we win, but also because we fail. They witness us overcome obstacles right in front of their eyes. There's no editing, no CGI; everything about it is real. They watch us fall, get back up, fall, get back up, and fall again. In the course of a 48-minute game or an 82-game season they see us climb an entire mountain. It's my duty to help them understand that falling is a part of life and getting up is a way of life. The will to overcome is crucial. And because basketball is a metaphor of life this is a lesson I can give them as I struggle to accomplish my goals. As I help to rebuild my team on the court, I can do the same off of it, helping to rebuild and restore the lives of the people I see in trouble by inspiring them to do what the "experts" say can't be done.
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I have been an outcast my entire life. From being the only black kid in my town in Italy all the way to when I was 17 and playing in the NBA. What separated me from others, even more consistently than skin color or age, was my hunger. My mission. I've always been made to feel like there was something wrong with wanting to win so badly and wanting to become the best at what you do. But I have found a place to fit in amongst people with a similar vision, specifically my family at Nike. My association with them means much more to me than just an endorsement deal. At Nike I am surrounded by people and athletes who share my will and my commitment to be number one at all costs.
Last summer I had the honor of being invited to the Nike campus in Beaverton, Oregon for a ceremony honoring the company's co-founder, Phil Knight. We athletes had to wait in the green room before the show began. I found myself sitting amongst athletes that I had never met before but whom I felt right at home with.
Let me explain:
There are certain kinds of people that are purely driven. I can tell who they are simply by looking at them. I have faced so much criticism for my drive that at times it has alienated me from the majority: the people who are comfortable with second place, the people who hate against me because I am not. You know these kinds of people; they are the ones who fear winning, the jealous ones who envy and try to sabotage. They are the people who have been telling me I couldn't win all my life. Many times my drive to succeed has put me on an island all by myself because no one understood me, or they chose to misunderstand me. They chose to portray me as being something that I was not.
So on that day, sitting in the Nike green room with those other athletes, I saw the purity of drive in their eyes and it reassured me that it was OK to be different than others. It's OK to want to be the best. It's OK to feel like a loser if you don't win it all, and it's OK to bounce back with a stronger will, a deeper sense of determination, and a desire to destroy your opposition.
I have learned that it is OK for me to be me, and what being me entails. It means that I will not rest; I will not sleep, relax, relent or be satisfied until my goals have been met, the challenge answered and all my doubters silenced. I will not give in to my foes; I won't let down my teammates. I won't stop inspiring those who look up to me or stop giving motivation to those who motivate me. I will not back off until I'm back on top, back in the place where they said I could never be again. Mountains don't scare me. The LACK of mountains scares me. The climb up, the struggle for every inch of ground and every level of ascension is what feeds me. I welcome that challenge. I welcome that chance to be fed because no matter what — no matter how hard, how far, or how many stand in my way, I remain determined.
12.30.2009
12.27.2009
QUINCY PONDEXTER
Quincy Pondexter has finally rid himself of that nickname he so despised his first two years of high school.
Slow-Mo.
"Everything I did, it looked like I was going in slow motion,” Pondexter is now able to say with a chuckle.
Pondexter has always come along at his own pace — almost exclusively in the shadows. Back at San Joaquin Memorial High he played with the 7-foot McDonald’s All-American Lopez Twins — Brook and Robin. For the first three years in college at Washington, it was Jon Brockman’s team.
Finally, Pondexter is The Man at U-Dub.
The 6-foot-6, 215-pound senior is averaging 21.9 points and 8.7 rebounds for the Huskies.
Gone are the shadows and the history of the shy high schooler.
"He’s always been so indecisive,” Roscoe Pondexter said of his son. "But the talent has always been there.”
Pondexter arrived on campus in 2006 as a top 50 player, but he was inconsistent in his first 2 1/2 seasons, never quite living up to his potential.
"It’s definitely been up and down — especially from the beginning,” Pondexter said.
Then, something finally clicked when Pac-10 play rolled around last season.
"It was harder to come out and assert myself scoring when we had guys like Jon (Brockman), Isaiah (Thomas) and Justin (Dentmon),” he said. "I wanted to wait until Pac-10 to make my mark.”
Pondexter quietly scored in double-figures in 17 of the 21 league contests, including the Pac-10 tournament, and hasn’t shown any sign of slowing down this year.
"He was a different guy,” Washington coach Lorenzo Romar said. "He averaged about 16 points per game the last half of the season. What he’s doing now he started to do last season.”
Pondexter hasn’t just shed his label of being a guy whose production didn’t match his potential. He’s also become a leader and even a spokesman.
"This is his team now,” Romar said.
In an era in which players are covered with body art, you won’t find a single tattoo or piercing on Pondexter’s body. He said he’s never tasted alcohol and hasn’t smoked, either.
"I can still go out and have fun without drinking or smoking,” he said. "I promised myself I wouldn’t do it.”
At a recent black-tie gala attended by many of the school’s “money people,” Pondexter served as one of the emcees.
"He did a phenomenal job,” Romar said. "He’s really grown up.”
Pondexter has become that rare senior who has gained the respect of NBA personnel.
Romar said that he’s put the work in and can be found in the gym working on his game for an hour or two following nearly every game.
"He’s not athletic like Vince Carter or LeBron,” Romar said. "But he’s right after that.”
Pondexter, the only player in the Pac-10 to rank in the top five in scoring and rebounding, has finally emerged from the shadows.
Slow-Mo.
"Everything I did, it looked like I was going in slow motion,” Pondexter is now able to say with a chuckle.
Pondexter has always come along at his own pace — almost exclusively in the shadows. Back at San Joaquin Memorial High he played with the 7-foot McDonald’s All-American Lopez Twins — Brook and Robin. For the first three years in college at Washington, it was Jon Brockman’s team.
Finally, Pondexter is The Man at U-Dub.
The 6-foot-6, 215-pound senior is averaging 21.9 points and 8.7 rebounds for the Huskies.
Gone are the shadows and the history of the shy high schooler.
"He’s always been so indecisive,” Roscoe Pondexter said of his son. "But the talent has always been there.”
Pondexter arrived on campus in 2006 as a top 50 player, but he was inconsistent in his first 2 1/2 seasons, never quite living up to his potential.
"It’s definitely been up and down — especially from the beginning,” Pondexter said.
Then, something finally clicked when Pac-10 play rolled around last season.
"It was harder to come out and assert myself scoring when we had guys like Jon (Brockman), Isaiah (Thomas) and Justin (Dentmon),” he said. "I wanted to wait until Pac-10 to make my mark.”
Pondexter quietly scored in double-figures in 17 of the 21 league contests, including the Pac-10 tournament, and hasn’t shown any sign of slowing down this year.
"He was a different guy,” Washington coach Lorenzo Romar said. "He averaged about 16 points per game the last half of the season. What he’s doing now he started to do last season.”
Pondexter hasn’t just shed his label of being a guy whose production didn’t match his potential. He’s also become a leader and even a spokesman.
"This is his team now,” Romar said.
In an era in which players are covered with body art, you won’t find a single tattoo or piercing on Pondexter’s body. He said he’s never tasted alcohol and hasn’t smoked, either.
"I can still go out and have fun without drinking or smoking,” he said. "I promised myself I wouldn’t do it.”
At a recent black-tie gala attended by many of the school’s “money people,” Pondexter served as one of the emcees.
"He did a phenomenal job,” Romar said. "He’s really grown up.”
Pondexter has become that rare senior who has gained the respect of NBA personnel.
Romar said that he’s put the work in and can be found in the gym working on his game for an hour or two following nearly every game.
"He’s not athletic like Vince Carter or LeBron,” Romar said. "But he’s right after that.”
Pondexter, the only player in the Pac-10 to rank in the top five in scoring and rebounding, has finally emerged from the shadows.
12.16.2009
PREPARATION
1. Preparation Is a Process, Not an Event
Legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden says that the best way to improve your team is to improve yourself. He learned that lesson from his father, Joshua Wooden, who used to tell young John, "Don't try to be better than somebody else, but never cease trying to be the best you can be.'
2. Preparation Precedes Opportunity
There's an old saying: "You can claim to be surprised once; after that, you're unprepared."
3. Preparation for Tomorrow Begins with the Right Use of Today
If you believe that your success tomorrow depends on what you do today, then you will treat today differently. What you receive tomorrow depends on what you believe today.
4. Preparation Requires Continually Good Perspective
Former Boston Celtics coach Tom Heinsohn observed, "The sixth man has to be so stable a player that he can instantly pick up the tempo or reverse it. He has to be able to go in and have an immediate impact. The sixth man has to have the unique ability to be in a ball game while he is sitting on the bench." What makes the sixth man capable of that? Perspective. He has to have both a coach's mind-set as he watches the game from the bench and a player's ability once he steps into it. If he does, then he is prepared to impact the game.
5. Good Preparation Leads to Action
What value has preparation it if never leads to action? Very little. "No plan is worth the paper it is printed on unless it starts you going."
Legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden says that the best way to improve your team is to improve yourself. He learned that lesson from his father, Joshua Wooden, who used to tell young John, "Don't try to be better than somebody else, but never cease trying to be the best you can be.'
2. Preparation Precedes Opportunity
There's an old saying: "You can claim to be surprised once; after that, you're unprepared."
3. Preparation for Tomorrow Begins with the Right Use of Today
If you believe that your success tomorrow depends on what you do today, then you will treat today differently. What you receive tomorrow depends on what you believe today.
4. Preparation Requires Continually Good Perspective
Former Boston Celtics coach Tom Heinsohn observed, "The sixth man has to be so stable a player that he can instantly pick up the tempo or reverse it. He has to be able to go in and have an immediate impact. The sixth man has to have the unique ability to be in a ball game while he is sitting on the bench." What makes the sixth man capable of that? Perspective. He has to have both a coach's mind-set as he watches the game from the bench and a player's ability once he steps into it. If he does, then he is prepared to impact the game.
5. Good Preparation Leads to Action
What value has preparation it if never leads to action? Very little. "No plan is worth the paper it is printed on unless it starts you going."
TIPS FOR HANDLING CRITICISM
1. Don’t take yourself too seriously. If you can develop the ability to laugh at yourself, you will be much more relaxed when receiving criticism.
2. Watch your own attitude toward the critic. A negative attitude toward criticism can be more destructive than the criticism itself.
3. Don’t just see the critic; see if there’s a crowd. I’m suggesting that you expand your vision; go beyond the critic and see if he has a cheering section. Consider the possibility that you are hearing the same criticism from several people. If this is the case, and the critics are reliable, you need to realize that you have a challenge to work on.
4. If you think your right, wait for a time to prove them wrong. Time is your best ally; it allows you to prove yourself right.
4. Concentrate on your mission—change your mistakes. Most people do exactly the opposite—they change their mission and concentrate on their mistakes. If you run from your task each time you make a mistake, you will never accomplish anything. You will always be in a state of frustration and defeat. The only real mistakes in life are the mistakes from which we learn nothing. So instead of dwelling on them, learning from them, and move on.
2. Watch your own attitude toward the critic. A negative attitude toward criticism can be more destructive than the criticism itself.
3. Don’t just see the critic; see if there’s a crowd. I’m suggesting that you expand your vision; go beyond the critic and see if he has a cheering section. Consider the possibility that you are hearing the same criticism from several people. If this is the case, and the critics are reliable, you need to realize that you have a challenge to work on.
4. If you think your right, wait for a time to prove them wrong. Time is your best ally; it allows you to prove yourself right.
4. Concentrate on your mission—change your mistakes. Most people do exactly the opposite—they change their mission and concentrate on their mistakes. If you run from your task each time you make a mistake, you will never accomplish anything. You will always be in a state of frustration and defeat. The only real mistakes in life are the mistakes from which we learn nothing. So instead of dwelling on them, learning from them, and move on.
THE TOP QUALITY OF A LEADER
What's the top qualities a manager or leader should have?
I think I found the answer during a church sermon. Solomon, who was the paragon of truth, and he was pleasing to the Lord. The Lord said to Solomon, “I want to give you anything you want.” And Solomon said, “The greatest gift that you can give me, Lord, is an understanding heart.”
I think that’s what every manager or coach needs, an understanding heart, because when a player doesn’t do well, the manager or coach has got to understand how that player feels and how to communicate with them.
I think I found the answer during a church sermon. Solomon, who was the paragon of truth, and he was pleasing to the Lord. The Lord said to Solomon, “I want to give you anything you want.” And Solomon said, “The greatest gift that you can give me, Lord, is an understanding heart.”
I think that’s what every manager or coach needs, an understanding heart, because when a player doesn’t do well, the manager or coach has got to understand how that player feels and how to communicate with them.
DIRK - GAME WINNER
The German kid who used to stand in the corner with the game on the line has grown up.
Dirk Nowitzki has developed into one of the NBA's most dominant clutch players. That's not an opinion. It's fact, and it's backed by a bunch of statistics:
As a 7-footer with shooting guard skills, Nowitzki has always been a matchup nightmare. However, a maturation process had to take place before he had the mentality to be the Dallas Mavericks' go-to guy in game-deciding moments.
Early in his career, Nowitzki knew his place in the crunch-time pecking order with the Mavs' Big Three. Michael Finley was the first option. Steve Nash was next. Nowitzki was the perimeter threat who spaced the floor.
"Now he wants that shot," Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said. "There's like no doubt in anybody's mind that he's taking that shot -- and you can't stop it."
Nowitzki, who might be the most humble superstar in the NBA, has even cultivated a crunch-time swagger. The emotional displays are simply an extension of the mentality a player must have to thrive in such situations.
"We all know this league is a lot about confidence," Nowitzki said. "That's really it. Once you get the ball, your teammates believe in you and you believe in yourself that you can make that big play down the stretch. For the team, I've got to keep coming."
It doesn't matter what Dirk has done for the first 45 minutes or so. He still expects to deliver when Dallas needs him most. For example, take a look at his late heroics in the Mavs' past two games.
Nowitzki had an awful night against the Charlotte Bobcats ... until he scored the Mavs' final 10 points in regulation, forcing overtime with a personal 6-0 run in the final 1:16. He followed that up in the extra frame by hitting a pair of go-ahead fadeaways in the final 24 seconds, including a 10-footer off the dribble with 1.7 seconds left that stood as the game winner. He made seven of his final 11 shots in a game that he started 1-of-11.
A couple of nights later, the New Orleans Hornets held Nowitzki to a season-low 10 points. Eight of those came in the fourth quarter of the 94-90 win, including four in the final minute.
"The definition of a franchise player is that he wants the responsibility for winning and losing," said coach Rick Carlisle. "He wants the ball in his hands when the game is being decided, and the only thing he thinks about when he gets the ball in his hands is finding a way to win the game."
Added Jason Kidd: "He loves that stage. When we need a basket, he loves to have the ball, to make the play. He just loves the atmosphere. He doesn't panic."
Nowitzki notes that he isn't the only accomplished clutch shooter on the Mavs. Nowitzki won't hesitate to give up the ball and get of his teammates a wide-open look if he's double- or triple-teamed. Dirk just wants the opportunity to make the decision.
It's not a coincidence that Nowitzki has become better with age in clutch situations.
"I think once you get older, more experienced, the game slows down for you down the stretch," Nowitzki said. "Early in my career, I might rush and be like, 'Hey, the game's on the line; gotta do something quick.' Whereas now, you take your time, you're more poised and you're just more confident.
"If I take my time, I feel like I can get a good shot up."
Dirk Nowitzki has developed into one of the NBA's most dominant clutch players. That's not an opinion. It's fact, and it's backed by a bunch of statistics:
As a 7-footer with shooting guard skills, Nowitzki has always been a matchup nightmare. However, a maturation process had to take place before he had the mentality to be the Dallas Mavericks' go-to guy in game-deciding moments.
Early in his career, Nowitzki knew his place in the crunch-time pecking order with the Mavs' Big Three. Michael Finley was the first option. Steve Nash was next. Nowitzki was the perimeter threat who spaced the floor.
"Now he wants that shot," Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said. "There's like no doubt in anybody's mind that he's taking that shot -- and you can't stop it."
Nowitzki, who might be the most humble superstar in the NBA, has even cultivated a crunch-time swagger. The emotional displays are simply an extension of the mentality a player must have to thrive in such situations.
"We all know this league is a lot about confidence," Nowitzki said. "That's really it. Once you get the ball, your teammates believe in you and you believe in yourself that you can make that big play down the stretch. For the team, I've got to keep coming."
It doesn't matter what Dirk has done for the first 45 minutes or so. He still expects to deliver when Dallas needs him most. For example, take a look at his late heroics in the Mavs' past two games.
Nowitzki had an awful night against the Charlotte Bobcats ... until he scored the Mavs' final 10 points in regulation, forcing overtime with a personal 6-0 run in the final 1:16. He followed that up in the extra frame by hitting a pair of go-ahead fadeaways in the final 24 seconds, including a 10-footer off the dribble with 1.7 seconds left that stood as the game winner. He made seven of his final 11 shots in a game that he started 1-of-11.
A couple of nights later, the New Orleans Hornets held Nowitzki to a season-low 10 points. Eight of those came in the fourth quarter of the 94-90 win, including four in the final minute.
"The definition of a franchise player is that he wants the responsibility for winning and losing," said coach Rick Carlisle. "He wants the ball in his hands when the game is being decided, and the only thing he thinks about when he gets the ball in his hands is finding a way to win the game."
Added Jason Kidd: "He loves that stage. When we need a basket, he loves to have the ball, to make the play. He just loves the atmosphere. He doesn't panic."
Nowitzki notes that he isn't the only accomplished clutch shooter on the Mavs. Nowitzki won't hesitate to give up the ball and get of his teammates a wide-open look if he's double- or triple-teamed. Dirk just wants the opportunity to make the decision.
It's not a coincidence that Nowitzki has become better with age in clutch situations.
"I think once you get older, more experienced, the game slows down for you down the stretch," Nowitzki said. "Early in my career, I might rush and be like, 'Hey, the game's on the line; gotta do something quick.' Whereas now, you take your time, you're more poised and you're just more confident.
"If I take my time, I feel like I can get a good shot up."
12.14.2009
WINNINGST PROGRAMS ON THE WEST COAST
Over the last 2 1/2 seasons (07-08, 08-09, 09-10) here are the highest winning percentages on the west coast in college basketball.
As of 12/14/09
#1. SAINT MARY'S
OVERALL RECORD: 60-15
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 80%
#2. GONZAGA
OVERALL RECORD: 61-16
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 79%
#3. BYU
OVERALL RECORD: 60-17
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 78%
#4. UCLA
OVERALL RECORD: 63-19
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 77%
#5. UTAH STATE
OVERALL RECORD: 59-19
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 76%
#6. UNLV (TIE)
OVERALL RECORD: 55-20
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 73%
#6. NEW MEXICO (TIE)
OVERALL RECORD 56-21
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 73%
#8. PORTLAND ST. (TIE)
OVERALL RECORD: 51-24
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 68%
#8. SAN DIEGO ST. (TIE)
OVERALL RECORD: 54-25
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 68%
#10. ARIZONA ST.
OVERALL RECORD: 53-26
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 67%
#11. WASHINGTON STATE
OVERALL RECORD: 51-27
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 65%
#12. WASHINGTON
OVERALL RECORD: 48-28
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 63%
#13. NEVADA
OVERALL RECORD: 46-29
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 61%
#14. CALIFORNIA (TIE)
OVERALL RECORD: 45-30
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 60%
#14. WEBER ST (TIE)
OVERALL RECORD: 42-28
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 60%
#16. ARIZONA
OVERALL RECORD: 44-34
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 56%
As of 12/14/09
#1. SAINT MARY'S
OVERALL RECORD: 60-15
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 80%
#2. GONZAGA
OVERALL RECORD: 61-16
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 79%
#3. BYU
OVERALL RECORD: 60-17
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 78%
#4. UCLA
OVERALL RECORD: 63-19
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 77%
#5. UTAH STATE
OVERALL RECORD: 59-19
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 76%
#6. UNLV (TIE)
OVERALL RECORD: 55-20
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 73%
#6. NEW MEXICO (TIE)
OVERALL RECORD 56-21
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 73%
#8. PORTLAND ST. (TIE)
OVERALL RECORD: 51-24
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 68%
#8. SAN DIEGO ST. (TIE)
OVERALL RECORD: 54-25
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 68%
#10. ARIZONA ST.
OVERALL RECORD: 53-26
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 67%
#11. WASHINGTON STATE
OVERALL RECORD: 51-27
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 65%
#12. WASHINGTON
OVERALL RECORD: 48-28
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 63%
#13. NEVADA
OVERALL RECORD: 46-29
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 61%
#14. CALIFORNIA (TIE)
OVERALL RECORD: 45-30
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 60%
#14. WEBER ST (TIE)
OVERALL RECORD: 42-28
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 60%
#16. ARIZONA
OVERALL RECORD: 44-34
WINNING PERCENTAGE: 56%
12.13.2009
WORDS OF WISDOM
Believe while others are doubting.
Plan while others are playing.
Study while others are sleeping.
Decide while others are delaying.
Prepare while others are daydreaming.
Begin while others are procrastinating.
Work while others are wishing.
Save while others are wasting.
Listen while others are talking.
Smile while others are frowning.
Commend while other are criticizing.
Persist while others are quitting.
Plan while others are playing.
Study while others are sleeping.
Decide while others are delaying.
Prepare while others are daydreaming.
Begin while others are procrastinating.
Work while others are wishing.
Save while others are wasting.
Listen while others are talking.
Smile while others are frowning.
Commend while other are criticizing.
Persist while others are quitting.
12.10.2009
PETE SAMPRAS - TED WILLIAMS
Ted Williams, the great Boston Red Sox slugger, once said that all he wanted out of life was that when he walked down the street, people would point and say, "There goes the greatest hitter who ever lived." Early in my career, I adopted a similar attitude. It may strike some as arrogant, but that's the kind of fuel you need to really reach the heights of achievement. There were times in my career when I would step up to the service line at a crucial moment in the heat of combat in a big match and pause to drink in the atmosphere. Fired up by adrenaline, I'd look toward the crowd and defiantly say to myself, "All right, everybody, now I'm going to show you who I really am!"
Most champions have that kind of aggression, that competitiveness. It comes with the territory. You don't survive long with a target on your back without it.
Most champions have that kind of aggression, that competitiveness. It comes with the territory. You don't survive long with a target on your back without it.
12.08.2009
STEVE NASH - LIVING SUGAR FREE
Last winter I was talking with a friend about what I needed to do to stay healthy out on the court. (At 35 it’s not getting any easier.) When the topic of nutrition came up, he urged me to go see his naturopath, Dr. Suneil Jain, here in Arizona. Now, I have tons of people looking after my well-being — coaches, doctors, trainers, my wife — so I’m always skeptical about seeking new advice. But I’m glad I went.
Jain pushes a whole-foods diet, one that consists of lots of raw fruits and vegetables. Okay, but I’m not giving up my steak dinner. Then Jain started talking about how important it is to cut sugar out of your diet. What? My first thought was that that would be impossible, but he made a convincing case. Jain told me that the average American eats about 92 grams of sugar a day, when the human body needs only about eight grams for energy, an amount that should always be satisfied through natural sugars from fresh fruits, vegetables, and grains. Refined sugars, he told me, impair your immune system. In fact, one teaspoon of refined sugar suppresses our white blood cells for up to six hours, making it a lot easier to catch a cold. I really can’t afford colds during the season, so that’s all I needed to hear: I cut out refined sugars cold turkey. No M&M’s at the movies, no energy bars, no Gatorade — I even had to be more careful when going to Jamba Juice, because sometimes they use sugar-filled juice from concentrate. After a few months, I stopped craving sugar entirely.
The difference was instantaneous: I slept better, I recovered from workouts more easily, and I had more energy. When we started training camp in September, we were doing two-a-days — four or five hours on the court — and I never got sore. Even more telling is the fact that this summer I traveled all over the world for my foundation, bringing team sports to war-ravaged countries. I was missing out on sleep and still training the whole time, but I never got sick. I’ve got to think it’s because sugar wasn’t wearing me down.
No doubt, this lifestyle is not easy — sugar gets sneaked into just about everything, so I have to pack my own food. But it doesn’t bother me, because the way I feel is so worth it.
Jain pushes a whole-foods diet, one that consists of lots of raw fruits and vegetables. Okay, but I’m not giving up my steak dinner. Then Jain started talking about how important it is to cut sugar out of your diet. What? My first thought was that that would be impossible, but he made a convincing case. Jain told me that the average American eats about 92 grams of sugar a day, when the human body needs only about eight grams for energy, an amount that should always be satisfied through natural sugars from fresh fruits, vegetables, and grains. Refined sugars, he told me, impair your immune system. In fact, one teaspoon of refined sugar suppresses our white blood cells for up to six hours, making it a lot easier to catch a cold. I really can’t afford colds during the season, so that’s all I needed to hear: I cut out refined sugars cold turkey. No M&M’s at the movies, no energy bars, no Gatorade — I even had to be more careful when going to Jamba Juice, because sometimes they use sugar-filled juice from concentrate. After a few months, I stopped craving sugar entirely.
The difference was instantaneous: I slept better, I recovered from workouts more easily, and I had more energy. When we started training camp in September, we were doing two-a-days — four or five hours on the court — and I never got sore. Even more telling is the fact that this summer I traveled all over the world for my foundation, bringing team sports to war-ravaged countries. I was missing out on sleep and still training the whole time, but I never got sick. I’ve got to think it’s because sugar wasn’t wearing me down.
No doubt, this lifestyle is not easy — sugar gets sneaked into just about everything, so I have to pack my own food. But it doesn’t bother me, because the way I feel is so worth it.
LEE TREVINO
Lee Trevino is out on the manicured grounds of his expansive French-colonial mansion in North Dallas when a visitor is admitted through the front gate. TAt the moment, he's thinking of doing the same to a beaver that has been taking chunks out of his property.
"All my life living around here, never seen a beaver," says Trevino, who turns 70 on Dec. 1. "I've been doing research on them, but it's been hard to find him. I know one thing: He never stops working. Tough little dude."
Trevino could have been describing himself, for no golfer has ever come farther on industriousness and grit. After picking cotton in Texas fields when he was 5 years old, dividing his golf baptism between the caddie yard and the range, beating all comers on a par-3 course with a taped-up Dr Pepper bottle, and then becoming a man in the Marines, Trevino joined the tour at 27, a folk hero in the making. In his second year he won the 1968 U.S. Open, the first of four times Jack Nicklaus finished second to Trevino in a major. Trevino would win 29 times, including six majors, on the PGA Tour. Amid the success, he lost two fortunes and then lost his game after being hit by lightning. But he fought back with a second act that included winning 29 more tournaments on the Champions Tour.
These days, Trevino plays only a few tournaments and shoots over par more than he's under, but he's more engaging and entertaining with fans than ever. His focus is on his wife of 26 years, Claudia, and their children, Olivia, 20, a drama major at Southern California, and Daniel, 17, who lives at home and is on track to play college lacrosse.
Golf Digest prompted Trevino's mercurial mind to reflect on such things as his Dickensian background, Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and occasional golf partners George W. Bush and Condoleezza Rice. In the process, Trevino issued an impromptu manifesto on the state of golf. He also had a message for Paul Goydos, who in defending the current era of players opined that "there are 10 Lee Trevinos" on tour today.
"Tell him you were at my house," Trevino said with a smile, "and you tell him to send me the list of the 10 guys out there who have won six majors and 29 tournaments. Give him my address."
Golf Digest: What's the story on this house?
Lee Trevino: I was meant to be in this house. I grew up about five miles from here. I used to rabbit hunt around these creeks as a kid. This house was built in 1939, same year I was born. And we'd come down here, see this house, and we thought it was a castle. Never seen anything this big. Now I'm back to my roots.
Those roots included a lot of tough times. Is it hard for you to look back?
I never think of yesterday. Can't do anything about it. I'm a positive guy. When you really deep down look at it, we go to bed every night, get up every morning, stay here for 70 or 80 years, and then we die. What the hell are we doing? Claudia taught me the answer: Those two kids. To make them the best people, so they'll be productive, help others.
Have you left competitive golf behind, mentally?
Oh, yeah. I left that quite a while ago. When I realized I couldn't win, that took everything out of it.
What was the caddie yard like back then?
We had about 80 caddies at Glen Lakes Country Club. I lived right next to the course, across from the seventh hole, in a little house with my grandfather, my mother, my uncle and my two sisters. No running water, no electricity. There were a couple of white caddies, maybe three Mexican kids. Everyone else was black, all from Second Avenue, because that was the only place blacks could be in Dallas at the time. Sometimes, three or four of them would come over and sleep on our porch so we'd be first off in the morning.
My mentor at Glen Lakes was a guy called Cryin' Jessie. I took care of him until he died about four years ago. He was a caddiemaster around here forever, but when I was 8 years old, he took me under his wing, taught me how to caddie, kept me out of trouble, made sure nobody messed with me.
You were a good caddie, and you beat the other kids in golf. Did it occur to you that you might have special ability?
Hell, no. When you're poor, you know nothing about the future, you know nothing about the world, nothing that goes on outside 300 yards around you. S
But you were good at everything you did?
I thought that was just the way you were supposed to be. In those days, nobody ever told me "Good job" or gave me a compliment. You did it until you did it right.
Why were the Marines so important to you?
The Marine Corps was the greatest thing that ever happened to me. Back when I went in, they tested to see if you were tough enough to be a Marine, and to stay there. So they would beat you up all the time. The drill instructors would hit you with sticks, and they'd kick you, they'd knock you down. I got hit in the jaw the first 15 minutes I was there. One of the drill instructors said I wasn't being still. We were standing at attention, and it was the receiving hall in San Diego. And the guy hit me right in the mouth with his fist. Knocked me down. I got back up and just stood there, at attention. It wasn't going to discourage me. I'd been hit harder than that at home.
The thing is, I was looking for discipline. A lot of kids today who end up getting in trouble and going to jail, they actually want discipline. See, discipline is actually attention, you know what I'm saying? That's what I lacked. If they told me I had to go back in the Marines now, hell, I'd love it.
Yet you dropped out of school in eighth grade. Why?
I was pretty smart, but I had no support cast. Nothing at home and nothing at school. Everybody was from a farm, and if you didn't come to school, nobody gave a damn.
When you got out of the Marine Corps, golf was your main thing. At the time did you have a long-range plan?
No, I didn't know anything about the tour or that you could make a living playing golf. I saw Jack Nicklaus at the 1963 PGA that he won at the Dallas Athletic Club, but I had never heard of him. I was just trying to beat the guys I played with at Tenison Park. I wasn't winning much money, but I was paying rent and having a good life. I think the most I ever won in one day was less than $100.
It was success to me, but it made me like Dracula: Once I tasted a little bit of blood, I wanted more. I guess I was smart enough to understand that if I was going to get more, I was going to have to give more. Getting out there and doing it. Mastering it. Figuring it out on your own. And the more I practiced, the more I could see the improvement. In leaps and bounds.
How so?
Because I learned how to teach myself. When you're doing something really well, if you don't have it on film where you can see it, you'd better be able to close your eyes and see it, so you can dissect why you're doing that. I didn't have any film, so my stuff was all in my mind. See, if something happened to me in the middle of a tournament, I didn't have to call Butch Harmon or somebody to say, "What am I doing wrong?"
When I learned a shot, I wanted to know why. And I would test things in practice until I knew exactly why. That's how I earned my confidence.
What's so remarkable is that because you stayed around Dallas, you never really tested your game against the best players. You got out on tour by qualifying for the 1967 U.S. Open at Baltusrol and finishing fifth. As soon as you did, you had great success, ending up as the Rookie of the Year. Were you surprised?
I didn't know what to think. For a long time I had this doubt that I belonged because of where I came from. And I would hear a lot of pros say I couldn't last with that swing. My safety net that I fell back on was work.
What's your main memory of winning the 1968 U.S. Open at Oak Hill?
Oak Hill, it was kind of like playing at home in Dallas. No one noticed me; no one cared. They actually thought I was with the grounds crew. When I finished playing the first day after shooting 69, I sat by the practice green in a golf cart drinking a beer, and not one person came by to say hello, how you doing, nice round or anything. They had no idea who I was. Hell, I had only 13 clubs in my bag -- I carried only one wedge.
Winning the 1971 U.S. Open at Merion, beating Nicklaus in a playoff, changed your self-image?
That was the pinnacle, the turning point of my career. When I beat the best in the world -- not only tied him in four rounds but then beat him in a playoff -- that was when I actually believed in myself for the first time: 1971.
Jack says you were the toughest to play against head-to-head because he knew you were always going to be in the fairway. Could you sense he felt that way?
No question. That can wear on you. I didn't make a lot of mistakes. But really, it was reverse psychology. That's why I beat him. Because every time we'd lock horns, I know he was thinking, No way this guy should beat me. No way do I want to lose to this guy. And that's all he's thinking about. Me, I'm not thinking about anything. I'm not supposed to beat him.
How did you deal with tournament pressure?
Pressure was never really there for me. It was there, but it wasn't. Where I came from, and where I'd gotten, I was playing with house money.
You're close with comedian George Lopez.
George and I grew up a lot alike. His dad left him when he was, like, 1. It wasn't a happy childhood. And George has kind of been like me, went on his own for most of his life. Where I was playing and hitting balls on the public courses, he was doing comedy on the street corners and the little bars.
We're currently witnessing the greatest sustained run in history. You're a big fan of Tiger Woods. Why?
This guy is it. He is I-T. He is No. 1. Nicklaus was my man. I always loved Nicklaus' game. But Tiger, I study him. I love the way he plays.
We've both done the same things. Played golf, hit balls. Win a tournament, then out there Monday morning pounding them sumbitches. Win another tournament, out there another Monday morning. Messing with clubs, working on this, working on that. Finishing a practice session, going home and all of a sudden saying, "Oh, I just thought of something," and going right back out there. I did that a lot.
What was the thing you guys did better?
Because we learned the game differently, on bad grass and good grass and a lot of bad lies, we had more shots. When we got those manicured golf courses, the game seemed so easy. That's what happened to Johnny Miller when he'd go crazy low in the desert. So I don't think the best players are as complete today, simply because they didn't have to learn what we had to learn. Being a shotmaker was a forced necessity. Today's golf laboratory is sterile. It doesn't call for anything.
"All my life living around here, never seen a beaver," says Trevino, who turns 70 on Dec. 1. "I've been doing research on them, but it's been hard to find him. I know one thing: He never stops working. Tough little dude."
Trevino could have been describing himself, for no golfer has ever come farther on industriousness and grit. After picking cotton in Texas fields when he was 5 years old, dividing his golf baptism between the caddie yard and the range, beating all comers on a par-3 course with a taped-up Dr Pepper bottle, and then becoming a man in the Marines, Trevino joined the tour at 27, a folk hero in the making. In his second year he won the 1968 U.S. Open, the first of four times Jack Nicklaus finished second to Trevino in a major. Trevino would win 29 times, including six majors, on the PGA Tour. Amid the success, he lost two fortunes and then lost his game after being hit by lightning. But he fought back with a second act that included winning 29 more tournaments on the Champions Tour.
These days, Trevino plays only a few tournaments and shoots over par more than he's under, but he's more engaging and entertaining with fans than ever. His focus is on his wife of 26 years, Claudia, and their children, Olivia, 20, a drama major at Southern California, and Daniel, 17, who lives at home and is on track to play college lacrosse.
Golf Digest prompted Trevino's mercurial mind to reflect on such things as his Dickensian background, Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and occasional golf partners George W. Bush and Condoleezza Rice. In the process, Trevino issued an impromptu manifesto on the state of golf. He also had a message for Paul Goydos, who in defending the current era of players opined that "there are 10 Lee Trevinos" on tour today.
"Tell him you were at my house," Trevino said with a smile, "and you tell him to send me the list of the 10 guys out there who have won six majors and 29 tournaments. Give him my address."
Golf Digest: What's the story on this house?
Lee Trevino: I was meant to be in this house. I grew up about five miles from here. I used to rabbit hunt around these creeks as a kid. This house was built in 1939, same year I was born. And we'd come down here, see this house, and we thought it was a castle. Never seen anything this big. Now I'm back to my roots.
Those roots included a lot of tough times. Is it hard for you to look back?
I never think of yesterday. Can't do anything about it. I'm a positive guy. When you really deep down look at it, we go to bed every night, get up every morning, stay here for 70 or 80 years, and then we die. What the hell are we doing? Claudia taught me the answer: Those two kids. To make them the best people, so they'll be productive, help others.
Have you left competitive golf behind, mentally?
Oh, yeah. I left that quite a while ago. When I realized I couldn't win, that took everything out of it.
What was the caddie yard like back then?
We had about 80 caddies at Glen Lakes Country Club. I lived right next to the course, across from the seventh hole, in a little house with my grandfather, my mother, my uncle and my two sisters. No running water, no electricity. There were a couple of white caddies, maybe three Mexican kids. Everyone else was black, all from Second Avenue, because that was the only place blacks could be in Dallas at the time. Sometimes, three or four of them would come over and sleep on our porch so we'd be first off in the morning.
My mentor at Glen Lakes was a guy called Cryin' Jessie. I took care of him until he died about four years ago. He was a caddiemaster around here forever, but when I was 8 years old, he took me under his wing, taught me how to caddie, kept me out of trouble, made sure nobody messed with me.
You were a good caddie, and you beat the other kids in golf. Did it occur to you that you might have special ability?
Hell, no. When you're poor, you know nothing about the future, you know nothing about the world, nothing that goes on outside 300 yards around you. S
But you were good at everything you did?
I thought that was just the way you were supposed to be. In those days, nobody ever told me "Good job" or gave me a compliment. You did it until you did it right.
Why were the Marines so important to you?
The Marine Corps was the greatest thing that ever happened to me. Back when I went in, they tested to see if you were tough enough to be a Marine, and to stay there. So they would beat you up all the time. The drill instructors would hit you with sticks, and they'd kick you, they'd knock you down. I got hit in the jaw the first 15 minutes I was there. One of the drill instructors said I wasn't being still. We were standing at attention, and it was the receiving hall in San Diego. And the guy hit me right in the mouth with his fist. Knocked me down. I got back up and just stood there, at attention. It wasn't going to discourage me. I'd been hit harder than that at home.
The thing is, I was looking for discipline. A lot of kids today who end up getting in trouble and going to jail, they actually want discipline. See, discipline is actually attention, you know what I'm saying? That's what I lacked. If they told me I had to go back in the Marines now, hell, I'd love it.
Yet you dropped out of school in eighth grade. Why?
I was pretty smart, but I had no support cast. Nothing at home and nothing at school. Everybody was from a farm, and if you didn't come to school, nobody gave a damn.
When you got out of the Marine Corps, golf was your main thing. At the time did you have a long-range plan?
No, I didn't know anything about the tour or that you could make a living playing golf. I saw Jack Nicklaus at the 1963 PGA that he won at the Dallas Athletic Club, but I had never heard of him. I was just trying to beat the guys I played with at Tenison Park. I wasn't winning much money, but I was paying rent and having a good life. I think the most I ever won in one day was less than $100.
It was success to me, but it made me like Dracula: Once I tasted a little bit of blood, I wanted more. I guess I was smart enough to understand that if I was going to get more, I was going to have to give more. Getting out there and doing it. Mastering it. Figuring it out on your own. And the more I practiced, the more I could see the improvement. In leaps and bounds.
How so?
Because I learned how to teach myself. When you're doing something really well, if you don't have it on film where you can see it, you'd better be able to close your eyes and see it, so you can dissect why you're doing that. I didn't have any film, so my stuff was all in my mind. See, if something happened to me in the middle of a tournament, I didn't have to call Butch Harmon or somebody to say, "What am I doing wrong?"
When I learned a shot, I wanted to know why. And I would test things in practice until I knew exactly why. That's how I earned my confidence.
What's so remarkable is that because you stayed around Dallas, you never really tested your game against the best players. You got out on tour by qualifying for the 1967 U.S. Open at Baltusrol and finishing fifth. As soon as you did, you had great success, ending up as the Rookie of the Year. Were you surprised?
I didn't know what to think. For a long time I had this doubt that I belonged because of where I came from. And I would hear a lot of pros say I couldn't last with that swing. My safety net that I fell back on was work.
What's your main memory of winning the 1968 U.S. Open at Oak Hill?
Oak Hill, it was kind of like playing at home in Dallas. No one noticed me; no one cared. They actually thought I was with the grounds crew. When I finished playing the first day after shooting 69, I sat by the practice green in a golf cart drinking a beer, and not one person came by to say hello, how you doing, nice round or anything. They had no idea who I was. Hell, I had only 13 clubs in my bag -- I carried only one wedge.
Winning the 1971 U.S. Open at Merion, beating Nicklaus in a playoff, changed your self-image?
That was the pinnacle, the turning point of my career. When I beat the best in the world -- not only tied him in four rounds but then beat him in a playoff -- that was when I actually believed in myself for the first time: 1971.
Jack says you were the toughest to play against head-to-head because he knew you were always going to be in the fairway. Could you sense he felt that way?
No question. That can wear on you. I didn't make a lot of mistakes. But really, it was reverse psychology. That's why I beat him. Because every time we'd lock horns, I know he was thinking, No way this guy should beat me. No way do I want to lose to this guy. And that's all he's thinking about. Me, I'm not thinking about anything. I'm not supposed to beat him.
How did you deal with tournament pressure?
Pressure was never really there for me. It was there, but it wasn't. Where I came from, and where I'd gotten, I was playing with house money.
You're close with comedian George Lopez.
George and I grew up a lot alike. His dad left him when he was, like, 1. It wasn't a happy childhood. And George has kind of been like me, went on his own for most of his life. Where I was playing and hitting balls on the public courses, he was doing comedy on the street corners and the little bars.
We're currently witnessing the greatest sustained run in history. You're a big fan of Tiger Woods. Why?
This guy is it. He is I-T. He is No. 1. Nicklaus was my man. I always loved Nicklaus' game. But Tiger, I study him. I love the way he plays.
We've both done the same things. Played golf, hit balls. Win a tournament, then out there Monday morning pounding them sumbitches. Win another tournament, out there another Monday morning. Messing with clubs, working on this, working on that. Finishing a practice session, going home and all of a sudden saying, "Oh, I just thought of something," and going right back out there. I did that a lot.
What was the thing you guys did better?
Because we learned the game differently, on bad grass and good grass and a lot of bad lies, we had more shots. When we got those manicured golf courses, the game seemed so easy. That's what happened to Johnny Miller when he'd go crazy low in the desert. So I don't think the best players are as complete today, simply because they didn't have to learn what we had to learn. Being a shotmaker was a forced necessity. Today's golf laboratory is sterile. It doesn't call for anything.
12.06.2009
WHITE AMERICAN BASKETBALL PLAYERS
Click on the link below for the special from Outside The Lines...
http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=4718857&categoryid=2459788
http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=4718857&categoryid=2459788
12.05.2009
THE ANTELOPE AND THE LION
Every morning when the sun rises in Africa the antelope and lion wake up and get ready for their day.
The antelope is a herbivore and knows that his food is provided for him. He eats some grass and berries off trees but he is always tentative and looking over his shoulder because he knows somewhere out there the lion is roaming the land.
The lion is a carnivore. When he wakes up each morning he doesn’t know where his next meal is going to come from. As he roams the land he is always on the prowl and always on the attack fighting for survival. He is a natural born killer.
When you wake up each morning are you the antelope or the lion?
If you’re the antelope be careful because someday the lion is going to get you.
The antelope is a herbivore and knows that his food is provided for him. He eats some grass and berries off trees but he is always tentative and looking over his shoulder because he knows somewhere out there the lion is roaming the land.
The lion is a carnivore. When he wakes up each morning he doesn’t know where his next meal is going to come from. As he roams the land he is always on the prowl and always on the attack fighting for survival. He is a natural born killer.
When you wake up each morning are you the antelope or the lion?
If you’re the antelope be careful because someday the lion is going to get you.
10 WAYS TO LEAD
1. TAKE THE TOUGH JOBS
The ability to accomplish difficult tasks earns others' respect very quickly
2. PAY YOUR DUES
You have to pay the price. You will find that everything in life exacts a price, and you will have to decide whether the price is worth the prize.
3. WORK IN OBSCURITY
If people paid their dues and gave their best in obscurity, ego is usually not a problem.
4. SUCCEED WITH DIFFICULT PEOPLE
Good leaders find a way to succeed with people who are hard to work with. Why do they do it? Because it benefits the organization and team.
5. PUT YOURSELF ON THE LINE
You cannot play it safe and stand out at the same time. If you are going to take a risk, you need to put yourself on the line.
6. ADMIT FAULTS BUT NEVER MAKE EXCUSES
You will have greater crdibility with your leader if you admit your shortcomings and refrain from making excuses.
7. DO MORE THAN EXPECTED
If you do more than is expected of you, you stand out, and often there can be wonderful results.
8. BE THE FIRST TO STEP UP AND HELP
When you help someone on the team, you help the whole team. And when you help the whole team, you're helping your leaders.
9. PERFORM TASKS THAT ARE "NOT THEIR JOB"
A good leaders goal is to get the job done, to fulfill the vision of the organization and its leader. That often means doing whatever it takes.
10. TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES
Unless you are willing to drench yourself in your work beyond the capacity of the average man, you are not cut out for positions at the top.
The ability to accomplish difficult tasks earns others' respect very quickly
2. PAY YOUR DUES
You have to pay the price. You will find that everything in life exacts a price, and you will have to decide whether the price is worth the prize.
3. WORK IN OBSCURITY
If people paid their dues and gave their best in obscurity, ego is usually not a problem.
4. SUCCEED WITH DIFFICULT PEOPLE
Good leaders find a way to succeed with people who are hard to work with. Why do they do it? Because it benefits the organization and team.
5. PUT YOURSELF ON THE LINE
You cannot play it safe and stand out at the same time. If you are going to take a risk, you need to put yourself on the line.
6. ADMIT FAULTS BUT NEVER MAKE EXCUSES
You will have greater crdibility with your leader if you admit your shortcomings and refrain from making excuses.
7. DO MORE THAN EXPECTED
If you do more than is expected of you, you stand out, and often there can be wonderful results.
8. BE THE FIRST TO STEP UP AND HELP
When you help someone on the team, you help the whole team. And when you help the whole team, you're helping your leaders.
9. PERFORM TASKS THAT ARE "NOT THEIR JOB"
A good leaders goal is to get the job done, to fulfill the vision of the organization and its leader. That often means doing whatever it takes.
10. TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES
Unless you are willing to drench yourself in your work beyond the capacity of the average man, you are not cut out for positions at the top.
TIM TEBOW - SELFLESSNESS IS COOL
Every college sport, football included, is in constant recycling mode. Stars come. And they go, bound to a four- or five-year clock. New ones come, and they go.
But in Tim Tebow's case, the routine isn't … well, so routine.
A week ago, his coach at Florida was moved to tears as the senior quarterback approached his final game at home, against Florida State. Countless cameras and cellphones flashed as Tebow ran through his final series of plays. He and the Gators won big, preserving their No. 1 BCS ranking.
Tebow has won a Heisman Trophy. Depending in part on how he performs Saturday, he could become the second player in the award's 75-year history to collect a second. He owns two national championship rings, and beckoning in Pasadena is a shot at a remarkable third in four seasons.
That would seem a fitting denouement for a rare 22-year-old whose talent, virtue and timing — have rendered him perhaps the most exalted college athlete of all time.
Vince Dooley once coached for 25 Hall of Fame seasons at Georgia and has seen his fair share of talented football players and this is what he had to say about Tebow, “Athleticism. Leadership. Charity work. His faith. You name it. I've never seen anybody who had all that in one package," he says.
"That's what puts him in a class by himself."
The son of missionaries, Tebow inherited his mother's and father's religious devotion and social conscience. He goes on missions. He has spoken and prayed in prisons, in an orphanage, in a leper colony. He's a frequent hospital volunteer.
Taking his cue, Florida coach Urban Meyer and his family took a mission trip two summers ago, and Tebow's teammates have joined him in a charity fundraiser the last two years in which they compete in tire-flipping and other strongman events.
"It's almost like selflessness is now a cool thing," Meyer says of Tebow's impact on those around him.
Package that decency into the 6-3, 240-pound body of an elite athlete. Add instinct, natural leadership, an inextinguishable will to win — and not only the will but a knack for winning.
Tebow's record as a starter at Florida is 34-5. He and the Gators (12-0) carry a two-year, 22-game winning streak into their showdown with Alabama (12-0).
He doesn't duck the attention. "There are a lot of athletes out there with a lot of platforms and a lot of opportunities to influence a lot of people and, unfortunately, there aren't many who take advantage of it and use it in a positive manner," Tebow says. "That's very disappointing. They could have huge impact on kids' lives and people's lives and even on communities and states and countries."
He concedes, "There've been moments, there've been days, when you get tired, you get frustrated, you get exhausted. You want people to believe you're doing things for the right reason, but sometimes people just look at the negative. 'It's fake. Or it's this or that.' … That's when my faith really encourages me that everything happens for a reason and God has a plan."
Fire and devotion…
ESPN was apt in entitling a documentary of his 2005 senior season of football at Nease High School in Ponte Vedra, Fla., Tim Tebow: The Chosen One.
Tebow's presence has grown significantly since then. A Google search of his name delivers more than 600,000 entries. You can choose from nearly 2,500 Tebow-related links on YouTube. He has graced more Sports Illustrated covers — six in the last 16 months, sharing a seventh with two other players — than any other college athlete.
Last Saturday, after Tebow took the field against FSU and continued his tradition of inscribing a Bible verse on the glare-reducing black patches beneath his eyes, his chosen "Hebrews 12:1-2" was Google's third-most popular search term. When he cited "John 3:16" during the national championship game against Oklahoma last January, it was the day's No. 1-searched-for term.
He resonates nationally in a sport in which public interest tends to be regional. And his appeal transcends football.
When Tebow and Florida ran through their final practice of the past spring, Indiana basketball coach Tom Crean was seen scribbling notes to the side. He was in the area to recruit, he said, but he also wanted to see how the Gators coaches ran things. And he was fascinated with their quarterback.
"We used Tim in different video hits this year," Crean explained, "to show just toughness personified, doing whatever it takes, great leadership, never flinching in the pocket."
At Tennessee, budding women's basketball star Taber Spani points to Tebow as her role model. She was home-schooled as he was. Her Christian beliefs run deep, too, and the freshman guard from Lee's Summit, Mo., says Tebow's mission work inspires her to do the same.
Plus, "I love the fire he plays with," says Spani, the daughter of former Kansas State and Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Gary Spani. "It reminds me a lot of my dad when he played football. I think his spirit is contagious, and it spreads throughout the entire team as well as the fans. The way he leads his team is something I aspire to do here."
When he was a freshman and a backup to Chris Leak on the Florida team that won the 2006 national championship, Tebow commonly saw the field in short-yardage and goal-line situations, running for eight touchdowns and throwing for five more. By the time the Gators won it all again in 2008, Tebow was their centerpiece.
With a 66% completion rate, 84 TD passes and 15 interceptions in 53 career games, the left-hander is on pace to be the highest-rated passer in major-college history — his mathematical efficiency rating of 170.4 now bettering the record 168.9 set by Boise State's Ryan Dinwiddie from 2000 to 2003. Tebow also has piled up more total yardage (11,389) and been responsible for more touchdowns (140 passing and rushing) than any other player in SEC history.
"In terms of what he has accomplished and the character he's shown and the things he's done to make the world a better place and live up to his values, it's very impressive."
But in Tim Tebow's case, the routine isn't … well, so routine.
A week ago, his coach at Florida was moved to tears as the senior quarterback approached his final game at home, against Florida State. Countless cameras and cellphones flashed as Tebow ran through his final series of plays. He and the Gators won big, preserving their No. 1 BCS ranking.
Tebow has won a Heisman Trophy. Depending in part on how he performs Saturday, he could become the second player in the award's 75-year history to collect a second. He owns two national championship rings, and beckoning in Pasadena is a shot at a remarkable third in four seasons.
That would seem a fitting denouement for a rare 22-year-old whose talent, virtue and timing — have rendered him perhaps the most exalted college athlete of all time.
Vince Dooley once coached for 25 Hall of Fame seasons at Georgia and has seen his fair share of talented football players and this is what he had to say about Tebow, “Athleticism. Leadership. Charity work. His faith. You name it. I've never seen anybody who had all that in one package," he says.
"That's what puts him in a class by himself."
The son of missionaries, Tebow inherited his mother's and father's religious devotion and social conscience. He goes on missions. He has spoken and prayed in prisons, in an orphanage, in a leper colony. He's a frequent hospital volunteer.
Taking his cue, Florida coach Urban Meyer and his family took a mission trip two summers ago, and Tebow's teammates have joined him in a charity fundraiser the last two years in which they compete in tire-flipping and other strongman events.
"It's almost like selflessness is now a cool thing," Meyer says of Tebow's impact on those around him.
Package that decency into the 6-3, 240-pound body of an elite athlete. Add instinct, natural leadership, an inextinguishable will to win — and not only the will but a knack for winning.
Tebow's record as a starter at Florida is 34-5. He and the Gators (12-0) carry a two-year, 22-game winning streak into their showdown with Alabama (12-0).
He doesn't duck the attention. "There are a lot of athletes out there with a lot of platforms and a lot of opportunities to influence a lot of people and, unfortunately, there aren't many who take advantage of it and use it in a positive manner," Tebow says. "That's very disappointing. They could have huge impact on kids' lives and people's lives and even on communities and states and countries."
He concedes, "There've been moments, there've been days, when you get tired, you get frustrated, you get exhausted. You want people to believe you're doing things for the right reason, but sometimes people just look at the negative. 'It's fake. Or it's this or that.' … That's when my faith really encourages me that everything happens for a reason and God has a plan."
Fire and devotion…
ESPN was apt in entitling a documentary of his 2005 senior season of football at Nease High School in Ponte Vedra, Fla., Tim Tebow: The Chosen One.
Tebow's presence has grown significantly since then. A Google search of his name delivers more than 600,000 entries. You can choose from nearly 2,500 Tebow-related links on YouTube. He has graced more Sports Illustrated covers — six in the last 16 months, sharing a seventh with two other players — than any other college athlete.
Last Saturday, after Tebow took the field against FSU and continued his tradition of inscribing a Bible verse on the glare-reducing black patches beneath his eyes, his chosen "Hebrews 12:1-2" was Google's third-most popular search term. When he cited "John 3:16" during the national championship game against Oklahoma last January, it was the day's No. 1-searched-for term.
He resonates nationally in a sport in which public interest tends to be regional. And his appeal transcends football.
When Tebow and Florida ran through their final practice of the past spring, Indiana basketball coach Tom Crean was seen scribbling notes to the side. He was in the area to recruit, he said, but he also wanted to see how the Gators coaches ran things. And he was fascinated with their quarterback.
"We used Tim in different video hits this year," Crean explained, "to show just toughness personified, doing whatever it takes, great leadership, never flinching in the pocket."
At Tennessee, budding women's basketball star Taber Spani points to Tebow as her role model. She was home-schooled as he was. Her Christian beliefs run deep, too, and the freshman guard from Lee's Summit, Mo., says Tebow's mission work inspires her to do the same.
Plus, "I love the fire he plays with," says Spani, the daughter of former Kansas State and Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Gary Spani. "It reminds me a lot of my dad when he played football. I think his spirit is contagious, and it spreads throughout the entire team as well as the fans. The way he leads his team is something I aspire to do here."
When he was a freshman and a backup to Chris Leak on the Florida team that won the 2006 national championship, Tebow commonly saw the field in short-yardage and goal-line situations, running for eight touchdowns and throwing for five more. By the time the Gators won it all again in 2008, Tebow was their centerpiece.
With a 66% completion rate, 84 TD passes and 15 interceptions in 53 career games, the left-hander is on pace to be the highest-rated passer in major-college history — his mathematical efficiency rating of 170.4 now bettering the record 168.9 set by Boise State's Ryan Dinwiddie from 2000 to 2003. Tebow also has piled up more total yardage (11,389) and been responsible for more touchdowns (140 passing and rushing) than any other player in SEC history.
"In terms of what he has accomplished and the character he's shown and the things he's done to make the world a better place and live up to his values, it's very impressive."
KOBE - GAME WINNER
Down by two with 3.2 seconds left, Kobe Bryant merely wanted to drive for a tying basket. His foot slipped when he got the ball, and Miami’s defense forced Bryant to throw up an off-balance 3-point shot.
Yes, everything went wrong on the Los Angeles Lakers’ final possession but Kobe somehow made it all right.
Bryant banked in his final shot over Dwyane Wade’s outstretched arm at the buzzer, ending the superstars’ sensational duel and sending the Lakers to their eighth straight victory, 108-107.
Bryant scored 33 points, but his falling bank shot from straightaway likely will rank among the most incredible highlights of his career.
“It was the luckiest shot I’ve ever taken, by far,” Bryant said.
“A great player hits an unbelievable shot. There are a couple of guys around the league that make big shots, but there ain’t many, and he’s one of them,” said Wade.
The matchup between U.S. Olympic teammates was the center of an action-packed game.
Neither star was perfect, Bryant shot an air ball on a potential game tying shot with 24 seconds to play.
After Wade put Miami ahead 102-100 with 49 seconds left on an awkward one-handed shot from the baseline, Miami appeared to sew it up when Wade’s two free throws put the Heat up 106-102 with 9.3 seconds to play.
“I only get a chance to play against them twice a year, and I take on the challenge and I enjoy it,” Wade said. “I enjoy the competitive nature that I know Kobe’s going to bring every night, and I’m going to bring the same things. I think he understands that as well, so it was a good battle going back and forth. He got the last laugh this time.”
Yes, everything went wrong on the Los Angeles Lakers’ final possession but Kobe somehow made it all right.
Bryant banked in his final shot over Dwyane Wade’s outstretched arm at the buzzer, ending the superstars’ sensational duel and sending the Lakers to their eighth straight victory, 108-107.
Bryant scored 33 points, but his falling bank shot from straightaway likely will rank among the most incredible highlights of his career.
“It was the luckiest shot I’ve ever taken, by far,” Bryant said.
“A great player hits an unbelievable shot. There are a couple of guys around the league that make big shots, but there ain’t many, and he’s one of them,” said Wade.
The matchup between U.S. Olympic teammates was the center of an action-packed game.
Neither star was perfect, Bryant shot an air ball on a potential game tying shot with 24 seconds to play.
After Wade put Miami ahead 102-100 with 49 seconds left on an awkward one-handed shot from the baseline, Miami appeared to sew it up when Wade’s two free throws put the Heat up 106-102 with 9.3 seconds to play.
“I only get a chance to play against them twice a year, and I take on the challenge and I enjoy it,” Wade said. “I enjoy the competitive nature that I know Kobe’s going to bring every night, and I’m going to bring the same things. I think he understands that as well, so it was a good battle going back and forth. He got the last laugh this time.”
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