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Second Half by MHSAA

Pivot Work

September 21, 2011

Consider the pivot move in basketball.  The player receives the ball, plants his or her foot and spins 90 to 180 degrees.  Without moving the pivot foot, the player turns from facing one direction to facing a different direction.  And with that new perspective, the player either passes the ball to a cutting teammate or dribble drives toward the goal.

If these are pivotal times in school sports – and I believe they are – we must, if we are to make the most of these times, remember the skills that many of us worked on when we played basketball and still often admire as effective when we watch basketball.  The pivot.

  • One foot firmly planted.  A foot that can’t be moved.  Our base.  Our fixed orientation.
  • Then the spin that changes our field of vision from one direction to another.
  • Then a sharp pass to a teammate, one who’s gotten a step on an opponent.
  • Or, if no teammate is open to receive our assist, a determined drive of our own toward the goal.

If these are pivotal times, and if we are to be the “pivotal generation,” this is the drill:  Fixed to our core beliefs, look around for new ideas and cutting edge partners to assist, and take it to the goal ourselves if we must.
 

Rocket Science

January 5, 2015

I have always been fascinated by space exploration and in awe of all that is required and must go right to send a space vehicle atop a multi-stage booster rocket from a moving object like Earth, and land it softly on another moving object like the moon or Mars or most recently a massive rock, after a journey of many months and millions of miles. How can people figure that stuff out?

There cannot be a problem of school sports that is more complicated than those of space exploration, except for one feature – which is that our problems deal with people, who are far less predictable and dependable than the laws of physics.

Making matters worse is that we are working with people in a competitive arena, and in an emotional setting, where the objectivity which characterizes the scientific method of rocket scientists is generally if not universally absent.

As long as potential problem-solvers view potential solutions through the lens of what does or does not benefit them in terms of competitive edge, our efforts to make good changes will never launch or, if launched, will miss the target.