What I Hope to Learn this Summer, Part III

The new Roger Federer - the one who makes mistakes, occasionally fails, and realizes his limitations - is much more interesting than the old one. Last year’s Wimbledon between Federer and Nadal featured superior tennis but this year’s match between Federer and Andy Roddick was equally as tense.

To complete the French Open-Wimbledon double, Federer needed to honestly re-evaluate his game in order to improve it. At Roland Garros, his improved ability to slide on the baseline was paired with a new drop shot; at the All England Club he was forced to serve impeccably and persevere as his best shots were foiled.

Federer defeated Roddick because he knows how to overcome adversity and change. On the bright side, Roddick is finally a threat to win Grand Slams again because he has evolved his game to become more versatile. Increased mental and physical fitness also helps his cause.

The development of Federer and Roddick over recent months signifies that no athlete should ever stop improving. When the opportunity to increase their level of physical skill passes, an athlete can work on the mental side of the game.

Self-actualization demands continuous learning and I endeavour to learn more from other sports over the summer. There are many excellent resources and it is simply a matter of locating them, reflecting, and adapting them to the appropriate sport.

Managing My Life by Alex Ferguson another example of a thoughtful and persistent triumph. The Manchester United manager experienced a mixed bag of success and failure as a player and rose through the coaching ranks steadily. He was almost sacked as manager at Old Traffold a couple of times but persisted and attained the level of elite achievement where he resides currently.

In his mind, one of the integral components of his philosophy is his tendency to deconstruct every failure and learn what could be done better. Another tenant is the belief that no player, manager, or club should be satisfied with less than their best. Ferguson’s coaching career is forty years of learning from masters, treating others how he would want to be treated (sometimes a professional, sometimes a person), and continually moving forwards. He is a role model for all sorts of coaches and managers. Even his offensive strategy for soccer, based on rhythm and ball possession, contains elements that could influence a basketball coach.

Ferguson’s work the most eloquent book about sport that I have read. It shatters the stereotype that jocks must be dumb and challenges other athletes and coaches to do better. There is never any reason not to communicate in a dignified and respectful fashion.

I am also scheduled to read Scotty Bowman: A Life in Hockey, Inner Skiing by W. Timothy Gallwey and Robert Kriegel, and Football Scouting Methods by Steve Belichick because they emphasize sound coaching, mental training, and game preparation respectively. In the month of August, when I work on Task 4: Nutrition and other units at the National Coaching Institute, I hope to base my work on a theme such as “What Basketball Can Learn from Other Sports.”

The Special One

José Mourinho quit his position as manager of the Chelsea Football Club last week. Or Roman Abramovich fired him. The parting of ways was described as mutual but I tend to doubt that. Whether Abramovich actively sacked Mourinho or gradually created an unsuitable working environment, the owner meant to dismiss the manager. Irrespective of the reason why, I was fairly certain that “the Special One” was finished with the club after a listless 1-1 draw at home to Rosenborg in the Champions League.

From afar, it appears that Abramovich erred, becoming involved with Chelsea personnel and tactical decisions one time too many. Whilst the owner - or any president, general manager, or athletic director - is entitled to some degree of control over their club, the coach or manager is entitled to do their job and apply their expertise. Administrators build organizations, coaches build teams. Jerry Krause did not win six titles for the Chicago Bulls, a team comprised of Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and many others, coached by Phil Jackson, did.

Captain Jean-Luc Picard was a model of leadership, commanding an outstanding crew, yet whenever Starfleet indiscreetly interfered with the operations of the Enterpise, the result was much consternation, near insurrection, and abandonment of the Prime Directive. An owner who acquires a player who doesn’t fit the system and demands that he get burn might elicit similar emotion reactions within the manager.

Like the National Football League, the window for success in soccer is brief. Although Mourinho had won two Premiership titles at Chelsea and held a 4-1-3 record against rival Manchester United. However, he had fallen short on the grandest stage, the Champions League, and Abramovich had lost faith in him.

I don’t think that Chelsea’s window of opportunity had closed but changing managers will be disruptive. First of all, Mourinho’s replacement Avram Grant was practically hired in July. Since Grant took over, the team has already lost to United and F.A. Cup and Champions League chances could be further sabotaged if he does not stabilize the situation promptly.

Teams that succeed over the long-term usually feature stable leadership and a consistent philosophy. Alex Ferguson at United, Jerry Sloan and the Utah Jazz, Bill Cowher and the Pittsburgh Steelers are all examples of master coaches who have won, developed excellent players, and instilled a strong philosophy. Athletes who buy into these philosophies become intrinsically motivated; they aren’t fired up because of the intensity of a particular coach but because they believe in themselves, their teammates, and the team.

José Mourinho was a similar master coach, winning the Champions League Cup (the hardest trophy in the world to capture) at F.C. Porto and respected by both players and peers. He - and countless other coaches - should have been given the opportunity to succeed. When those higher up the organizational ladder think they know best, the team’s fortunes become collateral damage to the inherent conflct. Contrast the low-key, professional approach that Joe Torre applied with the New York Yankees in the late 1990s to the team today when George Steinbrenner pressures the front office to acquire (and latter dispose of) player after player.

Let coaches coach and let players play. Micro-management will chagrin those affected to no end.