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thesanityannex
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Hoopsworld.com
http://www.hoopsworld.com/article_15270.shtml
By C. Sawyer
for HOOPSWORLD.com
Dec 8, 2005, 13:15
http://www.hoopsworld.com/printer_15270.shtml THE TRICKLE DOWN THEORY OF ATTITUDE
There has been a lot of talking, hypothesizing, analyzing, etc. about the Kings sub-par performance lately. Players, coaches, fans, everyone is frustrated and trying to figure out exactly what is wrong. Lack of effort, uncertainty, poor execution, the list goes on.
However today as I was reading various NBA articles one thing struck me, the negative attitude that is so thick it is almost impossible to penetrate.
The Kings players from Abdur-Rahim to Wells are all highly skilled, highly talented players. We know and they know that they are capable of playing better than what they have put on the floor. So it is not a physical, skill issue. As for lack of effort, personally I think that is a cheap excuse. I have seen these guys before and after games, they want to win, they hate to lose, I believe they are trying, but there is something that is muddling their way.
That is where my trickle down theory of attitude comes in. I have worked at a few companies in my career and one thing I have noticed at all of them is that the attitude at the top is what drives the attitude of all. If the leader is driven, energetic and confident then usually so are his/her people; if the leader is neurotic, angry and prone to fits of rage, then again so will the staff be; if the leader is calm, patient and understanding, well you get my drift, right.
Right now I look at Rick Adelman and I see a leader - ultimately the coach is the leader of the team since he has the decision making power of who will play, who will sit, what the style of play will be – who is negative, disillusioned, pessimistic, downbeat, I could go on. And this attitude is trickling down to his players. You are not going to win any athletic endeavor if you don’t think that you can.
What struck me were the following comments:
At the beginning of the season Adelman commented that he did not know what he had in this “churned, burned and reconstituted” Kings roster of his – not the most positive of comments to start the season. How would you like it if you started a new job and your boss said, well I’m not sure if you will be very good at this but I’m basically stuck with you so we’ll see how it goes. Quite the defeatist attitude.
More recently he was asked about the upcoming road trip he replied, "I don't think that's a bonding experience I want, unless you want to go through depression and adversity.” Yea, that’s really inspiring. What a way to motivate.
Now I am not making excuses, these guys are adults, highly compensated, professionals, and they have played poorly and lost. But I think too much attention has been focused on the players and not on the coaching. A big part of this game is mental and if the person who is calling the shots has been negative from the get-go what kind of reaction should you expect. I realize that maybe he is trying to employ reverse psychology, well, newsflash, it isn’t working, time to try something new.
The players have all taken responsibility in one form or another. Bibby has said he’ll take the blame, Miller has said he’ll take the blame. Shareef, Bonzi, Peja, all have acknowledged that they are not playing at the top of their game.
Who hasn’t taken the blame? Adelman.
“They haven't done it," Adelman said Wednesday.
“Something’s got to wake them up,” said Adelman.
Maybe it’s time for Adelman to shoulder some of the responsibility, take some of the negative attention off his players, be supportive, be a coach.
The Kings are on a downward spiral right now. Just watching the games, once they get behind they seem to lose steam. Each loss reinforces this negative attitude that they have developed. The first thing they need to do is turn around their attitude and start saying We Are GOOD, We CAN Win, We WILL Win. This needs to start at the top with Adelman, as long as he thinks this team can't win, they won’t.
http://www.hoopsworld.com/article_15270.shtml
By C. Sawyer
for HOOPSWORLD.com
Dec 8, 2005, 13:15
http://www.hoopsworld.com/printer_15270.shtml THE TRICKLE DOWN THEORY OF ATTITUDE
There has been a lot of talking, hypothesizing, analyzing, etc. about the Kings sub-par performance lately. Players, coaches, fans, everyone is frustrated and trying to figure out exactly what is wrong. Lack of effort, uncertainty, poor execution, the list goes on.
However today as I was reading various NBA articles one thing struck me, the negative attitude that is so thick it is almost impossible to penetrate.
The Kings players from Abdur-Rahim to Wells are all highly skilled, highly talented players. We know and they know that they are capable of playing better than what they have put on the floor. So it is not a physical, skill issue. As for lack of effort, personally I think that is a cheap excuse. I have seen these guys before and after games, they want to win, they hate to lose, I believe they are trying, but there is something that is muddling their way.
That is where my trickle down theory of attitude comes in. I have worked at a few companies in my career and one thing I have noticed at all of them is that the attitude at the top is what drives the attitude of all. If the leader is driven, energetic and confident then usually so are his/her people; if the leader is neurotic, angry and prone to fits of rage, then again so will the staff be; if the leader is calm, patient and understanding, well you get my drift, right.
Right now I look at Rick Adelman and I see a leader - ultimately the coach is the leader of the team since he has the decision making power of who will play, who will sit, what the style of play will be – who is negative, disillusioned, pessimistic, downbeat, I could go on. And this attitude is trickling down to his players. You are not going to win any athletic endeavor if you don’t think that you can.
What struck me were the following comments:
At the beginning of the season Adelman commented that he did not know what he had in this “churned, burned and reconstituted” Kings roster of his – not the most positive of comments to start the season. How would you like it if you started a new job and your boss said, well I’m not sure if you will be very good at this but I’m basically stuck with you so we’ll see how it goes. Quite the defeatist attitude.
More recently he was asked about the upcoming road trip he replied, "I don't think that's a bonding experience I want, unless you want to go through depression and adversity.” Yea, that’s really inspiring. What a way to motivate.
Now I am not making excuses, these guys are adults, highly compensated, professionals, and they have played poorly and lost. But I think too much attention has been focused on the players and not on the coaching. A big part of this game is mental and if the person who is calling the shots has been negative from the get-go what kind of reaction should you expect. I realize that maybe he is trying to employ reverse psychology, well, newsflash, it isn’t working, time to try something new.
The players have all taken responsibility in one form or another. Bibby has said he’ll take the blame, Miller has said he’ll take the blame. Shareef, Bonzi, Peja, all have acknowledged that they are not playing at the top of their game.
Who hasn’t taken the blame? Adelman.
“They haven't done it," Adelman said Wednesday.
“Something’s got to wake them up,” said Adelman.
Maybe it’s time for Adelman to shoulder some of the responsibility, take some of the negative attention off his players, be supportive, be a coach.
The Kings are on a downward spiral right now. Just watching the games, once they get behind they seem to lose steam. Each loss reinforces this negative attitude that they have developed. The first thing they need to do is turn around their attitude and start saying We Are GOOD, We CAN Win, We WILL Win. This needs to start at the top with Adelman, as long as he thinks this team can't win, they won’t.
