lessons from a missed shot
Last week, Roman kicked off his 8th-grade basketball season with an L.
The team they played was one they should have easily beaten–his team is probably one of the top three teams in the area and has a very good chance of winning the county championship, which is their goal.
After the game, he said something that I thought was very mature—he admitted that they deserved to lose, that he was glad it happened (not really, he wants to win) because they showed up to that game too cocky, and they learned that they have to approach every game like it’s the championship. It was a wake-up call they needed, and it just so happened it was given in the first game of the season.
The team followed Thursday’s game with two dominating games on Saturday to win the invitational they played in. They may have learned the lesson of the first game’s disappointment.
I want to return to the end of the first game for today’s note…
Roman’s team trailed by 2 with about 40 seconds left. He brought the ball up the court and was left open at the top of the key; after a couple of dribbles, he pulled up from three with a defender finally coming at him with a hand up—it was pretty close to an open shot, but not totally free and clear. The ball rattled in the rim but came off the back of the rim, and the opposing team grabbed the rebound.
The coach got Roman’s attention to tell him that it wasn’t a good shot and that he should have run the offense.
Now, I am probably one of the most critical parents of my children’s abilities—not directly to them, but I am honest when I assess their skills, decision-making, and capabilities. I’ve joked about this on videos before, but I never want to be the parent thinking their kid is more talented than they really are and showing up to American Idol only to be pissed and shocked they didn’t get a callback. Had it been a bad shot, I would have explained to him why he shouldn't have taken it.
Roman’s shot was not a bad one.
I understand why it gets classified as a bad shot after the fact—had the shot gone in, it would have been a wise and witty decision, and they probably would have won, but since it rattled out, it was “bad.”
Let me explain why it was a good shot—maybe even the right one on that play…
For most of the game, the team struggled to score off their offense. The other team played a 2-3 zone, and I’m not sure they spent much time practicing against a zone because they couldn’t score or get really good shots. Had they run the offense, I’m not confident they would have gotten a better shot, even if it was closer to the rim.
The team’s most talented and strongest player (not Roman BTW) was having an off night and had missed a lot of close layups and free throws; chances are the ball would have ended up in his hands with just a little bit of time left, which would have left him with a rushed drive, probably a tough shot, and it wasn’t his night. It’s important to note that he returned to his dominant play over the weekend, easily getting to the basket and converting much better.
Roman had already made three 3’s in the game, including two big ones late in the game.
Roman thrives and even lives for those moments. I’ve seen him hit many game-winners, tying shots, and huge momentum shots. I won’t go so far as to say he has Kobe in him, but he certainly has the confidence and self-belief (and history) to take a shot like he did on Thursday. I don’t have the data to support this, but I think his shooting percentage is higher when the game is on the line, or a big shot is needed—he has that “it” factor in him.
He took the shot with plenty of time for the team to get a rebound and a second chance at scoring—my feelings would have been different had he dribbled the ball to kill time and took the shot much later, not giving time for a second or third chance.
He was open and is a great three-point shooter, and he shoots better off the dribble than catching and shooting.
What makes this experience Daily Note-worthy is that Roman made a comment after the game that I’ve never heard him say before.
When I asked him what I thought about the game, he said he shouldn’t have taken a “bad” shot—Roman’s never admitted to taking a bad shot, which he has many times. It hurt me to hear him say that because in the moment of the game after the other team got the rebound, I told Ang that it wasn’t a bad shot…I was glad he took it.
I asked him why it was a “bad” shot, and he explained how he should have run the offense and that they didn’t need a three.
I then asked him if it had gone in, would it still have been a “bad” shot, and he naturally said no.
I then explained that the outcome of a decision doesn’t always reflect whether it is good or bad. We ran through the bullet points I shared earlier, breaking down the game situation, that possession, and the shot.
It was, in fact, a good shot–it’s just that the outcome wasn’t what he had hoped it would be. And it was important to me that he understood that just because he missed that one, it wasn’t a bad shot and that there will be similar situations in his career, and in those, he will make the shot.
And THAT is what makes his shot Daily Note-worthy.
I probably wouldn’t have spent as much time breaking down the shot with him had he not commented about taking a bad shot—that told me it was sticking with him, which is not normal. I know what a miss like that can do for a player…go look up Nick Anderson of the Orlando Magic and his free throw misses in the playoffs. I didn’t want that miss, especially since it was a good shot, to impact his confidence and his future big shot-making.
And, I don’t want you to allow outcomes that may not go your way, even though your decision was a good one, to hold you back from continuing your Pursuit.
A decision’s outcome is not the only determining factor of whether it was “good,” “bad,” “right,” or “wrong,” so do not let the outcome, which you have no control, keep you from continuing to make the right decisions for you.
See you tomorrow and keep pursuing,
JC
