Athlete Superpowers - Awareness
The subtle skill that makes or breaks Execution.
Being a step ahead or a step back. Very often, the quality of execution is dictated by this dichotomy. You're either a step ahead to gain an advantage. Or a step back and your opponent might be gaining an advantage over you. I wanted to write on this topic for a long time and explore the underlying cause of being ahead or back: awareness.
The world of sports loves stories and myths. We often refer to great performers as Legends, born from abilities that almost seem supernatural. You've probably heard about the "clutch gene". It supposedly makes certain individuals great in late-game situations. The popular narrative is that you either have it or you don't (LeBron James somehow acquired this gene during his career). The same narrative exists for being a step ahead of the competition. Great players are said to rely on some sort of precognition, enabling them to see what's about to happen. The reality is that there is nothing supernatural about these "superpowers". Some players may have a natural disposition that makes them good at something from the get-go. But there is nothing preventing others from acquiring these skills and developing them.
The same applies to awareness. I definite it as:
understanding the moment and its parameters/variables to gain valuable insights about the game being played.
It is similar to comprehending the Realm, i.e. understanding the rules of the game and its grey areas to gain a competitive advantage. Awareness differs from the fact that it is more about what goes into the present moment and how it affects the way you operate at that moment. It gives insights into the great and not-so-great options available.
Great awareness relies on two abilities:
The number of parameters (or variables) one can comprehend
The frequency in refreshing those parameters
Let's list some of the parameters and variables commonly found in sports:
players for both squads on the field
your strategy
the opposing team's strategy
the score
the time left on the clock
your form
the form of teammates/opponents
your position and movement
the position and movement of teammates/opponents.
As you can see, it is not just about the present. The past and everything that goes into a game have to be factored in as much as possible. All these parameters matter because it should affect the way you approach the game.
The other key ability for awareness is the frequency in refreshing the parameters. It is possible for a team or individual to face similar sets of parameters multiple times during a game. But it is impossible that a game features the same set of parameters throughout. Hence the need to mentally refresh the parameters on a regular basis. I like to use the analogy with the save feature in video games. When one saves, the game creates an image of the parameters of the game. Save once again and you create a new image of the parameters. The more you press that save button, the "fresher" the parameters get, the greater your awareness can be.
Understanding the many parameters and constantly refreshing them is a very difficult exercise. But it can also open up the game for those willing to put the work in. Preparation is a natural extension of awareness. It's one thing to recognise a set of parameters. It's even better to know how to make the most of the situation. When discussing his love for studying game film, Kobe Bryant emphasised his desire to find options based on the parameters[1]. Film study was not just about what went right or wrong. Next time he would be on the court and recognise the parameters, his preparation would give him a better view of the options available to him.
The Good
This is a sports blog and I always like to use real-life, sports examples to make my point. We'll first talk about illustrations of good awareness before moving on to poor awareness. The first positive illustration occurred during the 1997 NBA Finals: Steve Kerr's series-clincher against the Utah Jazz.
Kerr sinks the shot, but this was great awareness all the way from MJ:
Understanding that his reputation as a closer would always trigger attention from any defense
Understanding that his game-winner in Game 1 of the same series would affect the Jazz' defensive strategy even more. The Jazz had started double-teaming him more after Game 1
Understanding that Steve Kerr would be guarded by Stockton and could be a potential recipient for a pass
This one I cannot confirm, but Kerr was having a good game after two sub-par performances. This may have caught Jordan's attention (despite Kerr being a natural recipient for a pass due to him being guarded by Stockton)
MJ had a multi-layered awareness of the moment. He understood the past (his reputation and past events in the series) and the present (who is on the floor for both teams, who's having a good game). Those insights gave him a good understanding of the options that could be available to him. Jordan could have forced the decision by taking the shot himself. But he understood the parameters, derived options from it and was able to execute a great play to win the game.
Another example in a different sport is Laurent Blanc's goal vs Paraguay in the 1998 FIFA World Cup. With the game tied in extra-time and less than 10 minutes left, Blanc scored score the game-winner (golden goal) to qualify France for the quarter-finals:
A defender acting like the team's main striker to score the winning goal may seem like a wild bet. But Blanc put himself in that position by understanding that:
Paraguay had spent the entire game defending, even more so in extra-time. It was becoming increasingly difficult for the French to outnumber Paraguayan defenders
Paraguayan strikers had posed little threat to the French defense and were mostly on defensive duties at the end of the game. Blanc understood that he was taking a measured risk by assuming a more attacking role in extra-time
Paraguayan goal-keeper José Luis Chilavert was having the game of his life, saving his team countless times
These three parameters made it clear to Blanc that taking additional risks in extra-time was far better than a straight trip to the penalties. Penalties may be unpredictable but as confessed by the French players themselves[2], Chilavert took the mental upper-hand in this game. A counter-argument could be made that seeing Blanc deserting his defensive position could have triggered an offensive response from Paraguay. However, this could have compromised Paraguay's best possible outcome at that moment which was to take the game to the penalties and rely on their best asset, i.e. their goalkeeper (who also was a renowned penalty taker).
Some players have made awareness their competitive advantage. That is the case for FC Barcelona legend Xavi. Because of the free-flow nature of football, players rarely have time to stop and refresh the game parameters. For midfielders in particular, it is a necessity to have a high refresh frequency, most importantly to see players' position on the pitch. Xavi became a master at assessing players' positions, movements and the space available to him. That enabled him to play towards the available space or pass the ball to maintain possession of it.
The Not-So-Good
Let us now have an example of poor awareness. There are many examples of terrible blunders in sports (think Chris Webber's timeout or JR Smith in the 2018 NBA Finals). I wanted to use an example that would reflect the complexity of parameters one has to deal with at all times. I will be using a defensive play by Jameer Nelson at the end of Game 4 of the 2009 NBA Finals between the Orlando Magic (Nelson's team) and the Los Angeles Lakers. Before showing the clip, let's have a look at the basic parameters of the situation:
The Lakers have the ball, down three points
10 seconds left on the clock
The Lakers inbound on the other side of the court (not mid-court, this is important for time-keeping)
Here's a clip of the Lakers' play:
Basketball gives you two possible outcomes when taking a shot: two or three points. In the context of this game and assuming the Lakers score whatever shot they decide to take, you have two possible scenarios as a Magic player:
Scenario 1: the Lakers go for a two-point shot, ideally a dunk or a drive to the basket. Your team [the Magic] is still up by a point
Scenario 2: the Lakers go for a three-point shot. The game is tied
Relying solely on probability, Scenario 2 would seem more attractive for the Magic. Three-point shots have indeed a lower percentage than two-pointers. But outcomes suggest that Scenario 1 is far more preferable. The Lakers would still have a 1-point deficit, having to foul the Magic to stop the clock. Even as the worst free-throw shooting team that season, the Magic would rather be up and have a chance to maintain control over the game than being tied.
This is why Jameer Nelson's defense is problematic. The way he defends Fisher's shot is actually good. He manages to close out space without fouling. It's a good contest. The problem is that he gives Fisher the three-point shot in the first place. Fisher catches the ball in the backcourt and dribbles pretty much uncontested to the three-point line.
We talked about options earlier. As a defender, being aware of the parameters of the situation can take some options away from the attacking team, or at least alter the preference in option choice. A good three-point shot in that situation is probably the best option for the Lakers. It would tie the game and make the most of the little time left on the clock. Had Nelson closed the gap with Fisher earlier, he could have potentially taken the three-point shot out of the equation and force a drive to the basket. The situation is aggravated by the fact that Nelson took an option away from his team. He could have fouled Fisher to ensure that the game is not tied at the end of the possession. A foul would have stopped the clock early but the Magic would have retained a one-point lead at worst.
It's hard to put all the blame on Nelson, who was coming back from a long absence due to injury. A case could be made however that this was a parameter that the Lakers did not miss. Kobe Bryant is often the number one option at the end of games. Derek Fisher however has had "clutch" moments in the Finals previously. His experience and Nelson's lack of rhythm may explain why the play was designed in such a fashion.
The last point seems far-fetched? Kobe Bryant is a main source of inspiration for me and his death prompted me to start this blog. I cannot conclude this post without mentioning another Kobe story. One that proves how insane his awareness was and how he would try to use it to his advantage:
There would be certain teams that had a player that they just signed to a max contract. And then a supporting player who was up for free agency who they hadn't signed yet. So when we played them during the season, I'm saying, OK, here's what we're going to do: We're going to double-team the guy that hasn't gotten a max contract yet. We're not gonna let him get a shot off. And then we're going to single-cover the guy that has the max contract, and then watch the guy that doesn't have the max contract bitch and complain about not getting the ball all night long, and watch them divide each other. Those are the little, subtle things we would do that simply comes from observation and understanding your opponent.[3]
Najib
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References
[1] Bryant, K. (2018). The Mamba Mentality - How I Play. New York: MCD, Farrar, Strauss, and Giroux.
[2] 98, secrets d'une victoire. 2018. [video] Directed by N. Glimois and G. Margotton. France: TF1.
[3] Ruiz, S., 2016. Kobe Reveals Evil Strategy He Used During Career. [online] usatoday.com. Available at: https://eu.usatoday.com/story/sports/ftw/2016/11/13/kobe-bryant-reveals-diabolical-strategy-he-used-to-tear-nba-teams-apart/93784376/ [Accessed 17 April 2020].
Top Image Credit: Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE/Getty Images.