Burning The Ships

Before every game I always provide the team with a small five minute motivational talk. Most of the time these chats are small stories I have read or heard. Last night as I was contemplating what words would inspire the team for the first game of the season, I rambled through many stories. The one that stuck was the burning of the ships.

A captain was in a war and he had taken his troops across the ocean to a battle they much needed to win. He knew if they lost this battle, they would probably lose the war. Once his men had gotten off the ships and safely to the land, he order his men to burn the ships. He told them there was no going back, no retreat. There was only the possibility of winning or dying.

I don't believe for a moment a game is between winning or dying, but it should be played with the idea of no retreat. There should be no looking back, no thought of a way out of the battle before the team. If we knew we would either die or win, how would we play? Would we not play with urgency and passion?

This is what I asked of the team: to play with determination, heart, a deep love and trust in themselves and the team.

THEY DID.

We needed to change the way we have played defense in the past. We were not aggressive enough. We were looking to detain not destroy. We needed to determine for our opponents what they were going to do, not allow them to create as they wished.

Last night was the first step in changing our attitudes. We played with the idea of going forward and creating what we wanted. If we can only play like this every night--play as if there was only one option--we would win every game.

I want them to keep this vision of the burning ships, see it in their dreams, smell the smoke of the dying embers, and hear the water gushing around the hulls. I want them to keep the resolve, the fortitude, and the fierceness of believing in the necessity of winning.

I don't want to make winning everything, and I won't burn the vans as we enter the gymnasium. I do want to make the will to win important, because it is. It is the essence of success not only on the court but in all they will do in life. I want them to know they can.

ONE HEART. ONE DREAM.