AJC > Sports > Hawks > Blog > Archives > 2007 > August > 20
Monday, August 20, 2007
It’s a thin line (between good and great)
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If the people in the cell phone industry really want to impress me, somebody come up with wireless service that sounds as clear as the old fashioned home phone. Keep all your PDAs and other assorted device wizardry to yourself and just pull off the unthinkable - a cell phone that sounds as clear as that old rotary joint we all grew up with (well, those of who remember watching Sanford and Son when it wasn’t on TV Land) and I’ll really be impressed.
The reason I bring this up is because when you’re in my line of work (no office space, no desk, no hard line phone since those other things don’t exist, wherever I plop down that day is my office and my cell phone is my work phone), good reception is a necessity.
My reception Monday morning was fabulous (thank you AT&T or Cingular or whoever my money is going to these days). On the other end of the line from Las Vegas was a good friend and NBA executive catching me up on the goings on outside of Hawksville - like most of you I have tunnel vision this time of year thinking about the Hawks and what’s on their horizon.
We were talking about players, like always, and whom we’ve both seen this summer that really stood out. He relayed a great story that relates to a bigger debate we’ve had going on since the 2004 NBA Finals, “What’s the difference between a good player and a great player?”. The story went a little something like this:
“They had a voluntary practice last night and there were only three guys there,” my buddy said. “I walked in and the two young rookies (Kevin Durant and Jeff Green) from Seattle were there. Guess who was on the other end of the floor?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “There are so many great players out there. I can’t imagine who else would have been working like that on an off day in Vegas. It had to be one of the young guys, maybe one of those Select Team cats whose trying to make an impression … man, I don’t know who it could have been.”
My friend, refusing to give up the punch line before he had to, wouldn’t budge. “Go ahead, guess,” he said. “You know who it was. You know.”
I knew right then that the guy he was talking about was none other than Kobe Bean Bryant. But before I could say another word he hit me with it. “You know it was Kobe,” he said, pounding home the point he makes to me every time we get on the subject. “That’s why he’s carrying the flag for the league right now. Love him or hate him. It’s his show.”
And he’s right. No matter how many shots I take at Kobe (I’ve actually relaxed on that in the past year or so), the NBA remains his playground. And the fact that he’s locked himself in the gym on a Sunday afternoon in Vegas when no one else (other than those promising young rookies from Seattle) saw the need is even more proof of what we all know to be true - the difference between good and great is the guy who is already there pushing himself to take his game to the ultimate level (and I know that doesn’t equate to championships in a team sport, as Kobe knows as well since his Lakers haven’t won a playoff series since Shaquille O’Neal left for Miami). But we’re talking about individual brilliance and how important it is to not only cultivate your game but that competitive fire that you hope burns inside of every gifted athlete.
The truth is, not everyone is wired that way. Even the guys that spend the entire summer in the lab tweaking their game can’t catch the top dog if he’s working like Kobe. I bet you Durant and Green took notice (and I can only imagine what was going through their impressionable minds). And for young guys there couldn’t be a more valuable lesson learned than the one they got as they walked through the door of that sweatbox of a gym …
Anyway, it was just an interesting story I thought I’d pass on. And I’d love to know what you think separates the good from the great (the line is razor thin as far as I can tell)? It’s always a fascinating topic of discussion among NBA types. And since we’re all family here … well, ya know. Have at it.
One other parting shot, actually I have two, I’ve been studying the Hawks’ schedule and trying to come up with my prediction for wins this season and I’m stuck. Have you looked at the first five games of the season? Good grief. That’s a nasty stretch for anybody, let alone a team coming off a 30-52 season. Dallas, Detroit, New Jersey, Phoenix and Boston to kick things off. It won’t take the Hawks long to set the tone for this crucial season (I’ll have my prediction ready by Wednesday).
Finally, the one other really interesting tidbit my buddy passed along is about Atlanta native, former Southwest Atlanta Christian star and almost Hawk center (it was before my time here but I’ve been told that the Hawks were one ping pong ball away from securing the No. 1 pick that year) Dwight Howard. As good as first team All-NBA center Amare Stoudemire (another almost Hawks if you’re still drinking that pre-draft Kool-Aid that had him being traded to Hawksville - NOT!) has looked in Vegas, my buddy told me he can’t imagine Team USA not starting young D. Howard. He said the big fella eats up so much more space in the paint and is a much more imposing (see shot-blocking presence) down there that you can’t risk not having him out there in a competition where much of the defense that is played will be zone. I’m greedy, so I’d play both of them together and see how that worked. But if you’re going to go with just one in the first five (as it appears Coach K will), it’ll be interesting to see who gets the nod.
