I’ve Got Next: Lessons learned from pickup basketball

Life lessons through sports.

5.8.23 | by Coach Mike Deegan

*An excerpt from Chapter 24: “I Got Next” of my book, Let It Rip

Get Chapter 1: Make the Jump for Free – click here

If you grew up playing basketball in Washington, Pennsylvania in the 90’s, you knew the names: Park and Dewey; 8th Ward; Brownson House; “The Y”; Stanley’s Hall; and “The Center.” These were the locations to some of the best runs in the city. And, looking back, some of the best lessons you can learn in life. 

Here’s what I learned…

1. Winner Stays 

On certain days, the court on the corner of Park Avenue and Dewey would be packed. There may be 30 guys looking to play. If you won the game, you stayed on the court. If you lost, you had to sit. And, on busy days, you may sit for a long time before you got another chance to play. Winner stays made you do several things: 

  • Choose your teammates wisely: Just because someone was your friend you may not have them on your team. Being a friend was great, but you needed to surround yourself with the best players because if you lost, you sat! 
  • It’s all about the team: No good pick-up player I know counted stats. If you could score you scored, if you could rebound you rebounded, if you could defend you guarded hard. It wasn’t about YOU; it was all about doing whatever you could do to win.
  • You get honest feedback: If you have played pickup hoops you know the disappointment when you don’t get picked. Guys wanted to win. If your game wasn’t up to speed, they’d say, “I don’t want that bum on my team.” Pretty harsh, huh? Well, you learn quick— either bring value or go home. There were no parents there to tell you how good you are or to try to convince the other guys to let you play. Nope, you had to decide what you were going to do to get on the court.
  • Learn to hate losing: If you lost you were done and it was crushing. It was instant feedback—other guys were playing and you had to sit and watch.

2. Learn to Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable 

I can vividly remember walking into the LeMoyne Center (a/k/a “The Center”) and being one of the only white people in the gym. I first started going to The Center when I was in 8th grade. I would get dropped off, take a deep breath, walk in, and try to compete.

Here’s what you learn: 

  • Not to judge: I made some really good friends who, on the surface, looked completely different than me. We may have come from completely different backgrounds. If it wasn’t for sports, we may have never communicated. I met some really amazing people who most people never got to know.
  • Sports can bring out the best in people: I’ve often said how sports brings out the crazy in people. If you go to an organized event you will see doctors, lawyers, people of the church, etc. acting completely inappropriate. However, sports can also bring people together. There is a common language we all use. Guys like Ron Moore, Chad “Chizzy” Johnson, E.J. Barfield, and the late Michael Brown took me under their wing. They took someone who looked different (me in this situation) and made them feel welcomed.
  • You learn toughness: I remember getting a rebound, taking two dribbles and getting shoved two rows deep into the stands. I was stunned. I turned around and waited for something to happen. All I heard was, “check it up.” Really? I was thrown out of bounds and all my team received was the ball. Lesson learned— either be tougher or continue to get knocked around. 

3. Applying This to Baseball and Life 

Many of these lessons form a lot of my beliefs as a coach and parent. 

  • Team First: I value selfless people who are willing to sacrifice to be great. It is much harder to be a good player on a great team than it is to be a great player on an average team. We want to be surrounded by competitive people who put the team ahead of everything else. 
  • Best Players Play: I don’t have any hobbies. My life revolves around my family and our baseball program. I mean it when I say we love our players. However, that doesn’t mean everyone is going to get an equal chance and that everyone will play. Playing time is earned and, as coaches, it is our responsibility to put the best players on the field. Period. 
  • Value the Differences in People: Every person has gifts and every person has problems. Our cultural differences are what make us unique. We should all be much slower to judge. When you really get to know people you will see that we are a lot alike. 
  • Kindness Matters: Our words and actions make a huge impact even if we don’t know it. The guys at the LeMoyne Center probably weren’t aware that by saying, “stand over there and I’ll get you a shot” meant so much to me. It’s important to look for ways to help others. 
  • Compete: Life isn’t easy—you have to battle. I have learned to enjoy competition. You give everything you have to try to win. If you fail, you are not a bad person. You should feel no shame if you tried as hard as you could and ended up falling short. However, the rewards go to the winner. It’s part of life. 

Make it a great week!

Mike

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