Life Lessons From Tonight's Game

I will be the first to admit that my entire life has been shaped by the game of basketball.

Basketball organized my time; gave me goals (literally and figuratively) to which to aspire, and paid for much of my college education.

There were all sorts of life lessons embedded in my experience of being a non-scholarship D1 basketball walk-on. But that was decades ago.

What about life lessons that one can glean today, in 2024, from a basketball game in which I was just a spectator?

This past week the Fordham University Rams basketball team hosted the Davidson College Wildcats in an Atlantic 10 Conference game in the historic Rose Hill Gym on the Fordham campus. 

Heading into the game, Davidson was winless in A10 conference play, losers of three straight, with two of these losses occurring on Davidson’s home court.

Fordham was a 2.5 point favorite in the game against Davidson, and sported a record of 2 wins and 1 loss in conference play.

If I am a betting man, this game is a no-brainer! Fordham is a cinch to win!

So, you ask, what was the final score?

Davidson 79

Fordham 69

In the big scheme of things this is only a game, one of thousands being played at this moment around the world.

In the big scheme of things what will I take away from this one game?

Lesson #1: The best team can defeat the best collection of talent

One could argue that Fordham had the better talent.

But basketball is a team sport. Davidson players shared the ball on offense, passing the ball from one side of the court to the other, constantly seeking the open man and a higher percentage shot. Fordham would get the ball to one player, who would dribble until either they shot the ball, or passed the ball because they had no other option.

Lesson #2: Don’t be afraid to fail

At one point I looked at the stats for the game and thought “Geez, Reid Bailey is having a rough game - he’s only 3 of 14 shooting the ball from the floor - that’s not good!” 

Reid Bailey’s final stat line?

24 points, 12 rebounds.

Reid kept battling, working to get shots off against the bigger, more physical Rams, and he never got frustrated by his lack of early success. His “failures” – i.e., missed shots - resulted in rebounds, and Reid getting fouled frequently. His “failures” i.e., missed shots - led to his perfection (12 of 12 from the free-throw line).

Lesson #3: Believe in the power of prayer!

With time running out on the 30 second shot clock, Wildcat freshman Bobby Durkin was buried on the baseline, falling out of bounds. To avoid a shot clock violation, he heaved a shot upward, from behind the backboard. It almost hit the rafters of Rose Hill Gym before nestling into the net:

“SWISH!”

When things looked hopeless, Durkin sent a prayer aloft, and it was answered!

Lesson #4: Every member of the team has a contribution to make

Jarvis Moss of Davidson had a stat line that my son describes as a “4 trillion” - meaning that Moss played for 4 minutes, but had no points, shot attempts, three-point shot attempts, free throws, fouls, turnovers, blocked shots, or steals. His stats look like this in the box score:

But even though it looks like Moss wasn’t a factor in the game – he was. He played solid defense, he gave the starters a rest, he handled the ball and made the offense work. His four minutes are not the kind of thing that makes headlines, but in a team game, Jarvis’s play was just as important as anybody on the team.

How many “4 trillion” employees do you have in your organization, who get little in the way of recognition, but are critical in helping you win?

Lesson #5: Regulators are undefeated and untied

The Fordham fans spent much of the second half harassing the referees, and at one point in time the Fordham head coach had a hissy fit relative to a foul called on one of his players. 

The referees paid little or no attention, and the coach’s histrionics fell on deaf ears.

All of a sudden, I thought about the financial services regulatory bodies. It does any good to complain to anyone about them. You just have to figure out how they are calling the game, and you have to adapt to their interpretation of the rules.

Lesson #6: The greatest gifts you can give are love and time

This is a favorite saying of the great Davidson basketball coach Bob McKillop.

Many years from now, I will have forgotten the score of the Davidson-Fordham contest, and much of the details around this one game. However, there is one thing that I won’t forget.

That is, I got to spend four hours with my daughter, who now lives and works in New York City.

I am so grateful for her love, and I am thankful for the time we were able to spend together.

What a gift!