Champs or chumps?

My last post ("It takes 10 hands to score a basket...") focused on the myth of so-called superteams, teams that are loaded with talent but seemingly fail to live up to expectations.  I specifically highlighted the 1980 Olympic Team USA men's basketball team, which defeated a team of NBA All-Stars 5 out of 6 exhibition games during the "Gold Medal Series" (recall that the United States boycotted the 1980 Summer Olympics, so the team was forced to play exhibition games against the NBA instead).  I also discussed an even better example, that of the 1980 Olympic Team USA men's hockey team, which defeated the heavily favored Soviet Union team 4-3.  They next beat Finland in a come-from-behind fashion to win the Gold Medal, but it was the "Miracle on Ice" game against the Soviets that will be remembered forever.

My point is that you don't have to be a superteam to win championships.  As a matter of fact, most superteams don't (and one could arguably state that most superteams actually flop - see my posts "Superstars" and "Superstars and the mess in Cleveland").  What often separates championship teams versus superteams is team culture, which is often called team chemistry.  As the old sayings go, "Chemistry is Culture" and "Culture eats Strategy".  Gregg Gregory (see "Behind the scenes of so-called superteams: 4 secrets") suggests that there are four behind-the-scenes secrets that championship teams do and so-called superteams do not:

1. Championship teams are selfless.

The members of championship teams each work hard to make everyone around them better, caring very little, if at all, who gets individual credit.  The team's success is more important than individual success (as hockey coach Herb Brooks said so well in the 2004 Disney movie, Miracle, "The name on the front of the jersey means a whole lot more than the one on the back!"  

2. Championship teams work hard.

Practice matters.  More importantly, the right kind of practice matters (see my post "Practice makes better, but does practice make perfect?" on the concept of deliberate practice and the 10,000 hour rule).  As Steve Kerr, who has been a NBA World Champion as both player and coach, says, "There are no magic plays.  You win based on effort, unmet focus, and being brilliant at the little details."  Championship teams practice as hard as they play in games, if not harder.

3. Championship teams are built around character.

Championship teams don't just build their teams based upon talent.  They look for players with the right kind of character.  They look for players who are going to be great teammates, which helps foster a team culture.  I am reminded of a great video post by the author and motivational speaker, Simon Sinek, which I also discussed in my post "Attitude > Talent".  Sinek talked about how the Navy SEALS emphasize trust over performance.  In other words, talent is not enough - having the right team-focused attitude is key.  Again, as hockey coach Herb Brooks said in the movie, "I'm not looking for the best players.  I am looking for the right players."

4. Championship teams emphasize teamwork.

As the legendary Michael Jordan said, "Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships."  Teamwork is so much more important than talent.  As Jon Gordon says, "Team beats talent when talent isn't a team."  The NBA All-Stars in 1980 had talent, but they weren't a team.