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The Two Paths in Basketball
In basketball, there are only two paths a player can choose. A player can pursue Mammon, or a player can pursue the game itself.
As we have discussed in previous Sportsmanship lessons, Mammon is the pursuit of wins and losses, and the spirits that come with it. It is the pursuit of status, recognition, rankings, scholarships, championships, and all the temporary awards that surround the game. The game itself, however, is something entirely different. The game itself is found in its laws.
The laws of the game are the instructions that teach skills.
Remember, a skill is a general area of study such as shooting, ballhandling, passing, finishing, defense, or basketball IQ. Yet skills themselves are broad categories. The actual information a player needs to improve is found within the laws of those skills. Every skill has laws. Every area of the game has principles, truths, and instructions that reveal how the skill works.
Therefore, there are only two ways a player can go.
Either they pursue the game itself.
Or they pursue Mammon.
After nearly thirty years of experience around basketball, I can tell you this: when a player pursues Mammon, they are often left empty, used, and eventually disregarded.
I have seen it happen far too many times.
Players spend years chasing wins, championships, rankings, and recognition. They believe these things will fulfill them. Yet when the season ends, the feeling disappears. Another season begins, another championship must be won, another ranking must be defended, another team must be built.
The pursuit never ends because Mammon never satisfies.
The truth is that wins and losses are only a figment of the imagination. They appear and disappear. One day they make a player feel superior; the next day they make that same player feel inferior. They create pride when things go well and despair when they do not.
Yet neither pride nor despair develops a player.
Wins do not teach.
Losses do not teach.
Only the laws of the game teach.
Only the laws of the game nurture growth and development.
Only the laws of the game reveal understanding.
The player who seeks the laws becomes a student of the game. They learn not merely what happened, but why it happened. They gain understanding rather than validation. They pursue mastery rather than applause.
As a result, they continue growing year after year.
The beautiful thing about pursuing the game itself is that the journey never ends.
There is always another law to discover and apply.
There is always another principle to understand.
There is always another layer of wisdom hidden beneath the surface.
The player who pursues the game itself is not limited by seasons, standings, scholarships, contracts, or trophies. Their relationship with the game extends far beyond competition because their purpose is not found in competition.
Their purpose is found in learning.
Their purpose is found in understanding and applying knowledge.
Their purpose is found in the game itself.
Because of this, they can play forever.
Even when their competitive days are past them, they remain students. They become teachers. They pass down knowledge to others who desire to know the game. The court remains open to them because they seek what the game offers rather than what the world offers through the game.
Meanwhile, those who pursue Mammon often discover that their basketball journey ends abruptly.
For many players, the door closes after high school.
Others make it to college before the door closes.
A very small percentage continue beyond that.
The NCAA and the NBA serve as evidence of this reality. They are part of a system built around achievement, advancement, and competition. Yet when advancement stops, many players discover they never truly knew the game they spent their lives playing.
The Mammon machine often robs players of their joy.
It transforms an art into a transaction.
It turns learning into performance.
It turns players into products.
And players chase it every day, believing it will give them something lasting.
In the process, many lose everything they thought they had.
Sometimes they lose their identity.
Sometimes they lose their confidence.
Sometimes they lose their love for the game itself.
Why is this true?
Because the game was never meant to be reduced to wins and losses. Similar to the pursuit of money in life.
As cliché as it may sound, basketball is an art.
And art is meant to be pursued for a lifetime.
The game offers far more than Mammon. It develops the mind through problem-solving and understanding. It develops the body through discipline and movement. It develops character through patience, perseverance, and humility.
The lessons learned on the court often become lessons for navigating life itself. For the one willing to stop chasing Mammon, the game becomes a lifelong classroom. This is not to say that young players should not participate in college basketball, professional basketball, or higher levels of competition.
The issue is not ‘playing at higher levels’.
The issue is what a player serves while pursuing them.
This lesson is for the one who desires the game itself.
This lesson is for the one who wants to know the game rather than simply use it for their convenience.
This lesson is for the one who desires to play forever.
This lesson is for the one who desires to teach others long after the youth days are over.
Because Mammon will not last forever. Players cannot take it with them, though they try.
Eventually every player who serves Mammon reaches the end of that road.
Some quit.
Some become bitter towards the game.
Some spend years misinforming others about the game they never truly understood.
And few eventually humble themselves and return to the game itself. And its truth.
In the end, a student pursues the game.
A player pursues Mammon.
A hooper remains lukewarm and is spewed out because of it.
The choice belongs to each individual.
Choose wisely.
Shalom.
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