To Sum it all Up!

I have had a great time doing these blog posts but now that you know what it means to be a leader in the NBA and the business world I believe my time here is over. Over the past three months I talked about the qualities a franchise player must possess, the importance of being able to step up when it matters most, leading by example, the power of motivation, and the parallels of a coach in the NBA and a supervisor in the business world. I hope that you take in everything that these blog posts have to offer so it can further develop your leadership skills for the future.

Kevin Durant and Lebron James, the two best players and
 leaders in the league

In the comment section below, let me know what you thought about my series of posts as well as what you learned from them. Thank you for having me, and who knows, maybe you'll see another post in near future!

The Coach: Leader On The Bench

Avery Johnson

How's everybody's day going today? As I was thinking about new topics to talk about within my blog, I realized that what I should be talking about is a teams coach. Every team needs a coach, and every team in the business world needs a supervisor. The coach gives the players instruction, motivates them and ultimately leads them to victory. Coaches create plays, help develop the talents of players and evaluate their progress. This is much like a supervisor in the business world. Below, is an article I found about NBA coach, Avery Johnson discussing 7 leadership skills that every coach should have. If you think about it, the skills that he talks about can easily also be applied to the business world.

Take a look at the article and I guarantee you will learn something which will be of use to you throughout your career.

http://www.inc.com/articles/201105/7-leadership-lessons-from-nba-coach-avery-johnson.html

Kevin Durant: Leading by Example

Kevin Durant is a top 5 player in the NBA, a 3 time scoring champion, a 4 time NBA all star and the scary part is that he is nowhere near his prime because he is only 24! Kevin Durant is also one of the players in the NBA who will lead by example. He will come to practice early and leave practice late in order to perfect his game. By being the best player on his team, the other players will naturally follow him and train as hard as he does. This extra effort will cause a better chemistry among teammates which will help them win more games.  The other end of the spectrum is former NBA player, Allen Iverson. Iverson was a great player, perhaps one of the best in league history however, he wasn't a great role model to his teammates because of his lack of discipline when it came to practicing.

Leading by example in the NBA can relate to the business world because there will always be instances in group work where one person has to take charge of a project in order for others to follow suit.

Leaders Off The Court

In the sport of basketball we all know how important leadership on the court can be. However, what many fail to forget is how important the leadership off the court is too. For example, when a team is not doing so well or is on a losing streak, there needs to be someone to keep the team motivated and in high spirits. That person is the leader off of the court. The article I have provided below highlights some of the best off the court leaders in the NBA. These players may not be the best on their team, but their off court leadership has proven to be a valuable contribution to the team. 

Check out the article and leave a comment below!

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1187610-highlighting-nbas-best-locker-room-leaders

Kevin Hart: 2-Time Celebrity Game Most Valuable Player (MVP)

Since the beginning of this blog I have talked about the countless legends that have graced the court. This time I decided to lighten things up with a little humor  A few weeks ago the NBA hosted its All Star Weekend celebration which included the annual celebrity game. It is a fun filled event for fans to watch their favourite celebrities play basketball with many celebrity's have participating including J-Cole, Justin Bieber, Nick Cannon, and Kevin Hart. In the video below, Kevin Hart, overcome with the joy of winning the MVP award for the second time, describes to his fans how basketball is a game of leadership and teamwork.

Kobe Bryant: The Essence Of Clutch

Kobe Bryant making a last second shot

Picture this...Its the 4th quarter with five seconds left in the game, your team is down by one point and you have possession of the ball. All you need is that one bucket that will give your team the win...If a situation like this ever presents itself, you better have Kobe Bryant take the deciding shot. Kobe Bryant is a true leader because of his ability to make shots late in the game as there are a ton of things going through one's mind at that moment.  Yet mentally, Kobe is as tough as they came. He pushes past all the pressure of taking the last second and when he does that, he escalates his game to the next level by effortlessly scoring over the best defenders in the world. Read the article below which goes through the most clutch moments of Kobe Bryant's career. Tell me what you guys think about Kobe!

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/772450-kobe-bryant-the-10-most-clutch-moments-of-the-la-lakers-stars-career

50 Great Individual Performances

The NBA has been around for a long time. During that time, there has been an abundance of talented players that have come and gone. I recently found an article that highlights the 50 greatest individual performances in NBA history, some of which I will be talking about during the course of my blog. One thing I noticed was that all of these performances came from the team's franchise player who led the team during times of hardship. Check the article out and let me know what you guys think!

Reggie Miller taunts his opponent

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/566887-the-nbas-50-greatest-single-game-performances-ever

The Flu Game

Teammate, Scottie Pippin helps an exhausted Jordan
off the court following the victory

"The Flu Game", also known as "The Sick Game" was the game in which Michael Jordan solidified his position as arguably the greatest basketball player of all time. On June 11th, 1997, the Chicago Bulls were in the NBA finals and were facing the Utah Jazz in a critical match-up. Before and throughout the game, MJ was suffering from multiple flu like symptoms including a fever of 103 degrees. However, that didn't stop him from doing what he needed to do. He knew that if his team got a win that night  it would be instrumental in them winning the championship. With that in mind, he did what any great player does and decided to face his adversity head-on. In doing so he led his team with 38 points and inspired them to a 90-88 victory over the Jazz. Below is a link to an article about that night as well as a video titled "Jordan's Flu Game" that captured the highlights of that unforgettable game. Many call Jordan's efforts that night "heroic" and "courageous" and his teammates praised him for his leadership. What do you think?

Article/Video Link: http://www.nba.com/2012/news/features/steve_aschburner/06/11/jordans-sick-game/index.html

Tracy McGrady: When It Mattered Most

December 9th, 2004 will always be one of the most memorable nights in NBA history. It was the night that Tracy Mcgrady was able to lead his team, the Houston Rockets to victory against the San Antonio Spurs, while being down 74-64 with about a minute left. In a situation where you're down 10 points with time ticking off the clock, a majority of us would decide to throw in the towel. However, Tracy McGrady is an incredibly rare talent. He was able to raise the spirit of his teammates and achieve the seemingly impossible, leading them to an 81-80 victory by scoring 13 of his 33 points in the game within the last 35 seconds. This comeback will forever go down as arguably one of the best in history. I was able to pull a video off of YouTube that captures this amazing feat. Check it out and let me know what you think below! More blogs coming soon!

The Team Leader: AKA The Franchise Player

Within the NBA and almost every other team environment there is always going to be a leader. My name is Jordan Coutinho and this is my first post within my blog in which I will discuss the greatest leaders to ever grace the hardwood of an NBA floor. Leaders in the NBA are referred to as franchise players. By definition, a franchise player is an athlete who is not only the best player on the team, but also a player that the team can build around for the foreseeable future. In the past, these players have included the likes of Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan (in picture below). In the present, these players include Lebron James, Kobe Bryant and Tracy Mcgrady. During the next few weeks, I will be talking about some of these players within my posts and describing what they did to turn themselves into franchise players. If anyone wants me to talk about a certain player or has any questions, please don't hesitate to let me know! 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franchise_player