Making the cross-sport college-pro comparison...
Duke is a dynasty -- they've been at or near the top of college basketball, with the exception of one year, for as long as Mike Krzyzewski has been their coach. How have they done it?
Coach K has recruited numerous All-Americans, which puts him in select company in the college basketball world -- fewer than 25 teams are able to lure All-Americans with any consistency. That being said, however, very few of the Duke players have ever done anything great in the NBA (had not injuries derailed much of his career, Grant Hill could be considered in the great category, but he might be the only one) -- many of his top players have been relative flops (Danny Ferry, anyone?). In other words, they're good players, but they're not the elite, and Duke has been successful even though they've lacked the top talent in the game. Duke wins because of the coach and his system, because the players believe in the coach and his system, and because the players sublimate their egos (at least, as much as college-aged BMOCs can do so) for the good of the team.
This seems to be the blueprint that the New England Patriots are following, and why they may someday be a dynasty.
2 comments:
I'm worried about the way that the Pats are trying to thwart the Salary Cap concept: "Come play for us -- the difference in salary isn't that big, and you'll get to be on a championship team."
I don't blame them for the try.
I don't blame the players for listening to it.
But I do worry about the consequences...
John,
Players should be able to go where they're most comfortable, and shouldn't have to go where they can make the most money -- if someone believes that it's a better fit for him in New England, he should be able to go. Besides, from a team perspective, the Patriots are hardly original in that regard -- all teams try to do that, and have varying degrees of success. The most successful was probably last year's Lakers, who were able to sign two players, Malone and Payton, who each could have commanded more than the $6.5 million that they got paid combined. They went there to get the championship that had eluded them all their storied careers. That they failed was delicious irony.
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