philoscifi

Phil Safari, a reluctant Candidate, must prove himself worthy to the gods by completing a Heroic Task: change 1000 lives for the better… or else! This is an episode of the philosophical sci-fi webserial, the Safaris.

So I was watching the NBA Draft this year, and I started thinking how ridiculous the hype was. I mean, 10 years from now, how many of these people will be remembered? The failure rate seems rather high. I couldn’t decide whether this was a consequence of bad scouting, player work ethic, or simply a bad fit. For a second opinion, I called my resident NBA expert, Jake Sunwell.

“Yo, you busy?” I asked.

“Technically yes,” Jake replied. “I’m in a raid right now, but go ahead.”

“You sure? I don’t want to cause a wipe.”

“Dude, trust me, I’m a pally. All I do is spam Flash of Light. It only takes one finger, and it’s brainless. Go ahead.”

“Alright, if you say so. So, I’m watching the NBA Draft right now. Why do you think so many draft picks don’t pan out?”

“Aside from the fact that many GMs are total tools? Lots of reasons, but my favorite is the overvaluation of potential and undervaluation of basic psychology. Potential is nice, but if you are lazy bastard, it’s worthless.”

“Yeah, I agree. So what kind of traits would you look for?”

“It all boils down to drive. That covers how you respond to pressure, criticism, and failure. Drive means not settling and always challenging yourself to be better. All great players have it.”

“But this quality can also make you an overbearing teammate, which might be bad for team chemistry. What do you think about drafting based on need?” I asked.

“Dude, get the best players first; worry about chemistry later. Winning cures all ills. I don’t believe in drafting for needs; most rookies can’t help you immediately anyway. You can fill needs through free agency. I agree that having 50 guards and no centers is not good, but you’re an idiot if you pass up Michael Jordan for Sam Bowie. You draft the elite talent, no matter what.

“After that, grab promising rooks, and if they happen to fill a need, even better. If you don’t see anything good, trade the pick. And unless you have a great scouting department, you can forget about finding hidden gems. There you go – the NBA Draft for Dummies from yours truly.”

“Hmm. I agree about the elite talent; that’s a no brainer. But you and I differ on the team chemistry. I’d sacrifice a bit of talent for better teamwork. A team is more than the sum of its parts.”

“Meh, whatever,” Jake replied noncommittally.

I laughed. Typical Jake reaction. “Ok…moving on. I think that how a rookie turns out is heavily dependent on the environment he starts in. But given the way the system is set up, the bad teams stockpile too many youngsters and continue to lose, while the good teams just let them vegetate on the bench for years. How can anyone develop under either of these conditions? I think teams need to think about these things before they draft.”

“Haven’t you heard of trading? Sounds like the teams just need to swap some personnel.”

“Yeah, but it’s so hard to make good trades. Besides, stability is important too. If I was a GM, I’d draft some team-oriented ballers and let them grow together for several years.”

“Planning? Teamwork? Stability??” Jake laughed. “Look, I agree with you in principle, but shit, man, this is the pros! No babies allowed. Grow some balls, and roll with what you got. I got no sympathy for them; they get paid millions. Hell, pay me millions, and I’ll gladly warm the bench.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” I sighed. “I guess I think too much about other people. They’re professionals, and it’s their job to make the best of the situation. Thanks for the insight, Jake.”

“Anytime, brah.”

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