As Man Thinketh in His Heart, So Is He

Proverbs 23:7

It's been a tough week for me. Both Tom Brady and the Los Angeles Clippers lost.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am supporters of both. I'll save my Brady blues for another day. On to these Clippers.

Notice I said I am a Clippers supporter, not a fan. That is a crucial distinction. When they lost game 7 of the Western Conference Semi-Finals to the Denver Nuggets this past Tuesday, I was jokingly asked if I would need counseling. I will readily admit that to be a supporter of the Clippers in Los Angeles is heresy and might be hazardous to your health. Los Angeles is a Fakers town. Ahem, excuse me. I meant a Lakers town. 

To ensure we're on the same page, let me further clarify. My interest in sports transcends individual teams or even players. As the son of a former defensive lineman, the younger brother of an elementary school basketball coach, the older brother of a one time all-state shooting guard, and a former high school basketball player (watcher, really because I sat on the bench most games), I would call myself a sports enthusiast. I enjoy all sports (especially basketball and football) and consider myself a student of competition.  I like the business, strategy, and leadership dimensions of professional athletics. On to these Clippers.

For six years, I was the Chaplain for the Clippers. In this role, I got the opportunity to observe the team and the organization from a unique perspective. Since their arrival in Los Angeles 35 years ago, they have been unwanted and unloved. They have always lost and been the laughingstock of the city and the League. Clippers means "losing." Lakers means "winning." What makes the Clippers so fascinating to me is that over the past several years they have been striving to change that narrative. They have a new owner, new players (including two All Stars), new uniforms, and will soon have a new arena. Many people thought that they would face the Lakers this year in the Western Conference Final and might even win the NBA Championship. But alas, they lost. Again. And so many observers have concluded that their loss was yet another manifestation of the "Clippers curse," the idea being that the Clippers always lose.

I don't believe there is a Clippers curse. If there were, that assumption would have some profoundly troubling implications, chief among them that losers always lose. Can losers win? That's the question that the Clippers are trying to answer. And that's why I'm a Clippers supporter. I support the idea of the Clippers. I think losers can win. I think the last can be first.   

But in order to win, they will need more than new players, new uniforms, and new arenas. They will need a new mentality.  

Lebron James was severely criticized when he made the decision to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers to go play for the Miami Heat in 2010.  But the rationale that he provided to his critics is noteworthy. After failing to win a championship for seven years, he said he had to go "learn how to win." Pat Riley, the former coach of the Lakers, is the President and General Manager of the Heat. And he taught Lebron. But Pat Riley learned to win from Jerry West, who was the General Manager of the Lakers while Riley was the Coach.

So West taught Riley, Riley taught Lebron, and then he returned to Cleveland and taught them. There is hope for the Clippers. Because the same guy who taught Riley to win now works for the Clippers. It will be interesting to see if they are interested in learning.

Winning is a mentality.  

The Clippers are not cursed. And neither are you.  

I know some of you may think you are, because of your family background, previous mistakes, or current struggles. But you will have to adopt a different mentality if you are to experience winning outcomes. Learning how to win in life and love, finances and family, careers and crises is a mentality. Search for those who are winning in the areas you are losing and discover their secrets.

As the poet put it,

Life's battles don't always go

To the stronger or faster man,

But sooner or later the man who wins

Is the one who thinks he can.