Young NBA stars often stumble from their own success. Winning is like climbing, eventually someone looks down and realizes the height. But Joel Embiid is a special player who helps the Philadelphia 76ers come together despite success
Success is its own worst enemy. The Philadelphia 76ers are winning, but let’s not kid ourselves. This isn’t “success”. The team is merely winning. As much as it pains me to say it, the Boston Celtics are enjoying success. That 16-2 record is success. Not because of the wins themselves, but due to the winning streak and doing it short-handed. But the Philadelphia 76ers will get there. Each game shows a little more polish, a new career high for a player.
Wins are coming now. Success will soon follow. But with success comes pressure. Pressure to win more, pressure upon the team and pressure upon each individual player. You see, when you lose games, it’s no pressure. Players play for the thrill of the game. But start winning and expectations rise rapidly. Fans start to pressure the coaching staff for game decisions. Players start to believe media representations of who is the most valuable player on the team.
To defeat that tendency, a young team needs to laugh at themselves. Winning is winning, it comes and it goes. Confidence is needed to win. But too confident, and a team stops working hard to win. So how do you defeat that? Learn to laugh at yourself.