California Dreaming

I woke up yesterday and couldn't remember where I was. My dream was so vivid and moving that I felt that I had awoken from a coma, having missed the last 8 years of my life. My move from Toronto to Los Angeles was drastic to say the least. Suddenly, I had no friends. I had no home. I had no girlfriend. I had no snow. I started from scratch, as was the plan when I made the decision. Since this blog is about psychology, I should let you know that I am a big fan of Freud and the power of the subconscious. People often get sad, depressed, invigorated, happy, or even goosebumps from certain feelings that they simply can't explain, and in my humble opinion, that is the subconscious expressing itself consciously. The subconscious has been studied in many ways, and my next post, about Mihály Csíkszentmihályi's concept of flow is just one example. I say all of this to relate to my dream, to my first life that was lived before this new one began.

I'm playing basketball in the Lett Gym at my high school Upper Canada College. I'm probably 12, and I'm with my oldest friend from home, Ed Cottingham. There's a slight feeling of anger, as if we had just gotten into a big argument, when abruptly, he trips me as I sprint to the hoop. I take this slight as a challenge, the anger (from an argument that I have no recollection of) is unleashed and I head full steam to rugby tackle him. Growing up, Ed was always bigger than me. He would have the upper hand in arguments because I couldn't really defend myself. Now, there's a sudden shift in my dream and all sorts of feelings start to pour out. I'm 6 foot 3 inches, 220 pounds, and I am not scared anymore. With people yelling (faceless noises coming from the backdrop), I pick him up, slam him down, and hope that I don't hurt him too bad. Suddenly, I propose two options; I ask him, "we can either fight this out and risk ruining our friendship, or talk it out in the locker room." We decide on the latter. Fast-forward and we're jovial, kicking it in the locker room, and decide to go have some fun.

I'm not convinced that we can explain our subconscious, and as much as I believe in Freud, I don't think that we can rely on our dreams to reveal it. Nonetheless, this dream really summarizes our relationship. We're always competitive against one another, always caring for each other, and always willing to put the past behind us and have some fun. The reason that this dream was so powerful was because it reclaimed these feelings of my oldest friendship, something that I've forgotten about as I have an entirely new network of friends, and no memories of home other than a few pictures.

Life is a book of chapters, and sometimes it's nice to re-read certain pages. For now, it's back to the California dream.

Social Bookmarking “Soulmate”

PsyProf
 

            I have spent countless hours perusing through mindless corporate attempts to sell me, “The Latest in Sports Psychology Techniques, Success Guaranteed!” products. As result of this frustration, I’ve taken to the social world to find useful, informative websites that can help us analyze the psychological factors and phenomena that affect athletes. In doing so, I’ve stumbled upon (not a pun, I used delicious) what I would call, a “social bookmarking soulmate.” No, I have not met this person, nor do I know their age, gender, or profession, but what I do know is this; we share similar online interests. This “soulmate” of mine goes by the name of PsyProf and I believe that his/her discoveries could enhance your ability to learn about sports psychology.

            On delicious, you can search an area of interest, find an article, and then find out how many people have tagged that item. You can then discover how they’ve tagged it, and what else those people are interested in. Now, there were innumerable people using the tags “psychology,” “sports,” and “lifehacks,” on articles that I found to be interesting, but none of these people shared a focus on sports psychology. As such, I was ecstatic to find out that someone had tagged a favorite article of mine with “sports_psychology.” Upon further research of this tag, I discovered a community of users who shared my interest, none more intriguing than my online soulmate. PsyProf had more than three times as many “sports_psychology” tags than any other user, so naturally, I checked out his bookmarks and found some gems.

           

Mr. Kroc and his burger (source)

            The first is an article entitled, “Self Confidence, Motivation, Focus &Pressure – Athletes vs Entrepreneurs,” written by Stephen Walker, PhD. This article compares the lifestyles and psychological traits of both athletes and entrepreneurs, referred here as “corporate athletes.” Although the article doesn’t compare any of the specific psychological differences of the two, it discusses the similar traits that they share, and the way that each applies them to their career. It quotes and compares top athletes of both professions, such as Michael Jordan and Ray Kroc (of McDonalds fame.)

            Another gem is an article entitled, “Injury Prevention in Sports,” written by Geoff Michaelson, PhD. By examining how psychological factors create increased risk for injury in sports, Michaelson creates a window to connect psychology and physicality, something that I intend to profile. One example is the analysis of how anxiety causes overly tense muscles, leading to increased risk of injury.

            PsyProf’s bookmarking topics are primarily animal cognition, photography, and web 2.0. He has 364 bookmarks, 40 of which are related to sports psychology – as his 5^th most tagged topic, clearly PsyProf isn’t primarily focused on my area of interest. On another rather unfortunate note, PsyProf’s bookmarks are poorly organized and rarely have a description. Although he is not an ideal candidate, I can’t afford to be overly picky due to the niche nature of my interest. I suppose I’m looking for too much in an online soulmate; for now, PsyProf will have to do.

Trio

Voice Critique    

Disclaimer: Although DylanBotB is not a sports psychologist, his blog often discusses, with statistical reference, what separates the most mentally tough athletes from the rest.   

Dylan Murphy, better known as “DylanBotB,” writes a sports blog aptly named “Bottom of the Barrel.” This title is synonymous with the style of its content, described self-deprecatingly as “bad sports journalism.” Simply, the blog’s purpose is to “criticize and make fun of sports personalities, events and issues, mostly using run-on sentences and marginally correct grammar.” However, BotB (if I may be so inclined) is selling himself short. Although he describes his style as one of a lazy frat boy, too lethargic to correct his grammar or bother to fix run-on sentences, the voice that appears in his post is not so. Rarely are grammatical errors made, and despite the occasional run-on sentence, his prose is easy to read. Is it possible that BotB is selling himself short in order to attract a wider audience? It appears that his goal is simply to attract readers to his blog, as he even offers a Twitter feed of content - “Need your bad journalism and useless sports commentary in 140 characters or less?” What BotB either fails to recognize, or intentionally chooses to ignore, is that his sports commentary is more compelling than much of what is available by professional sports journalist. Sports journalism is simply a means for one to express their opinions on performance, and if it’s graded on their ability to justify their opinion with statistical reference then BotB isn’t such a “bad sports journalist.”

Aphrodisiac Oyters (Photo Cred)

His post, “Clutch Players in the Playoffs,” (05/11/11) opens with the question, “did you know that oysters are aphrodisiacs?” Although this question may seem trivial, it works as a very accurate metaphor for what ensues. He continues to discuss that although you may not have known that oysters were aphrodisiacs, the question may not have surprised you because of the feeling that oysters give you; the same “know-it-when-you-see-it” sensation that is felt while witnessing athletes with the strongest mental toughness. He continues the metaphor while discussing athletes of different tiers of mental toughness, “A grilled chicken sandwich, of sorts. It’s going to be good, maybe great, but it’s not going to unequivocally bewilder and amaze your taste buds.” What’s fascinating about this post is that it proves the disingenuousness of BotB’s self-description. The metaphor of comparing taste to a feeling that an athlete summons is imaginative and the diction is equally impressive, yet he maintains his “bad journalism” stance by opening the post with the subject of aphrodisiacs. BotB is talented at disguising his inner genius.

Dirk with his Championship

To further the point, the post continues by comparing stats of the top closers in the league but not revealing which stats belong to whom. In doing so, the reader is enticed to guess who they think matches with which stats and BotB gains more credibility by backing his opinion with statistical evidence. Perhaps by chance, the conclusion that BotB determines from his analysis of the statistics is the unlikely, but ultimately true, conclusion that the Mavericks would win the championship in 2011 because of the clutch abilities of their star player, Dirk Nowitski.

Dirk as Sisyphus? (Photo Cred)

The post, “On Dirk...” offers even more insights into the mastery of sports journalism that BotB is seemingly trying to cover up. Not only does he convince the reader that the unlikely Mavericks would win the championship (despite 3:1 odds, he was right), but his voice continues to impress. He compares Dirk to “a modern day Sisyphus,” the loyalty to his seemingly failing team being his boulder – how does he expect to invoke this kind of voice in his 140-word Twitter feed? To cover up this educated voice, he mentions that Lebron “didn’t give a shit” about team loyalty, again, perhaps in an attempt to appear more accessible to the average reader.

I really like the voice that BotB conveys, however, I worry that he is dumbing it down so as to not seem as scholarly as he may be. His arguments are sound, concise, full of impressive rhetoric, and yet he still refers to his work as “bad journalism” and “useless commentary.” In no attempt to judge this strategy, I would love for his perceptive voice not to be marred by these futile attempts to sound less educated.  I personally think that he would gain more traction with professional sites if he simply gave up the “bad journalism” act. And yet, maybe that’s not his goal.

If you ever get the chance to read this DylanBotB; kudos for the most perceptive voice I have yet to witness in the field of sports journalism.

Profile  The Athlete’s Psychology

Blogs have been violated. When it comes to blogs on the topic of sports psychology, nearly every one is an attempt to sell you a self-help book or set of videos. What happened to blogs being an expression of self, of opinion, an area of the Internet untainted by the sleaze that is profitability? Alas, Kenneth Hartline has come to the rescue. His blog, “The Athlete’s Psychology,” is the lifeboat that keeps interested readers from letting go of their curiosity.

The Athlete’s Psychology is a blog that asks the questions, “Why did Michael Jordan appear unfazed in every pressure situation? How does Tiger Woods appear to be so calm standing over a putt worth $1 million?” Kenneth Hartline is a Doctor of Psychology candidate at Pepperdine University who graduated from the University of Oregon with concurrent Bachelor's degrees in both psychology and journalism with minors in Communications and Human Physiology. Although he has started a company that seeks to help athletes and coaches utilize sports psychology, he rarely mentions the business and continually seeks to inform his readers. He understands that athletes are as human as everyone else, and utilizes his education in psychology to analyze the performance of modern athletes. Unfortunately, posts that used to occur on a monthly basis in 2010 have since slowed; only one post (June 23^rd, 2011) has been made since August 22^nd of 2010. The site is no longer popular, as indicated by the fact that neither Alexis, nor Technorati, had any information on the site. Nonetheless, his posts are still relevant and unbiased, informative for both a psychology such as myself, or just an interested sports enthusiast.

Young crushing the hearts of my fellow Trojans (photo cred)

              In his post, “How Vince Young's rise and fall illustrate a growing problem inprofessional sports,” Hartline considers the effect of the off-field stress that accompanies star athletes. He profiles Vince Young, the quarterback who single-handedly willed the Texas Longhorns over our Trojans in the 2006 Rose Bowl and became a marquee name in the sport. When Young took a day off from work and failed to contact the team or his family, the media jumped on the news and pronounced him suicidal. What Mr. Hartline suggests was merely a case of “adjustment disorder” – a stress-related mental illness, was perceived to be a suicidal tendency. Hartline diagnoses the problem between psychology and sports, “Ahletes simply aren’t allowed to struggle with mental illness and are stigmatized negatively by the public if they dare take any time off for something intangible that the fans can’t see.” This post exemplifies Hartline’s perception of the business of sports and its affect on the psychology of its athletes.  

           

The post, “Landon Donovan's Exclamation Point,” explains the psychological effect of being the underdog. He profiles the US World Cup victory over Algeria, a game that the US had dominated but failed to capitalize until a 93^rd minute goal by Landon Donovan,  to show the effect of playing to win, as opposed to playing not to lose. He states,  “it is a normal human reaction to be much more terrified of the criticism that comes from underperforming than from seeking the praise that results from achievement” – highlighting the fact that fear is the strongest human emotion. I found this post illuminating because even though it doesn’t use any psychological jargon, it stills highlights a natural tendency in the human psyche.

 

This blog relates well to my work because I want to do exactly what Mr. Hartline does, analyze the performance of athletes, both on and off the field, from the perspective of a psychologist. I want to explain a player or team’s performance using the information that I have learned through my studies in psychology. This blog, despite its casual tone, is still scholarly in that it utilizes many psychological terms and refers to many leading professors of psychiatry. This blog will feed my work in that I can utilize many of its examples and come to my own conclusions.  I can link to, and critique, many of the points that it makes and offer a contrasting opinion. Although the blog lacks the voice that I hope to portray to my readers, it succeeds in making its content accessible to both psychology students and sports enthusiasts alike.

Hello, World

Dennis Rodman Devil (source)

“Shit. You’re carrying the game in your hands with this final free throw and you know that you’re going to miss it. You’re more trapped than R. Kelly in the closet. I may have missed these in regulation, but people knew I’d miss them. Have fun at school tomorrow after having pulled one of the worst Mickelsons of all time,” says the Dennis Rodman-esque devil sitting up top on my shoulder. Sure, his diction is somewhat archaic, but one can only imagine that that’s the kind of vocabulary that a man of his great stature would utilize.

I’ve presented a fictional situation, that in their own voice, all athletes have faced; the anxiety of wasting years of practice in one moment. That weight on your shoulders, shared only by the great Atlas, that nobody in the stands could understand until they’ve felt it. An athlete’s legacy is determined by how well they can handle that pressure. Whether it’s a mental strength that the athlete appears to have been born with (we’ll call it the Tiger Woods pre-2008 ability) or an acquired skill (hey, even Mickelson eventually figured out how to win a major), an athlete will never be “elite” until they can pull through when it counts.

Bobby Knight keeping his composure (source)

Just a few days ago, during the U.S. Open of Tennis, the No. 2 tennis player in the world explained the quality quite concisely, “If you watch the No. 10 player in the world and the No. 500 in training, you won’t necessarily be able to tell who is higher up in the rankings. Without the pressure of competition, they’ll move and hit the ball much the same way.” The great, and eccentric, basketball coach Bobby Knight reiterated the sentiment in a more concise manner, “Mental toughness is to physical as four is to one.”

So far, I’ve framed the theme of this blog to be about mental toughness and choke-artists. I’ve done so because that is what got me interested in the topic, and when I think of sports psychology, I feel that that’s the first thing that comes to mind. Choking is the most prevalent and most obvious phenomenon where psychology enters the world of sports. I intend on covering it, but also other topics, such as; who the hell is Dennis Rodman, and why is he the way that he is? What mental state was Tiger Woods in when he thought that he could get away with so many infidelities? How did Phil Mickelson overcome the panic that he consistently faced when he was so close to finally winning a major? (Speaking of psychology, those athletes were the first to come to mind because of a phenomenon known as priming.)

Sports have long been my passion and I am an avid fan of nearly all of them (cricket being the exception.) I’m a student of athletics, much like I’m a student studying psychology at USC, and I’m in a perfect place to study the cross-section of these two passions: sports psychology. There are limited online resources on the topic of sports psychology, especially those that aren’t a sales pitch, and thus I will be addressing a specific niche.

The Yerkes-Dodson Law (source)

Finally, I need for something to be made clear. This blog is not like the majority of sports psychology blogs; my posts will never have advice on how to be mentally tougher, they will not teach you how to become mentally stronger, and I will never attempt to sell you any products. I am here simply to inform you of all of the interesting sports psychology phenomena that have been taking place. To start you off, enjoy the story of Jason McElwain, an autistic basketball manager-turned-player who scored 20 points in the final 4 minutes of a game. Choking is at the extreme of the Yerkes-Dodson law, what J-Mac experienced was at the apex. Enjoy.

                                                     

                          

The Voice of "Bottom of the Barrel" Sports Blog

Disclaimer: Although DylanBotB is not a sports psychologist, his blog often discusses, with statistical reference, what separates the most mentally tough athletes from the rest.

Dylan Murphy, better known as “DylanBotB,” writes a sports blog aptly named “Bottom of the Barrel.” This title is synonymous with the style of its content, described self-deprecatingly as “bad sports journalism.” Simply, the blog’s purpose is to “criticize and make fun of sports personalities, events and issues, mostly using run-on sentences and marginally correct grammar.” However, BotB (if I may be so inclined) is selling himself short. Although he describes his style as one of a lazy frat boy, too lethargic to correct his grammar or bother to fix run-on sentences, the voice that appears in his post is not so. Rarely are grammatical errors made, and despite the occasional run-on sentence, his prose is easy to read. Is it possible that BotB is selling himself short in order to attract a wider audience? It appears that his goal is simply to attract readers to his blog, as he even offers a Twitter feed of content - “Need your bad journalism and useless sports commentary in 140 characters or less?” What BotB either fails to recognize, or intentionally chooses to ignore, is that his sports commentary is more compelling than much of what is available by professional sports journalist. Sports journalism is simply a means for one to express their opinions on performance, and if it’s graded on their ability to justify their opinion with statistical reference then BotB isn’t such a “bad sports journalist.”

Aphrodisiac Oyters (Photo Cred)

His post, “Clutch Players in the Playoffs,” (05/11/11) opens with the question, “did you know that oysters are aphrodisiacs?” Although this question may seem trivial, it works as a very accurate metaphor for what ensues. He continues to discuss that although you may not have known that oysters were aphrodisiacs, the question may not have surprised you because of the feeling that oysters give you; the same “know-it-when-you-see-it” sensation that is felt while witnessing athletes with the strongest mental toughness. He continues the metaphor while discussing athletes of different tiers of mental toughness, “A grilled chicken sandwich, of sorts. It’s going to be good, maybe great, but it’s not going to unequivocally bewilder and amaze your taste buds.” What’s fascinating about this post is that it proves the disingenuousness of BotB’s self-description. The metaphor of comparing taste to a feeling that an athlete summons is imaginative and the diction is equally impressive, yet he maintains his “bad journalism” stance by opening the post with the subject of aphrodisiacs. BotB is talented at disguising his inner genius.

Dirk with his Championship

To further the point, the post continues by comparing stats of the top closers in the league but not revealing which stats belong to whom. In doing so, the reader is enticed to guess who they think matches with which stats and BotB gains more credibility by backing his opinion with statistical evidence. Perhaps by chance, the conclusion that BotB determines from his analysis of the statistics is the unlikely, but ultimately true, conclusion that the Mavericks would win the championship in 2011 because of the clutch abilities of their star player, Dirk Nowitski.

Dirk as Sisyphus? (Photo Cred)

The post, “On Dirk...” offers even more insights into the mastery of sports journalism that BotB is seemingly trying to cover up. Not only does he convince the reader that the unlikely Mavericks would win the championship (despite 3:1 odds, he was right), but his voice continues to impress. He compares Dirk to “a modern day Sisyphus,” the loyalty to his seemingly failing team being his boulder – how does he expect to invoke this kind of voice in his 140-word Twitter feed? To cover up this educated voice, he mentions that Lebron “didn’t give a shit” about team loyalty, again, perhaps in an attempt to appear more accessible to the average reader.

I really like the voice that BotB conveys, however, I worry that he is dumbing it down so as to not seem as scholarly as he may be. His arguments are sound, concise, full of impressive rhetoric, and yet he still refers to his work as “bad journalism” and “useless commentary.” In no attempt to judge this strategy, I would love for his perceptive voice not to be marred by these futile attempts to sound less educated.  I personally think that he would gain more traction with professional sites if he simply gave up the “bad journalism” act. And yet, maybe that’s not his goal.

If you ever get the chance to read this DylanBotB; kudos for the most perceptive voice I have yet to witness in the field of sports journalism.

Blogger Profile: Kenneth Hartline

The Athlete’s Psychology

            Blogs have been violated. When it comes to blogs on the topic of sports psychology, nearly every one is an attempt to sell you a self-help book or set of videos. What happened to blogs being an expression of self, of opinion, an area of the Internet untainted by the sleaze that is profitability? Alas, Kenneth Hartline has come to the rescue. His blog, “The Athlete’s Psychology,” is the lifeboat that keeps interested readers from letting go of their curiosity.

            The Athlete’s Psychology is a blog that asks the questions, “Why did Michael Jordan appear unfazed in every pressure situation? How does Tiger Woods appear to be so calm standing over a putt worth $1 million?” Kenneth Hartline is a Doctor of Psychology candidate at Pepperdine University who graduated from the University of Oregon with concurrent Bachelor's degrees in both psychology and journalism with minors in Communications and Human Physiology. Although he has started a company that seeks to help athletes and coaches utilize sports psychology, he rarely mentions the business and continually seeks to inform his readers. He understands that athletes are as human as everyone else, and utilizes his education in psychology to analyze the performance of modern athletes. Unfortunately, posts that used to occur on a monthly basis in 2010 have since slowed; only one post (June 23^rd, 2011) has been made since August 22^nd of 2010. The site is no longer popular, as indicated by the fact that neither Alexis, nor Technorati, had any information on the site. Nonetheless, his posts are still relevant and unbiased, informative for both a psychology such as myself, or just an interested sports enthusiast.

Young crushing the hearts of my fellow Trojans (photo cred)

            In his post, “How Vince Young's rise and fall illustrate a growing problem inprofessional sports,” Hartline considers the effect of the off-field stress that accompanies star athletes. He profiles Vince Young, the quarterback who single-handedly willed the Texas Longhorns over our Trojans in the 2006 Rose Bowl and became a marquee name in the sport. When Young took a day off from work and failed to contact the team or his family, the media jumped on the news and pronounced him suicidal. What Mr. Hartline suggests was merely a case of “adjustment disorder” – a stress-related mental illness, was perceived to be a suicidal tendency. Hartline diagnoses the problem between psychology and sports, “Ahletes simply aren’t allowed to struggle with mental illness and are stigmatized negatively by the public if they dare take any time off for something intangible that the fans can’t see.” This post exemplifies Hartline’s perception of the business of sports and its affect on the psychology of its athletes.  

           

            The post, “Landon Donovan's Exclamation Point,” explains the psychological effect of being the underdog. He profiles the US World Cup victory over Algeria, a game that the US had dominated but failed to capitalize until a 93^rd minute goal by Landon Donovan,  to show the effect of playing to win, as opposed to playing not to lose. He states,  “it is a normal human reaction to be much more terrified of the criticism that comes from underperforming than from seeking the praise that results from achievement” – highlighting the fact that fear is the strongest human emotion. I found this post illuminating because even though it doesn’t use any psychological jargon, it stills highlights a natural tendency in the human psyche.

 

            This blog relates well to my work because I want to do exactly what Mr. Hartline does, analyze the performance of athletes, both on and off the field, from the perspective of a psychologist. I want to explain a player or team’s performance using the information that I have learned through my studies in psychology. This blog, despite its casual tone, is still scholarly in that it utilizes many psychological terms and refers to many leading professors of psychiatry. This blog will feed my work in that I can utilize many of its examples and come to my own conclusions.  I can link to, and critique, many of the points that it makes and offer a contrasting opinion. Although the blog lacks the voice that I hope to portray to my readers, it succeeds in making its content accessible to both psychology students and sports enthusiasts alike.

Hot as a Pistol!

Jason McElwain was born on October 1^st, 1987 and was diagnosed at a very young age with severe autism. Early on, he struggled socially in school, until his brother introduced him to the sport of basketball. With this new passion, McElwain experienced the world from a new perspective and began to make friends. He attended Greece Athena High School in New York, enrolled in the special needs program, when the coach for the varsity basketball team decided to name him team manager. Ecstatic, Jason attended every practice, every game, and every team meeting; he was an icon for the team. And then one day, magic happened. During the divisional championship game, Coach Jim Johnson, decided to put Jason on the roster to give him the opportunity to wear a jersey and sit on the bench. With four minutes left in the game, the crowd went wild when Jason was put in the game. His first two shots, a three-point attempt and a lay-up, both failed to hit the rim. The crowd was silent. Finally, Jason took a three-pointer and made it. Then he sunk another, and another. Nobody could believe it. The opposers double-teamed him, put their best defender on them, and Jason wouldn’t miss. He would finish with six three-pointers and a lay-up, for an astounding twenty points in four minutes. After the game, Jason mentioned, “I was hot as a pistol!” McElwain has since been celebrated nationally by the likes of national news coverage, an introduction to President Bush, and Lionsgate Films are now making a movie about this amazing story. 

 

   

Stories like this are the inspiration for my blog, the Psychology of Basketball. Although, “psychology of basketball” might seem vague, it will explore the effect of a player’s psyche in relation to their performance on the court, and what psychological factors might separate the best players from the rest. Of all the team sports, basketball may be the one where one player can have the most influence. It is also a sport where more often than not, the final play is determined by one player; the star gets the ball and he does what he has to in order to score. I’m intrigued by what separates the “clutch” player from those who lack the confidence to take or hit the game winning shot. I’m also intrigued by the phenomenon that players describe when “they’re in the zone,” “on fire,” or “hot as a pistol.”

Basketball has long been my passion and I am an avid fan. I am a student of the game, much like I am a student studying psychology at USC, and I am in a perfect place to study the cross-section of these two passions: the psychology of basketball. There are limited online resources on the topic of sports psychology, and even fewer specifically relating to basketball psychology, so I will be addressing a specific niche of interest.

            As far as subtopics are concerned, there are limitless combinations and innumerable online resources relating to basketball to be explored. Some examples include:

·      A case study comparing the “clutch” gene that certain players appear to have, comparing Kobe Bryant or Michael Jordan to Lebron James or Karl Malone.

·      A case study comparing Dennis Rodman’s personality to his style of play, both equally unique, yet successful.

·      The psychology of championships, why certain teams can win in the regular season but not in the playoffs.

·      The effect of the coach; a case study on Phil Jackson and his phenomenal mental composure and “zen-like” demeanour.

·      A case study on Ron Artest, the “Malice in the Palace” fight that he started, and his championship speech where he mentions his psychologist numerous times.

·      “We’re talking about practice. We ain’t talking about the game. Practice man. Practice,” speech by Allen Iverson, and the effect that this played on his teammates.

·      An analysis of the Jason McElwain story, autism in basketball.

·      Is there a psychological “home court advantage”

·      The collapse of the Lakers in the 2011 NBA playoffs.

·      Gambling and basketball, why it is so rampant in the lives of retired legends.