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.