The second season of the NBA is currently in full swing. Every playoff game means so much in a seven game series that coaches are willing to dig deep in their bag of tricks to get their players primed. The latest example of this practice is from the head coach of the Denver Nuggets, George Karl.

Already down 1-0 to the Los Angeles Lakers, Karl knew the team needed a little kick to up the intensity and aggressiveness for game two. Before the second game he showed his team video segments from mixed martial arts. Watching pure, unadulterated fury is not normally expected in preparation for a basketball game. It almost worked. For three quarters the Nuggets kept the game close until the the Lakers proved to be too much in the fourth quarter. And it never hurts to have Kobe Bryant drop 49 points.

The reasons for the loss are numerous: Bryant hit unbelievable shots, the game was played in Los Angeles, etc. However, Karl must be applauded for taking a chance in his communication with the team. The take-away message before the game was aggressiveness. The expected course of action would be just to say it. He, instead, violated expectations by showing a video. This brings up a major point of communication. If you want your message to be completely heard then you must violate the expectations of the audience.

Any time you depart from normal behavior you give your team unexpected actions. People pay more attention to new things than the usual. Karl did not have a history of showing fighting videos before games so the message was clearly communicated and all the players understood what was desired.

Unfortunately, the Nuggets lost game two and now face an almost impossible task in trying to win the series down two games to none. They can overcome and win but the mindset needs to be shifted. It will definitely help playing at home but they must win the third game.

The fighting video resonated with the players. The players knew what was expected of them and Karl showed he could send a message to his team. It is clear the team respected Karl for taking the chance and switching things up but the medium is always the message. Fighting is an individual sport and the Nuggets in game two played a largely individual game. The message of the video was individual aggressiveness and that is exactly what the Denver players showed.

If you want the team to be aggressive then you must plant the seed of a group dynamic being aggressive. Perhaps showing a battle scene from Braveheart would set the tone of unity and overcoming adversity. After all, in game two the Nuggets got 12 assists versus their season average of 24. The result of aggressiveness as individuals.

An incredible series of events occured this week in Southeastern Conference men’s basketball. On March 8th, Mississippi traveled to Georgia to finish out the conference schedule. Through the course of the season Georgia managed to play themselves to the bottom of the SEC while Mississippi hovered in the middle of the pack. As to be expected Georgia lost by double digits.

Fast forward five days to March 13th. In what appeared to be a sick joke, once again Mississippi and Georgia met in the opening round of the SEC tournament. However, this time around Georgia not only took Mississippi into overtime but hit a last-second shot to win.

Only five days separated a devastating loss and a thrilling overtime victory. Georgia did not have time to increase their size, strength, speed or other physical attributes. Both teams had the same access to game tapes and scouting reports. On top of that, in the first game, when Georgia lost, the game was held at Georgia. The second game was a neutral site, kind of, in Atlanta.

Nothing by the numbers suggested an upset either. Going into the SEC tournament Mississippi had an RPI of 43 while Georgia carried a whopping 117 ranking. What was not measured, though, was the mental toughness of Georgia’s head coach, Dennis Felton.

In an interview before the conference tournament, Felton defended his decisions in the first game and took full responsibility for the outcome. He made clear his principles and stuck to his guns. The only thing that could change, in five days, did change. Felton announced his confidence and his team responded.

As teams capture the final spots in the NCAA tournament and upsets abound it’s never a surprise to the winning team. These upsets, no matter how improbable, do not happen by accident. In fact, the only reason they are upsets is because numbers and previous history point to another winner. It simply boils down to: until you know a team’s beliefs you cannot know a team’s results.

The big news rocking the world of football is the retirement of Brett Favre. Since the announcement, websites and sports shows have tirelessly reviewed Favre’s statistics and previous accomplishments. What is lost is the unquantifiable impact of Favre’s presence on the team.

Individuals that are a part of a group associate with that group based on emotions. Be it a chess club, political group or athletic team all of the individuals identify with the group based on the emotions that surface. Now that the fearless iron-man is gone what is the impact beyond the numbers? How will the new Packers identify themselves without Favre?

These are questions only speculation can answer now. But it will provide an excellent case study in how emotions shape confidence and ultimately, performance.

With the inception of Youtube and 24 hour sports news coverage any coaching mishap travels through the ether with amazing speed. The lastest coaching meltdown to make the rounds was from the Michigan Women’s Basketball Head Coach, Kevin Borseth. While it is easy to find humor in the lack of emtional control the question that must be answered is how did it get to that?

Every season, for every team, begins with unlimited potential. Slowly, as the season progresses, key events transpire that define a team and create expectations for their eventual result. In the end, the coaching staff must take responsibility so flaws can be identified and corrections made.

In sports, much like physics, every action creates an equal reaction. Clearly, it was a lack of rebounding that sparked Borseth’s over-emotional reaction but the cause of the rebounding deficit is largely unknown. The immediate, in-game, cause may have been simply a lack of hustle or motivation but what is known is that the main cause occured weeks if not months ago.

Top coaches in the country know that every action executed by their players is a representation of the program and of the teachings instilled by the coach. Any time a coaching tirade or meltdown occurs it is an obvious signal that the coach has trouble accepting responsibility for the actions of their players. After all, if a coach cannot control their behavior then how successful will they be at controlling the behavior of their players?

Watch any post game news conference and the majority of time the same formula unfolds. The winner(s) lauds everyone who helped in the victory and praises their opponent for a solid effort. The loser(s) congratulate the victors for their deserving effort and remark on their own level of satisfaction. Aside from the rare, and very entertaining, emotional explosion most coaches and athletes follow “the script.” A very select few differentiate themselves on the podium by showing their command of their athletic performance and diction.

To listen to Tiger Woods, Pete Carroll, or Phil Jackson is to hear a completely different recollection of the preceding competition. There are no excuses or blames for mishaps. On the other side, there are no egos massaged for positive outcomes. Just a very objective account of what transpired is shared.

20th century philosopher, Ludwig Wittgenstein once wrote “the world we live in is the words we use.” This can be directly applied to the great sports figures as they do not live in a world of excuses or athletic inequalities, shown by their descriptions. They live in a world where their actions shape outcomes and they take full responsibility. Next time you recall an athletic contest to friends, family or the media be aware of your word choice because ultimately, it is a representation of how you view your actions.