Who saw Lebron James dunk on Kevin Garnett tonight? That guy is amazing. Just when you think they've figured out a way to keep him under wraps, he explodes to create yet another spectacular highlight. He dribbled through and around a couple defenders and when he got that one glimmer of daylight he turned on the accelerator and went full steam ahead at the rim. He would not be denied. The force with which he threw that ball down was tremendous, probably creating a vacuum in the plane that contained the path of the ball as he tomahawked it to and through the rim. Surely, the Celtics' hopes for winning game 4 were sucked right down into the rim on that one too. K.G. looked like Michael Cooper when Dr. J. got him years ago, realizing just a hair too late that he was...well, um...too late! No need to jump, just get out of the way of this train and try not to get hurt. Try not to make the poster look any worse by getting an elbow across your nose or an armpit on your head.
Lebron looked like he even amazed himself. He had a big smile on his face, in stark contrast to the warrior's intensity that his countenance usually wears for those 48 minutes between the lines. He has been relatively shackled in this series, all but stifled by the Celtics suffocating defense. He broke out in a hurry on that one. I doubt not that this single play will have a huge impact on his performance for the remainder of the series. Not that he wasn't playing hard already, but the adrenaline rush will surely raise him to another level.
As a fan, you've got to be surprised when you witness something like this. You know that this an exceptional cat, and you expect to be entertained every time, but this is one of those special moments. You ask yourself, "How can he top THAT?" He probably asked himself the same question. But he'll go out and try, no doubt. That's the wonderful thing about human body and physical prowess and CONFIDENCE. When you're at the height of your physical abilities and your mind and body are in tune and acting as one, there is no tangible thought that takes place. I'm quite sure that as he dribbled to the basket, he wasn't saying "I think I can, I think I can...,". He wasn't wondering whether or not he could score. His eyes saw the opening and like a wolf that has just spied a pork chop he was on it like white on rice. It happened in an instant. In the moment, it was all action. There would be time to think, analyze and reflect on things later. That's what highlights and super slo-mo's are for.
Lebron might catch a glimpse of himself on ESPN 30 or 40 times today, and he might raise an eyebrow at himself and maybe even say, "DAMN!" But will he suffer any anxiety between that moment and the start of the next game, wondering if he can do it again? Probably not. That's the wonderful thing about basketball or athletics in general. Well, at least through the eyes of most athletes. The creativity coupled with the physical skills makes the whole thing like one grand ballet. It's all at once, spectacular, graceful, and awe-inspiring.
I was always the type that loved game-time because I knew that I had run the sprints, lifted the weights, done the drills, taken the extra shots in preparation for the game. Sure, there is always the possibility that things just don't go your way, but its not for lack of effort. Practice makes things become second nature, and repetition makes it so that you don't have to have the "I think I can...I wonder if I can" type episodes right in the moment. I think I've done 2 things in my life where I was pretty impressed with myself and probably could not do again if you asked me. One was on the basketball court in one of my high school games. Oddly enough, this was one of those "wasn't my day" kind of games, but I contorted my body up over and around 3 defenders for a dunk that, like I said, I probably wouldn't even attempt again in a gym by myself. The other was a time when, as a 9-year old on my bicycle, I drove through oncoming traffic on an expressway because that was the only reasonable path to safety. There was no time to think about this one, it just kind of happened. I was riding bikes with my uncle and wasn't paying attention, as 9-year olds are wont to do, and as a result, didn't notice that he was making his way across the street without me. I probably should've remained there on the median and waited until the light turned red before venturing across, but I went anyway. I made it past one car, recognized that the second one would hit me if I tried to get past it, so I turned right, drove between the two cars, and calmly turned left after the 2nd car passed and strolled on over to safety on the other side of the street. Again, I wouldn't dream of trying this again, but even this seems much more do-able than the dunk, although the fact that these cars just went straight and didn't swerve or anything was a variable that I don't want to chance again.
But what about creativity in the more creative sense? I find writing to be one of those creative arts that trouble me from time to time. Let me first state emphatically that, despite any natural ability I may have as a writer, I by no means feel that my writing skills have endeavored into the expert realm of Lebron's basketball skills, or even my own, for that matter. I may show a glimpse of some promise from time to time, but there is definitely the need for much more repetition here. But sometimes I fear that even repetition won't quite get it done. In a basketball game, even if I'm having a spell like another guy in that game, Ray Allen of the Celtics, where I can't make a shot to save my life, I can always play some good defense, make a steal or get a rebound by sheer will and determination. However, I don't feel like I can "will" a literary masterpiece out of my head on demand. Whenever I write something that friends and colleagues particularly enjoy, I am prone to feel some pressure to do it again the next time.
The mind is a funny thing. It can be so consumed with the fact that it alone controls everything that goes on with you, that it can unilaterally shut down your ability to "think". Well, not actually shut down your ability to "think", but perhaps your ability to focus and produce your desired output. In writing, its a little harder to just "play some defense" or go "get a rebound", at least literally. Figuratively, I guess, I can do the written equivalent of "doodling" until I get inspired and hit my stride. Sometimes that works. Other times that just produces an off the wall entry like you see here in the "Daily" sometimes. We'll let you decide how to classify this one.
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