Written by We know there is no I in team, but there can be one (or sometimes a few) player that heavily influences the team. I recently read about Miami Heat veteran player, Udonis Haslem, and his tenure on the team more so as a mentor than a player. The Heat organization considers him invaluable in this role on the team. He has won 3 championships in his 18 years with the Heat and has been able to provide mentorship and leadership to rookie players, that in turn positively influence their career.
The WNBA also began their season this week and viewership went up 27% for the Indians Fever New York Liberty game, likely due to Sabrina Ionescu. One of the most recognizable names in ALL of college basketball during her time at Oregon, Ionescu doubled attendance at women’s basketball games, both at home and on the road. While we can’t yet say the impact she has in WNBA in person attendance, yet as her career in the WNBA has coincided with a pandemic, she has already drawn major attraction to the WNBA.
These two athletes have influenced their teams in very different ways, but both prove to be invaluable to their respective organizations. While these two examples are positive, there is just as much opportunity for an athlete to be a negative influence on a team. Athletes that always have a negative attitude, or are just wanting the ball passed to them so they can score, can be just as powerful, if not more, than positive athletes. It’s important to recognize this aspect in a teammate because negativity seems to be more easily contagious than positivity. It also brings team morale down, and other players don’t want to play with that athlete because of their attitude.
No matter how good an athlete is, if they aren’t contributing positively to team morale, or making the locker room a welcome place for all members of the team, their role on the team should be evaluated. I believe this mentality to be true on any team, not just a sports team. If you have just one toxic person in your department or work team, it can make going to work miserable. If you have coworkers who make going to work even the slightest bit enjoyable, it changes your attitude about work completely. You never know how big your impact will be on those around you, make sure it’s always positive.
https://news.yahoo.com/heat-pay-40-old-veteran-170543746.html