I Witnessed Flow at the Highest Level
What did I learn?
In today’s Bite Size Pickleball newsletter:
Flow at the Highest Level
11 Ways of the Athletic Warrior
FLOW AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL
Pictured above is Sacramento Kings player Domantas Sabonis sizing up a free throw BEFORE he shoots it. That was followed by a nice deep breath and THEN the shot. Which, yup, I am going to point, as I always do, to your pickleball serve. Take your time. Develop a routine, and focus. Don’t just call the score out and quickly swing away, that typically can result in a lot of unforced errors. The only reason you should be serving quickly is if you and your partner are on a massive run. In that case, yes, I recommend serving rapidly to keep the momentum going. Otherwise, breathe…
I was fortunate enough to attend two back-to-back Kings games last week, one versus the Brooklyn Nets, and the other against the OKC Thunder. Unfortunately, for the Kings, they lost both games. The reason? FLOW.
The Nets and Thunder were in such an amazing place of flow. And it was an exquisite things to behold. I especially like how both their coaches hardly had to say a word during the game, they just watched as their team kept the flow going. The ball never stopped moving for more than a second, and the players, in their schematics, revolved effortlessly around the court, led by their point guards Cam Thomas, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, both entirely in peak performance mode.
So, I got to thinking, what does flow really boil down to? What are the simplest concepts? And not just for basketball, but for any sport, pickleball included.
Holiday gift idea? My Pickleball Funnies book at Amazon.
Number 1? Flow starts with preparation. And that preparation starts with practice. Not only physical practice but, shocker again, because you know how much I harp on it, mental practice as well (e.g. Domantas Sabonis intentionally breathing at the free throw line). Another big part of preparation is strategy. And strategy includes not only knowing the game overall, and studying the game, like a diligent student, but knowing your opponent’s game, and formulating a strategy designed to attack them, and then executing that plan properly.
That’s the simple recipe designed for a flow state: Practice, Strategy, Game Plan, Execution, and then get the f*ck out of your own way. In other words, you need to get to a place where very little thought is put into your action, you just perform, and trust that the work you put into your game will carry you through, i.e., the muscle memory is there.
Lastly, forget about the destination, in other words, the end of the game, match, or contest. Trust the moment, each valuable one, that those moments will add up to good things. If your sights are constantly set on an outcome, you will be challenged trying to play in the moment, and thusly, tapping “The Zone.” You want more Zone? You want to be able to reach peak performance on a consistent basis? Put in the time. Otherwise, you’re just swinging away hoping to get lucky. The Great Ones understand this.
11 WAYS OF THE ATHLETIC WARRIOR: A GUIDE TO PEAK PERFORMANCE
If you want to reach further, for peak performance in your own game, I want to point you toward my latest book available at Amazon. It’s short and sweet, and it outlines what it takes to get the most out of your game, and your life. It very much comes from a noble Zen/Samurai kind of place with many dashes of humor. Apply it to your pickleball game and the skies the limit, you’ll be kicking some major ass.
