Those familiar with famed UCLA basketball coach John Wooden may already know how he traditionally ran his first practice of the season. As fresh-faced and spry 18-year old freshmen were chomping at the bit to get on the court and show their stuff, Wooden supposedly spent the bulk of the time showing the young men how to put on their socks and tie their shoes. Future hall-of-famers like Luke Walton and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar looked on in bewilderment wondering if they were being put on.
In time, they would go on to appreciate the coach's unorthodox methods. What Wooden was trying to teach his young players was the necessity of first mastering the fundamentals no matter how well you think you already know them. Showing someone how to properly put on a pair of socks may seem ridiculous but if they're too tight you're likely to get blisters after running up and down the court for hours and having to stop on a dime. In other words, too often we want to just jump in before mastering the basics.
What Wooden understood was poise, patience, and mastery of the fundamentals were essential to being world class. His 10 national championships in 12 years, including 7 years in a row seem like a pretty strong argument for his belief system.
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