In sports, fundamentals and creativity don’t often get mentioned in the same breath, but the two are vitally important and subtly intertwined. No athlete exemplified that more than the great “Pistol Pete” Maravich.
While he is probably most remembered for his flashy moves and outlandish scoring stats (he averaged 44.2 points per game over the course of his 83-game college career at LSU), what gets lost in the fable-like story is the commitment he displayed in learning fundamentals. Press Maravich, Pistol Pete’s father and a famous coach himself, showed his son at a young age how strong fundamentals could lead to breathtaking creativity on the court.
Press wasn’t interested in teaching Pete the “right and proper” way to behave on a basketball court. Remember, this was in the 1950s and 1960s, when set shots were common and racially integrated teams were inconceivable. But Press challenged young Pete to do the unthinkable, and soon he was spinning the ball on his fingertips for hours, dribbling a basketball everywhere he went, and yes, even practicing with young black players. Pistol Pete’s behind-the-back passes became a staple move that was the cover photo for his never-before-seen style of play.
Relentless dedication to the fundamentals bred creativity on the court, and Pistol Pete changed the game forever.
Today, behind-the-back passes and racially integrated teams are as common as sliced bread, which leads me to believe that Press and Pete were both way ahead of their time. Even though they were labeled as “hot dogs” and “selfish” in that era, no one could argue today that anything they did was bad for the game.
While coaching Pistol Pete at LSU in the late 1960s, Press did what all great coaches do—emphasize the proper technique and fundamentals while still freeing players up to use their creativity and innovation. Pistol Pete and his teammates were encouraged to take risks, but they still never strayed far from the fundamentals.
Pistol Pete was fortunate enough to be coached by his father, and in the Christian walk our Coach is also our Dad. Check out this portion of Scripture from Romans 8:14-17.
“All those led by God’s Spirit are God’s sons. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father!’ The Spirit Himself testifies together with our spirit that we are God’s children, and if children, also heirs—heirs of God and coheirs with Christ—seeing that we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.”
The Greek word for Holy Spirit is Paraklete, One who comes alongside as a Helper or Counselor. Or even as a Coach. Our Heavenly Father is our Coach!
Romans 8 says the Holy Spirit takes you from fear to confidence when you belong to God by trusting in Jesus as your Savior. God teaches us the proper fundamentals of Christ-like living through the Bible, and getting rooted deeply in those fundamentals takes an intense amount of time and study. The Holy Spirit reveals the Father’s love and intimacy with us, His plan of salvation, and His specific will for each of us.
It’s “basic dribbling, passing and shooting” through the study of the Word that frees us up for the resultant power from the Holy Spirit to be doers of His will as He conforms us into the im-age of Jesus.
And, like any great Coach, God takes us to the edge of the cliff and teaches us how to use suffering for Christ as a training ground. Like a mother eagle with her little eaglets, He drops us off the same cliff into a world of danger and opposition before we think we’re ready to fly. Through these tests, the Holy Spirit coaches us to creative genius by teaching us to live out the Word of God with spiritual “behind-the-back passes” when all we can see are closed passing lanes at every angle. One day, a mother’s eaglets soar with confidence, and similarly, God’s training inspires us to be prepared to glorify Him in spectacular fashion.
Great coaches ingrain the fundamentals, but they’re just as tenacious in inspiring their play-ers to take the risks necessary for excellence.
To all the coaches out there, you and I are called to lead our youngsters the same way that Coach Paraklete coaches us: With great godly fundamentals coupled with godly creativity. We’re preparing these kids for every situation in which God might call them. His training ground for them is the sports world, which will teach them to soar like eagles in life.
Originally Published: March 2013