Archive for July 2014
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In 1988, Peter Golenbock wrote “Personal Fouls” in which he stated that North Carolina State players’ grades were fixed by Coach Valvano, positive drug tests were kept secret, and players received money, cars, etc., from a special fund. He also maintained that Valvano looked the other way when star player Charles Shackleford was allowed to steal teammates’ sneakers and sell them without being punished. As a result of Golenbock’s book, the chancellor of the university was forced to resign and Valvano was stripped of his athletic directorship. And there’s a reason why shortly thereafter Valvano was diagnosed with cancer. When I was associated with the R.A. Bloch Cancer Support Center in Kansas City, Missouri, co-founder Richard Bloch (H&R Block) was convinced there was a direct correlation between stress and illness. And Jim Valvano was an excellent example. Had he not been famous, and was just a high school basketball coach somewhere, he probably would still be alive today.
Now that John Elway is calling the shots with the Denver Broncos, I predict you’ll see a different kind of team…one that is much more aggressive. For example, you won’t see again what happened two years ago in the playoffs when, with 31 seconds and three timeouts remaining, and the score tied, head coach John Fox told Manning to “take a knee.” Amazing! One of the best NFL quarterbacks of all time at the helm, whose specialty is moving the ball down the field under pressure, and he’s told by his coach to take a knee. That tells you a lot about coach Fox: He isn’t a risk-taker…like Elway and Manning. So if Elway performs true to form, he’ll be encouraging Fox to do the right thing and utilize Manning’s amazing talents. In addition, the Broncos are loaded with great football players.
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The Tamp Bay Buccaneers announced yesterday that defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth has been released, but gave no indication why. It’s possible that Albert has forgotten the lesson he learned back in 2006,when he underwent counseling. The following appeared in USA Today: “DT Albert Haynesworth said he learned through counseling that he should quit bottling up his emotions until they explode, a problem that landed him the NFL’s longest suspension for an on-field act. His remorse and willingness to seek help since kicking Dallas Center Andre Gurode in the face with his cleats is why he will practice today. But the Titans are requiring Haynesworth to continue that anger-management counseling. ‘I just want to keep doing it,’ Haynesworth said. ‘Honestly, it’s helping. I can actually talk about stuff. My wife likes it, too. I actually open up and talk about problems I have.’” Athletes who withhold, who bottle-up their feelings, will not perform anywhere near their skill level and are prone to making mental errors during competition because withholding affects their ability to focus.
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I firmly believe that when you’re happy, and your life is in harmony, you will create positive events in your life on and off the field of competition. And such is the case with Cleveland Cavalier’s new head coach David Blatt. I don’t believe it was a coincidence that soon after he accepted the position of head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, the number one basketball player on the planet, LeBron James, rejoined the team. Based on the theory of quantum mechanics, many consciousness physicists believe our mind creates our own success and our own reality. And though I’m not a consciousness physicist, I do believe there’s an excellent possibility that the Cavaliers will win the 2014-2015 NBA Championship, even though it will be coach Blatt’s first year as an NBA head coach.