The Mark Jackson Effect

The human race, or at the very least, Americans, are generally very loathe to taking big risks…….especially if their backs aren't up against the wall.

“Don’t screw up a good thing” is the kind of quote I have heard a lot over the years. If things are going “well” and improving then change is the last thing that anyone is looking for…."take small bites". "Be happy with getting better."

If we are doing something that is deemed successful, whether it be in business, in finance, in marriage, in sports, etc., we tend to want to secure it and keep it going…..the last thing we want to do is to upset something that is "good". Well, surely that kind of safety has preserved a lot of mediocrity and prevented a lot of magnificence…..

The NBA's Golden State Warriors ended the 2013 season 51–31, winning more than 50 games for only the fourth time in franchise history, finishing 20 games over .500 for the first time in 22 years, and tying the 1991–92 squad for the franchise's all-time mark of 24 wins on the road. Even without one of their future key players in Andrew Bogut, in the first round of the playoffs the Warriors battled the third-seed Los Angeles Clippers to a seventh and deciding game, which the Warriors lost, bringing their 2013–14 season to an end.

In his three-season tenure as Warriors head coach, Mark Jackson compiled a 121-109 (.526) record, overseeing a terrific turnaround. When Jackson took the helm in 2011, the franchise had made the playoffs only one time over the prior 17 seasons, averaging 30.2 wins per season during that period. Jackson, 49, became just the third head coach in franchise history to lead a team to at least 50 wins in a season.

A true visionary and risk taker is someone who can see past the relative successes….one who turns his back on the masses who say “leave well enough alone”, etc… In sports, we are so terrified of failure that any improvement is a huge victory unto itself…it is a “cruise control” that leaves fans, management, and players feeling good about the present and hopeful about the future…if nothing else it buys you time.

We've all seen this in a football game…..a football team goes up by 25 points at halftime by passing the ball and then they change their plan to “protect” the lead….they forgo a magnificent victory for a mediocre one because they are terrified of defeat…..it often leads to constipation and the other team coming back and challenging, and sometimes winning….We want to protect what we have….we are reticent to risk getting a C, while going for an A, when we have a B.

So, when the owners and general manager of the Golden State Warriors notified one of the most successful coaches in franchise history who had just come off of a 50 plus win season that he was fired it sent shock waves through the league.....the Warriors players themselves were content with Coach Jackson. They voiced unanimous support for him when rumor spread that his job was in jeopardy. No one fires a coach that is taking his team to heights it hasn’t seen in 30 plus years….

Well, Golden State Warrior management wasn’t satisfied….they thought they could do better, much better…...and they were right. They understood the term “opportunity cost”: the loss of potential gain from other alternatives when one alternative is chosen. It’s normally a term that is reserved for economics but it applies perfectly to the Warriors managerial posture after the (successful) 2014 season.

They gave up on the “good” because they thought they could be “great”. In May of 2014 Mark Jackson was fired and Steve Kerr (a former player who was currently employed as a color commentator) was hired. He had NO coaching experience….at any level. With great risk often comes great reward….

With Kerr at the helm for his first season the Warriors won their first 24 games, the greatest start in NBA history. The team set an NBA record 54-straight regular season home game winning streak,. The 2015 Golden State Warriors won the NBA championship for the first time since 1975. The following year Golden State set the record for most wins in a single season, finishing 73-9. They held a 3-1 lead in the NBA finals before losing to the eventual champions, Cleveland. The following year, 2017, the Warriors breezed to their 2nd championship in 3 years…..the team is very young and their dominance seems virtually assured for years to come….

Who among us would have let go of a successful coach in the middle of one of the most successful runs in franchise history….Who in sports would even consider it? Sports is not where great risk takers are made…..it’s stunningly conservative….a "risk taker" in football might elect to “go for it” on 4th and 3. Yet, we all know that the average play in an NFL game is more than 3 yards…so how is that a risk? Pro Sports might just be the most conservative institution in our society….thankfully, for some, a very few….a magnificent failure is more satisfying than a mediocre success.

Bravo to those who don't conform to society's standards!

Bravo!