Basketball and Philosophy: Thinking Outside the Paint

The Zen Master and the Big Aristotle

THE ZEN MASTER AND THE BIG ARISTOTLE Fritz Allhoff and Anand J. Vaidya Philosophy, Bullshit, and Basketball IT IS OFTEN HARD to see how esoteric philosophical speculations have anything to do with everyday practical concerns. The dense abstractions of Aristotle and the cryptic and poetical musings of Lao-tzu can easily seem irrelevant to our supercharged world of deadlines, day care, and cell phones. However, this conception of the relation between philosophy and everyday life is deeply mistaken, as the following analogy bears out. As we write, philosopher Harry Frankfurt’s book On Bullshit (2005) is a New York Times Bestseller. Although Frankfurt’s book is a first-rate work of (semi-)serious philosophical analysis, many people probably buy the book only because they get a kick out of the title. Lots of people, in fact, think that that’s exactly what philosophy is: bullshit. Philosophers are happy to accept the unintended compliment. It’s true that bullshit in itself is unattractive and useless—in fact, worse than useless if you step in it. But as third-world subsistence farmers know, cow dung fertilizes plants and can be used as fuel. Philosophy is much the same. Although it may initially seem useless and unappealing, philosophy promotes wisdom in our lives, nurtures the growth of the human spirit, and fuels our imaginations. Through engagement with the great thinkers of the past, philosophy opens our minds, disciplines our thinking, helps us overcome obstacles, fortifies us against adversity, and expands our sense of what is possible. Even philosophy that seems hopelessly abstract or esoteric may have surprising applications in other disciplines, as shown, for example, by advances in physics, mathematics, psychology, Cultivating a Philosopher in the Low Post 108 Fritz Allhoff and Anand J. Vaidya and linguistics by philosophers such as Aristotle, Descartes, Locke, Kant, Wittgenstein, and Russell. In addition, philosophy has led to extremely practical applications in fields such as computer technology, artificial intelligence , and democratic theory, not to mention Monty’s Python’s immortal “Philosopher’s Drinking Song.” On the face of it, philosophy would seem to have little relevance to basketball. Unlike baseball, basketball isn’t usually perceived as a “thinking person’s game.” Basketball is a relatively simple game with simple rules and a simple objective that stresses proper execution of a small number of basic skills (dribbling, shooting, passing, guarding, and rebounding ). A fifth-grader can understand the fundamentals of good basketball . So what could tweedy philosophy professors possibly add that wouldn’t be simply “bullshit”? Well, as Kant and Dennis Rodman liked to say, appearances can be deceiving. Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson, often called the “Zen Master,” actively uses philosophy to improve players’ performance and to motivate and inspire his players and fellow coaches, both on and off the court. In fact, Jackson has so integrated philosophy into his coaching and his personal life that it’s difficult to distinguish his role as a basketball coach from his role as a philosophical guide and mentor to his players. In this chapter we examine how philosophy has helped Jackson become a great coach and one of Jackson’s star pupils, Shaquille O’Neal, become an MVP-caliber player. Now and Zazen Although Jackson was raised as a Pentecostal in a very religious family, the philosophical insights he brings to basketball mostly come from outside the religious tradition in which he was brought up. Among the philosophers Jackson has been most strongly influenced by are Aristotle, William James, Jiddu Krishnamurti, Pir Vilyat Khan, various Native American thinkers, and Carlos Castaneda. But the philosophical outlook that has most shaped his coaching style and personal life is Zen Buddhism . One work of particular importance is Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, by the late Japanese Roshi, Shunryu Suzuki. Jackson has recommended this book to several of his players over the years. 109 The Zen Master and the Big Aristotle Zen philosophy originates from the teachings of the Buddha (566 486 BCE), which are centered on the problem of human suffering. One of the most basic truths of human existence, Buddha taught, was that humans find themselves in a world of pervasive suffering. At a physical level, humans can suffer because of physical injuries or unsatisfied bodily desires, such as hunger, thirst, and desire for sexual pleasure. Socially, humans suffer from the problems caused by social desires related to the ego, such as status...