“ The game is my wife. It demands loyalty and responsibility, and it gives me back fulfillment and peace.” -Michael Jordan Basketball By: Alex Smolenski.

“The game is my wife. It demands loyalty and responsibility, and it gives me back fulfillment and peace.”-Michael Jordan

Basketball

By: Alex Smolenski

What is a relationship?

Relationship: the condition or fact of being related; connection or association.

Basketball has all three patterns of relationship:• Symmetrical• Complementary• Reciprocal

It is symmetrical, because it is competitive and there is conflict.

It is complementary, because there is power and control. Dominant over submissive.

It is reciprocal, because there is negotiating and caring and compassionate.

Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player to have ever played the game. He understood the game of basketball better than anyone. Here are some of his videos:

Michael Jordan!Michael Jordan is my main focus. As you can see from those videos, he related well to the game of basketball.

Quote time!!

• Michael Jordan had all three operational tendencies. He was maximizing, minimizing, and optimizing. Which basketball has these too, which is why Jordan was so in tuned to the game. He lived and breathed basketball.

Maximizing

“I play to win, whether during practice or a real game. And I will not let anything get in the way of me and my competitive enthusiasm to win.”

Minimizing

“Just play. Have fun. Enjoy the game.”

Optimizing

“To be successful you have to be selfish, or else you never achieve. And once you get to your highest level, then you have to be unselfish. Stay reachable. Stay in touch. Don't isolate.”

People usually think of relationships as relating to another person, while this is not inaccurate, it’s not the full nature of relationship.

Yes, basketball players have amazing relationships with their teammates, but the most important relationship is with themselves.

Michael Jordan's relationship with himself was a good one here is one of his quotes “I've failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed.”

The way you feel about yourself affects the way you play. On the basketball court, your teammates are all you have. You must respect them. With respect comes a bond that no one can break.

96’ Chicago Bulls went for a 72-10 season. The most wins before the NBA had more teams and games.

“Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships.”

It is not just a people to people relationship. The relationship Michael Jordan had with the court and the ball was amazing. In the video with his eyes closed, he was using only his sense of touch and feel. He knew how far away the hoop was and how heavy, round, light, the ball was.

This relationship is one of a kind.

Another important relationship is between the athlete and the crowd. This is an interesting relationship. People love a champion, someone who pays hard, plays fair, plays to win. People expect the athlete to always be a certain way.

Relationships make up everything in our world. A lot of them small enough that people do not even notice. Basketball has a lot of different relationships. These mentioned here, to me, are the most important.

Bibliography• "Images." Google. Web. 02 Oct. 2011. <http://www.google.com>.

• "Michael Jordan Quotes - BrainyQuote." Famous Quotes at BrainyQuote. Web. 02 Oct. 2011. <http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/m/michael_jordan.html>.

• "Michael Jordan." YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. Web. 02 Oct. 2011. <http://www.youtube.com>.

• "Relationship." Freedictionary.com: The Leading Free Dictionary Site on the Net. Web. 02 Oct. 2011. <http://www.freedictionary.com>.