It’s easy to become overwhelmed these days. Wars, political conflicts, economic turmoil, a new crisis seems to headline the news every day. Nothing seems stable right now.
But when times are tough, at least we have basketball to give us a little bit of joy and remind us that happiness and meaning are found in the small things. The laughter of your child, a really good cup of coffee when you thought you didn’t have the time, a kind word from a stranger or your local basketball team making the playoffs.
Unfortunately, in Dallas, the joy of the good old days is gone. It’s dead, and the time of waking up excited, early in the morning to watch what Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving would come up with this time (me), or staying up late (maybe you), is pretty much over.
But it’s also during adversity, hard times and sometimes even crisis that we grow and expand our horizons. We learn new things, tools on how to cope in future times of adversity; we put things in perspective.
The little things become the big things.
Just like in life when things are looking bleak around us, we need to refocus, reset and try to find some joy elsewhere.
When a current roster can’t tell you anything about an actual team, it’s time to focus on the little things, the fun and interesting details, the ray of hope and the tiny little beam of comfort.
You may find hope and joy in how the two-way players have stepped up for the Dallas Mavericks when they were given the opportunity and space of the moment. Of how the underdog g-leaguers had their time to shine, like Brandon Williams here, taking it coast-to-coast against the San Antonio Spurs Wednesday. Both him and Kessler Edwards have been impressively consistent for weeks now.
Or you may be comforted by the winning streak this dilapidated roster went on a few weeks ago, despite — and in spite of — the noise, bad vibes and smear campaign of their front office.
In an act of sheer will, the players still in Dallas after the Luka trade willed some wins out of nowhere. Almost and maybe as a nod to the fanbase, the players tried to squeeze the rest of what they had to try to cajole up some joy for a fanbase in shock and grief. And they succeeded, this team is all grit, poise and hard work, and they’re hard not to like.
And that may just be the point of all of this. When the little things become the big things, winning isn’t the be-all and end-all.
Meaning can be found other places than on the shoulders of a superstar, or in the ability of your team to contend. Meaning can be found in the littlest things. Being there for your grandma, never revealing to your uncle with dementia that Luka is not in Dallas anymore, and maybe enjoying sleeping late more often. Seeing the Mavs fight to make it a game, watching Klay Thompson get hot from three. Watching Naji Marshall be one of the most versatile players I’ve ever seen for a while there, enjoying his confident floater (just trying to avoid thinking about what could have been).
If I leave you with anything here, I hope it’s this: real meaning and happiness in life doesn’t come from your team’s winning total. It comes from the little things. Go out and smell the roses, really take in that expensive coffee, watch the sunset and go for a walk in nature without hurrying. Smile to a stranger, praise your kids’ childcare worker, lend a helping hand to the single mother with two crying kids.
Every one of the players on the Dallas Mavericks are real people with real hopes and dreams. They know that when you can’t contend, you have to find the little things to focus on and work on. And that’s what I’ll do over the next few weeks in this series simply called: The little things.
Find more Beyond Basketball pieces here.