Team-first attitude is sport's latest craze

By Ben Miller

Feb 16, 2005, 12:00 AM

The Seattle Supersonics are 35-14 and lead the NBA's Northwest Divison by 11.5 games as they head into the All-Star Break. This is the same squad ESPN.com picked to finish 29th out of 30 teams in its preseason power rankings earlier this winter. So, how did they go from being ranked at the bottom of the NBA to being a being a mid-season title contender? They bought into the team concept. The Sonics are just one example of a new trend popping up everywhere in the sports world these days. Playing as a team, rather than as a collection of individuals, has become the fashionable thing to do. While the Sonics are led by Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis, they are anything but one-dimensional. All five players on the floor play a major role for the team, whether as setting a screen, grabbing a crucial offensive rebounding or kick it out to Allen for a 3-pointer. They are not afraid to make that extra pass, even if it means they have to pass up on a shot. All they care about is the difference between a win and a loss. Whenever a team upsets a superior collection of talent, it is always looked at as an upset. Instead, it shows that winning does not have to do with having the best players, but having the players that perform together the best. As winners of three of the last four Super Bowls, New England is the definitive example of success at the team level. The Patriots do not have the best players at every position, but they still continue to win year in and year our. Participating in 2002's Super Bowl, the Patriots started the re-emergence of the team when they chose to be announced, not individually as had been done every time before that, but simply as a team. New England went on to win, upsetting the heavily favored St. Louis Rams 20-17. While the Patriot dynasty was the catalyst that set forth the comeback of team play, it has been two events in the basketball world over the last eight months that has ultimately signified change in the way games are won. The Detroit Pistons came into the 2004 finals last June looking like easy pickings for a Los Angeles Lakers team that had four future Hall of Famers in the starting lineup. However, the Pistons were resilient and their "as a team" approach beat out the "me first" attitude of the Lakers, wining the championship in five games. It was then two months later that the U.S. Olympic men's basketball team could not even get into the gold medal game in Greece for the first time since 1988, taking home a bronze. Instead, Argentina and Italy played for first place, with Argentina winning the gold. Both Italy and Argentina won last summer by playing together against a team, beating a U.S. team said to be wrought with ego and not enough chemistry. Those two events were what really paved the way for teams like the Sonics to be recognized for the fact that, while they may not have the best collection of talent on any given night, they can play together at an incredibly high level against anyone. With about two months to go before the playoffs start, the Sonics will try prove night in and night out that they are the best "team" in the league.

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