Finding the 6ixth Man…
There are five players on a basketball team who arrest the attention of fans; they are known as the starters. Tell me you have never wanted to be the starter on any team in any sport and I will call you a liar, respectfully of course. People don’t grow up saying, “I want to be the first guy off the bench.” Truth is we all thirst for limelight. Nevertheless, the National Basketball Association (NBA) gives an award to the best bench player as does the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). In recent years the players receiving this award include the following:
WNBA
2009-2010 Dewanna Bonner (Phoenix Mercury)
2008-2009 Dewanna Bonner (Phoenix Mercury)
2007-08 Candice Wiggins (Minnesota Lynx)
2006-07 Plenette Pierson (Detroit Shock)
NBA
2010-2011 Lamar Odom (Los Angeles Lakers)
2009-2010 Jamal Crawford (Atlanta Hawks)
2008-2009 Jason Terry (Dallas Mavericks)
2007-08 Manu Ginobli (San Antonio Spurs)
2006-07 Leandro Barbosa (Phoenix Suns)
2005-06 Mike Miller (Memphis Grizzlies)
2004-05 Ben Gordon (Chicago Bulls)
2003-2004 Antawn Jamison (Dallas Mavericks)
The Sixth Woman/Man award says something about the elite teams of the professional world of basketball – they are successful because of their bench play. Good teams are at their best when they have a spark, an advantage or some form of an edge that extends the expert skill set of the starting five so that superior play can continue on the floor while starters rest. Now, take the metaphor of the Sixth Woman/Man and pretend that every lesson you have ever learned in your lifetime is the best player that you have on your “bench”. The lessons can help you live with championship perspective but remember, the “6ixth Man” is not a starter. You have to sub your top reserve into the game so that your team can benefit from the services of the “6ixth Man”. But the “6ixth Man” in life is different than the one in basketball in that it does not replace anything. In basketball, when a bench player comes into the game, a starter has to sit down. With the 6ixth Man, it is as if you are playing the world 6-on-5 with a one-person advantage. YOU are a team by yourself and you compete daily against your emotions, fears, self-deceptions, abuses, injustice, etc. You need an advantage so that you can cope with and overcome the challenges of this world. You need a 6ixth Man and the book you are about to read will offer you opportunities for self-evaluation to help you purify your motives for why you do things the way you do.
