I’ve long held the theory that you can tell a lot about the mindset and character of a person by their favourite game. And this theory applies as well to the way that person likes to play their favourite game.
Indians, for instance, play cricket, especially when batting, with strokes of more wristy elegance than the majority of Australian batsmen have played over the ages.
The best of the Australian batsmen have tended to have a more pragmatic, outcome-based style than most of their Indian counterparts.
There are exceptions, of course.
Sachin Tendulkar has been more ‘Australian’ with his batting technique and Suni Gavaskar was very much like Geoffrey Boycott in his ‘English’ blocking and negative batting style.
This theory can be applied to the US presidential election.
In his younger years, Barack Obama was a gifted and enthusiastic basketball player. And he showed he still has the swish when he was asked in Iraq to shoot baskets with the troops.
He effortlessly sank a long basket, even though he was wearing a suit.
John McCain is a dedicated poker player. He plays for hours, is very determined about winning and is apparently a fearless gambler.
I think this gambling, one-hand-turns-everything-around style reflects McCain’s instinct to go for king-hits in this presidential campaign, with the choice of Sarah Palin being an outstanding (foolhardy?) example of the big kill instinct that poker players develop.
The basketball ethic is that gifted individuals (such as Michael Jordan) take the big shots but play within a team environment. Obama plays the part of Jordan while looking to both sides of politics to find a common ground for policies.
Is politics a game of poker, or more like a basketball game? My guess is that the truer analogy is the basketball metaphor.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 34 points as Oklahoma overcame a Dallas franchise playoff-record 13 blocks, rallying for a 100-96 victory to even their NBA Western…
As much as fans of the other franchises hate to admit it, there is magic in the NBA air when the New York Knicks…
Corey Williams is being remembered as a one-of-a-kind NBL figure after the former MVP and outspoken commentator lost his fight with cancer. A New…
Sadly, on Thursday the owners of WNBL club the Melbourne Boomers handed back their license which has been transferred to a Geelong-based consortium. The…
The Timberwolves as a franchise have never even made the Finals, but this season's roster has the size and the scoring to trouble the other remaining teams.
The Lakers’ decision to fire coach Darvin Ham just days after their first-round exit is merely the beginning of what will be a flurry…
