Succes = investment

For coaches

Did you know that Greg Popovic left the position of head-coach in a Division III College team to become a volunteer assistant (= 4th assistant) at Kansas University (Div I) in 1985-1986? Afterwards, Brown took him as a assistant to the Spurs for 4 years, before becoming one of the most succesfull headcoaches in the history of the NBA.
SUCCES = INVESTMENT.

Popovic as an assistant of Larry Brown with the San Antonio Spurs

For players

Who remembers NBA player Jerry Stackhouse?
Drafted as 3rd overall pick in the NBA Draft of 1995, many analysts labeled him as “the next Michael Jordan”.
Maybe he had the same physical abilities and talent, but how come his career doesn’t even come close to that of Michael Jordan?
After every season, Michael Jordan asked himself the same old question: “What do I have to work on this summer to become a better player?” Every summer, MJ worked on his game, and at least three times in his career, he re-invented himself as a player.
When Jerry Stackhouse was asked exactly the same question early in his career, he answered: “I’m already a real good player.”
SUCCES = INVESTMENT.

In 2002-2003, MJ and Stackhouse were teammates with the Wizards. At the age of 40, Jordan scored more points than Stackhouse, who should be at his best at the age of 28.