One can never predict the future, and thus, one should never put their full “trust” into any single individual. Still, we can stop and appreciate the good character we presently see in some people these days, on and off the baseball field, hockey rink, basketball court, etc. One player who has shown particular exemplary character as of late has been Stephen Curry (#13 FCIR), considered by many to be the best player currently in the NBA. Those who know him well say he’s as down-to-earth as anyone you could meet, even when it comes to moving his own stuff from one house to another.
He’s unbelievable, Warriors interim head coach Luke Walton (#6 BEIR) said. He made a comment the other day about it being too soon, if he ever saw another cardboard box, and I was thinking, What superstar has anything to do with his own move?
Curry’s successes are worth looking at from multiple angles. Both should be a humble reminder to us to not become overly obsessed with type, but to look more instead at systems that maximize desirable behavior, both on and off the court/field.
I’ll start with the court. Is Curry, objectively, the the best all-around player right now? No; I think anyone being realistic realizes that LeBron is innately more gifted physically and otherwise (yet often plays too impulsively with lack of thought, especially under pressure, with a tendency toward iso ball). But LeBron is not as well-coached, nor as well-behaved (I have witnessed more than a few pouting/sulking displays and tantrums on the court this season).
Curry, meanwhile, is a good player who has benefited tremendously from an outstanding system that maximizes his strengths (shooting and speed) and minimizes his weaknesses (strength and defense). Kerr took him to another level last season, and with further mentoring from Walton and Steve Nash, he is now putting up MJ-like numbers. Under a merely above-average system that Mark Jackson employed, Curry was nowhere near this level of play.
So, just as the Arizona Cardinals have maximized more from BEAL Carson Palmer in football than Niednagel ever thought possible, the Warriors have taken Curry beyond what Niednagel ever thought possible for an FCIR basketball player (Steve Kerr, perhaps due to the influence of his likely BCIL father, has consistently displayed better Conceptual and big-picture awareness than JN despite possessing the same BEIL wiring).
Now, off-the-court. BTI has often focused excessively on the moral weaknesses of F__R and the strengths of B__L. Yet getting beyond myopia and Brain Type idolatry/boasting, there is nothing more important than being raised in a good environment with a good moral system. FCIR Solomon told us ages ago that a child “will not depart” if taught well; FCIL Apostle Paul taught us not to boast in our good works; Jesus taught us that the good-works-boasting Pharisee was less justified than the sinning tax collector (Luke 18; required reading for anyone who thinks there is justification for boasting in the supposed moral advantage of their Brain Type, or any other perceived advantage – it is those who humble themselves, NOT exalt themselves, who are justified before God). So what do we see from FCIR Steph? Is he Hollywood, manipulative lawyer, context-independent evolutionist, or any other favorite BTI disparagement of the FCIR type? No. It’s amazing what happens when we put God and unselfishness over type, or self. The benefits extend from off the court/field to on it. A well-coached football team can win consistently with a BEAL QB and an FCIR wide receiver (neither type supposedly ideal for their positions), and a well-raised FCIR will be more humble than a BEIL with an inflated ego every time.