Five-Point Play is an uncommon book about leadership in that it doesn’t preach. It is written by Duke Blue Devils Basketball Hall of Fame Coach Mike Krzyzewski (Coach K) with Donald T. Phillips, and it documents the 2000-01 season from the preseason to the 2001 National Championship.
The premier philosophy featured in this book is Coach K’s “The Fist.” The Fist has five points, thus the title of the book: Communication, Trust, Care, Collective Responsibility, and Pride.
But this isn’t a stuffy leadership book because this isn’t a “do as I say” bible. This is a “do as I do” book. It is a sports history book. And it may be the closest sports book to a sports documentary that I’ve ever read, especially in the way it tells the story.
The narrative uses game recaps and splits them up to discuss halftime or a timeout when needed with Coach K’s insights or player quotes to further the depth of the game and season. Were it not for the setup of “The Fist” early on in the book and the revisitation of it after the championship game, you would not think this was a leadership book at all.
Coach K describes the season’s culmination by saying, “It happened because we got to know our own players. We got to know them as individuals and as people. In leading the entire team’s race, we let each kid run his own race. We let them be who they were. We encouraged them rather than berated them. Our philosophy was about loving them and caring about them. It was about singling them out rather than selling them out.”
The season ultimately ended with Duke winning the National Championship, but it really started on January 27, 2001, at Maryland. I remember watching it at the time, including what might be the most impressive game of the season and at least the most impressive minute, ending with the now aptly titled “Miracle Minute.”
Duke was down 10 points on the road with 54 seconds to go, and they came back to force overtime and eventually a win.
That was Duke’s first game of what would be a total of four against Maryland. Maryland rebounded to beat Duke at home later in the season only to lose to Duke in the ACC Tournament and in the National Semifinal.
Familiarity is hard to combat in sports. Is it harder than point guard Jason Williams rolling an ankle? Power forward Carlos Boozer breaking his foot? All of the players individually and as a team had to face adversity.
Adversity, by the way, is the reason sports are so compelling. You have competition, and if it’s good competition, it’s equal. You versus me. But Duke had more ups and downs in the season than their eventual 35-4 record would show.
And it is because of the “No Jealousy Zone” created by The Fist that they persevered. The stars of that team all have quotes in the book talking about buying into the process or how they came to understand it. And these are some heavy hitters: Shane Battier, Carlos Boozer, Chris Duhon, Mike Dunleavy Jr, Jason Williams. Fast forward a few years, and those Duke teammates represent more than 45 years of combined NBA experience on the same college team. These guys’ foundations are here. And they are honest with each other and they are open with their initial skepticism when it occurs.
This book isn’t just about a championship. It’s a book about leadership, and it shows you how to do it by describing real scenarios and how “The Fist” and its five points were essential.
This isn’t just a book; it’s a case study in leadership that shows you how it’s done, rather than showing you. And that, like Coach K, makes it exceptionally uncommon.