Day 29: Entitlement vs. Investment

by Kevin Eastman, Assistant Coach, Boston Celtics 

As I travel around the country and work out with the best of the best from the High School, College, and NBA levels, I am continually reminded of what these players have in common that makes them great:

• they want to get better
• they want to know everything they can that will help them become a better basketball player
• they are committed to improvement of their bodies and their game
• they are very serious about the game every time they hit the floor
• they want to be coached

The best example I can give you is Kobe Bryant. He once told me that he does not work out any more……he now blacks out. He said that a workout just isn’t enough anymore if he’s going to stay on top of his game and take on all the players he knows are going to challenge him. He said he has to go beyond what all other players doing. He took his to a higher level. He took his to black out status! (Which means he comes back to the gym and works out after everyone has gone home, thus the black out status.)

What Kobe also was saying is what all players need to hear and need to know. He is willing to invest in his improvement and not stay the same. He was willing to invest in his future and not stay the same. He is willing to invest in his game and not feel that he is entitled to be great, entitled to take every shot, entitled to have everything given to him. He was, and is, going to earn it.

The lesson here is one that I tell every one of the great players I work with: it’s not about entitlement if you want to be the best. It’s about investment.

Being the best is not easy. It takes hours worth of drills to hone you skills, maximum intensity on the court and in the weight room.  The attitude of a champion (see day 28) 


You need to invest in your futures (both on the court and off the court for that matter). Entitlement will lead to ultimate failure; investment will lead to future success.