Pre-Ramble: With the inauguration of Barack Obama just a day away, I wanted to post something relevant and meaningful; something that would invoke the significance of this historic event. I’d like to be able to articulate some eloquent angle on Abraham Lincoln, or wax poetic on Yale professor, Elizabeth Alexander, who has been commissioned to compose and read a poem for the inauguration … but all I can think of is President-elect Obama going in all net on a one-handed leaner. And I am certainly not the only one thinking about this; sports writers and gym rats everywhere have been celebrating the significance of a commander-in-chief who has ”got game.” (Caution: short, white girl chucking up quasi-hip/hackneyed basketball references ahead. If I start using terms like rock, pill, brick, paint, skates, cookies, or “That’s yo aaaassss Mr. Postmaaaaannn,” just shut me down.)

The special bond shared by the weekend basketball warrior hits particularly close to home; my husband plays pick-up games at the local “Y” whenever he can. Known as “old school” by the young punks at the gym, he takes great pride in hauling himself up and down the floor with kids half his age. As he bounds out the door in his sweats, I implore him to play nice with the other kids and not to rip out his already threadbare ACL. 

As Washington dusted off its pre-inaugural high tops last week, the NY Times Style section ran the headline, “Rule No. 1: Do Not Call Him ‘Ball-Hog-in-Chief,” and our own St. Paul Pioneer Press declared incoming President Obama, “Hoopster-in-Chief,“ tagging him, “Barack Slamma Jamma Obama.”  Ok, whatever.  Actually, any individual who can demonstrate a passion for Abraham Lincoln, appoint an inaugural poet, and bust a few moves in a game of pick-up basketball has got my respect and allegiance.  As I think about it, the basketball analogy may be ideally suited to the profound and demanding challenges which will face our nation and its leader in the months ahead. Let’s face it, it is highly doubtful that W will be able to crank up a three-pointer at the buzzer to pull us out of this mess.

But here’s the thing: Barack Obama has shown that he is a principled, articulate and strategic individual, but even on his best day there is no way that he is going to be able to carry all 300 million of us on his back for the next four to eight years. We’re headed into the biggest pick-up game of our lives – picking up the pieces of the last eight years – and whether you voted for him or not, each one of us has got to bring our “A” game to the very serious issues that face our country. Former secretary of state, Colin Powell describes our call to action this way:

While government has a role to play in restoring the American dream at home and rekindling the dream that is America abroad, there are limits to its ability to restore our sense of purpose as a nation. That task falls to us. Particularly in hard times like these, we are charged with living up to our shared responsibility to one another [and to our country]. This is not a time to retreat into our homes and wait until it is safe to emerge. It is the time to give more, to step forward and serve our fellow citizens, and to reach into the reservoir of this nation’s unrivaled capacity for good… At a time when so many of our countrymen are in need, everyone has the power to help.

Coaching Tip: Without trivializing this very significant moment, what we need here is the ultimate “alley-oop.”  The alley-oop is an offensive play in which a player throws the ball near the hoop to a teammate who jumps, catches the ball in mid-air, and scores a basket, usually with a slam dunk (think North Carolina State in the 1983 national championship).  The alley-oop combines elements of teamwork, passing, timing, and dunking – perfect for meeting the challenges we will face in the weeks, months, and years ahead. And I’m sure we can all think of some folks on the national political scene who could use a good dunking.

The Take-Away: President-elect Obama has appointed many high-quality players to his cabinet, but ultimately, we are the national dream team that he will need to drive meaningful change. Unlike a scrappy pick-up game, there’s no room for cheap shots and trash-talk - we need to suit up and step up. It’s game time.

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