The Lessons Champions Teach Us

Celtics Triumph Through Technology & Teamwork

“…the series became system vs. superstar — and the system won out.” That’s what the Wall Street Journal reported when the Boston Celtics clinched their record-setting 18th NBA title with a 4–1 thrashing of the Dallas Mavericks.

As a resident of Illinois and business President of a bank headquartered and synonymous with Chicago, please forgive the following brief indulgence. I’m a Boston boy raised in the glory years of the Celtics, witnessing three championships in the mid-1980s, and fortunate enough to see first-hand an intense rivalry play out with the Los Angeles Lakers that seemed to transcend the sport.

However, unlike those epic battles featuring legendary names like Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the only “superstar” on display this year was the Mavericks’ Luka Dončić. And by the end of the final game he had been smothered by the Celtics’ relentless and efficient defense.

I love this sub-plot because in my own industry, although we are a leading global company, we are not a “star organization”. Like the Celtics demonstrated, we have to strive daily to prove that a constellation of many brilliant lights can shine brighter than any single star team, or institution.

If you’ve read any of my previous blogs about the likes of soccer wizard Pelé, or his latter day equivalent Lionel Messi, you’ll know I’m as big a fan of virtuoso performers as anyone. But in the case of these Celtics, they didn’t have that luxury.

Very good players, such as Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, had never managed to win a title before and the Celtics hadn’t won a championship since 2008. They had to do it differently. So how did they crack the code?

Well, to my mind, this victory was built on process, data, and teamwork — attributes and qualities that resonate in any walk of life.

To quote the WSJ again, it was as if the Celtics were “solving a math problem, again and again and again,” with the answers to the conundrum rooted in the creative use of data, enabling them to seemingly predict everything their opponent would be able to throw at them.

Of course, they’re not alone here. You can find plenty of articles and discussions detailing the growth of data and analytics across professional sports.

But it may surprise you to know that the Celtics employ a Chief Technology Officer (CTO). They began a digital transformation journey back in 2016 and have since migrated their tech stack from on-prem to the cloud to assist with faster and more flexible data processing and statistical analysis.

Hang on. Are we talking about a global banking institution, or a sports team? What possible benefits can this bring to the heat of battle on the basketball court?

Well, is it a coincidence that, statistically, the Celtics had the best offense in the history of the NBA with 122.2 points per 100 possessions; that they openly targeted the highest-percentage scoring opportunities; and they executed defensive strategies that deliberately drove their opponents to take lower-percentage shots?

Or maybe it’s because they’ve built the ability to take in large data sets that can analyse every possible detail about their opponent? That they create custom training schedules and detailed game plans that nullify opposing superstars like Dončić? And because their coaches have this information available at their fingertips each and every day?

To me, it’s clear that process, attention to detail and an obsession with data have created a meaningful marginal gain for the Celtics. And in professional sports, much like our business, incremental gains can compound to create vast differences in outcome.

However, the data and the details are only part of the story. The Celtics’ competitive edge is supercharged when paired with the human element: devoid of superstars, they have a team that has demonstrated their willingness to set individual ambitions aside in pursuit of a common goal.

As they celebrated their victory, almost every Celtics player made this point, how they all complemented each other’s playing styles, and that teamwork was the determining factor.

In business that can be harder to do where silos build up over many years and can take on a culture and life of their own. But deep down we all know that when left unaddressed, this will negatively impact morale, efficiency, productivity, and the attainment of organizational goals.

But knocking down silos can be extremely difficult. Human nature dictates that we tend to prioritize the people and work in our immediate vicinity (team, reporting line, etc.). However, perseverance, consistency and the aggregation of incremental gains can create change.

Some of the things I’ve learned and adopted over the years — and continue to practice today — include:

• Encourage people to ask questions — inquiry is critical because what we see and take for granted on one side is often not the same as what people experience on the other side.
• Be intentional about inclusion and cross-functional solutioning — encourage teams from different departments to work together on specific projects. This fosters communication and understanding between multiple parts of the organization.
• Implement unified goals and metrics — set overarching targets that incentivize the cooperation of multiple groups. This starts with company-wide objectives and ensures everyone is working towards the same end.
• Invest time and effort in communication and information sharing — by creating platforms and using forums that facilitate open communication and idea-sharing, you accelerate your organization’s ability to adapt and change.
• Walk the talk — leadership and cultural change starts with leading by example. If you’re not doing that, forget everything else I’ve just said. It’s as simple as that.

Like the Celtics have just proved — again 😊 — implementing strategies that reduce silos, promote unity, and put the team and collective goal first, make it more likely you will improve organizational performance. Combine that with an inquisitive mindset and efforts to cultivate data-driven decision making, and you’ll be well on the way to your own championship banner.