Essences of Competition – Michael Jordan When I step onto the court, I’m ready to play. And if you’re playing against me, then you’d better be ready too. If you’re not going to compete, then I’ll dominate you. If it’s going to be, I’ll let you score and you let me score,” then no thanks. It’s not good basketball. Basketball is about competition. That’s the essence of the game. If you’re letting somebody score on you and he’s letting you score on him, like an all-star game or something like that, then that’s no competing. Then it’s just a show and exhibition with everybody acting like they’re playing. If that’s a show, an exhibition with everybody acting like they’re playing. If that’s the case, I’d rather not play. That’s just my nature and the nature of my preparation. That’s why when I need to dig deep inside myself, I can do that because I’ve done it before and it’s part of my preparation. I’ve been to that place before. I know where it’s at, how to get there and what it feels like to go deep inside for that extra push or pull I might need. A lot of other guys, when they start digging deep, they say to themselves, “Hey I don’t need this. It’s only a game. “That drives me nuts; I can’t play with anybody like that. Yes, it’s a game, but the object of the game is to win. Now I know a lot of other people might approach it another way. They might think “It’s only a game and you are supposed to have fun, so you shouldn’t make a game larger than life.” I don’t agree with that. If I’m going to play, then when I walk in between those white lines, I’m going to play to win. I’m not out there just to be playing. That’s just not me. That’s not my attitude.” Michael Jordan, Rare Air