NEWS

Does basketball have anything to do with Advent, and can the great Steph Curry be our guide during this season?

The answer is a resounding yes. 

In his new book “Shot Ready,” Curry offers far more than a behind-the-scenes look at how he became one of the greatest players the game has ever seen.

It’s his story — the sweat, the grind, the shots — but beneath all that, the book is an ode to mindfulness, community, and finding joy where you are.

Curry has lessons for those of us who find ourselves solidly in December, in the melee of red and green and relentlessly chipper holiday tunes. This season, for many, is a time of darkness and waiting on the sidelines, preparing for what is next.

So, if you are hunting for a present for a basketball lover, this is the gift. But if you -- or someone you love -- would like an inspiring book for any season of life, this is also the gift. It’s about how to show up prepared and centered for whatever your vocation might be.  

Here are a few highlights from our unlikely Advent guide, Steph Curry:

Slow down. When Steph was working on getting his shot right, caught up in a slump, he did a lot of extra practice between games. “There I had the quiet and time to analyze the movement of my body as I shot. In that environment, shooting the ball is almost a form of meditation-- I took that time to let everything else fall away and just inhabited my body as fully as I could, making myself aware of every subtle movement.”

Not many of us are working on something as technical as a Steph Curry-esque shot, but we are all wrestling with something. If we can slow down and carve out a quiet moment, we can do what Curry does so well--  we can be in our bodies fully. On a walk, by a fire, in a moment with friends, we can step back, slow our pace, and inhabit the moment. 

Learn to wait, but do not mistake waiting for passivity. Waiting is hard, its own discipline. Curry recounts giving advice to a teammate who was frustrated by what he thought was too much time on the bench. He says, “The times that feel like you’re standing still are times to get shot ready.”

Like time sitting on the bench and yearning to go in for a game, these dark days of winter and Advent are times for patience. Waiting is a skill, whether we are waiting to celebrate or waiting to grieve. 

Curry’s advice resonates. You can wait, but while you are waiting, you can still do things to find hope. You practice your “shot ready” position -- feet firmly grounded, eyes open. When the ball comes your way-- or when life throws something else at you-- it won’t knock you off your feet.

Find Joy. Like waiting, joy is not passive. Curry makes it clear that it is a choice and a mindset. He writes, ”I keep talking about joy in the work for a reason.” He notes that all the players in the NBA are after the same thing: a championship. They are trying to outwork one another and have their eyes trained on that shiny trophy. Joy, Curry says, sets apart some players. “The ups and downs of any job can steal joy from you—whether it’s a day-to-day pilfering or one big disappointment that leaves you wiped out. Protect your passion. It is joy that will sustain your commitment to greatness and the work it requires. But joy is more than a great motivator. It is both the means—the thing that drives your effort—and the end, the glorious payoff of all that work.  If you look for it, you will see it as the thread that runs through and supercharges everything.”

Breathe. Curry confides that he still gets a “great wave of nerves” before every game. And he shares his way to deal with those butterflies. He says, “Take a couple deep breaths. Do it with intention, really slowing yourself down. Let your mind set the tone for your body, don’t let your body set the tone for your mind.”  He encourages us, no matter what our own  “big game” might be, to intentionally settle and deepen our breathing. Even in the biggest moments, he urges, “you should remind your body that it is just another day. So breathe.” 

No matter your practice this season, no matter your faith tradition, we can all learn something from Curry. He has given Davidson and Golden State such great basketball, but he’s giving us all some helpful wisdom as we await the “great wave” of this holiday season.