A641.5.3.RB_MaceRoyce
Firstly, the Olympic U.S. Men's Basketball team from the year 2000 did win a gold medal. The team may not have been perfect, but a gold is a gold. That being said and without delving too much into the results for both the Olympic U.S. Women's Soccer team and the Olympic U.S. Men's Basketball team, we can see a myriad of reasons why these two teams were much different from an Intentional Change Theory (ICT) perspective. ICT doesn't have a chance to fully develop if the following criteria are not met (Akrivou, Boyatzis, and McLeod, 2006):
At the group level, the ideal self could be described as a shared ideal, or vision, which would be derived through:
- emergent awareness of a shared hope;
- collective imagery regarding the ideal purpose and functioning of the group; and
- realization and articulation of a core identity of the group.
In the case of the Olympic U.S. Men's Basketball team from 2004 (who we will focus on for this particular ICT case study) there we numerous reasons that contributed to their demise. Firstly, these Olympics came only a few short years after the September 11th attacks. Two big-time players, Mike Bibby and Tracy McGrady cited security reasons as means to skip the Olympic Games. Additionally, nearly ten National Basketball Association (NBA) superstars had ongoing life events that precluded them from attending the Olympics in 2004.
This was only the beginning of the end for a team that was to be plagued with Negative Emotional Attractors (NEA). Aside from the lack of participation from NBA superstars, the average age of the final team assembled was just 23.5 (Maisonet, 2017). Compounding the already negative aura surrounding the team and its reliance on young and upcoming players, Larry Brown, the selected head coach of these Olympics, was considered a conservative and "old-school" coach who did not mesh well with the younger generation of players whom he was set to coach.
With the uncertainty and pessimism setting in for a group of young players assembled haphazardly, who would be able to provide the hope and collective imagery regarding an ideal purpose for the group moving forward? The answer was supposed to be two NBA superstars whose clout on the court and talent should be able to lead any gathering of players to an Olympic gold medal. Allen Iverson and Tim Duncan were superstars in their own right, but very different in how they approached leadership during those Olympics. While Iverson was outspoken, Duncan remained quiet. As the two elder statesmen of the team, their inability to inspire their teammates and the nation collectively was detrimental to the young team and its success (or lack thereof). Not to mention, Iverson had a rough relationship and past with Larry Brown whom had coached Iverson from 1997 through 2003.
In conclusion, there were too many factors that crushed the hopes of the Olympic U.S. Men's Basketball team. A lack of continuity from the previous Olympic team (2000), young and relatively immature players, a generationally different head coach, and lack of overall leadership. The NEAs added up quickly and never fully allowed the Olympic U.S. Men's Basketball team to get off the ground with hope or a common goal. They obtained a bronze medal in the 2004 Olympics and are considered today as one of the worst teams assembled for the Olympics (men's basketball). In the end, the Olympic U.S. Women's Soccer team was simply everything that the men's basketball team was not: a mature team with a hopeful and visionary coach who led her ream to a gold medal in the 2004 Olympics. They had a common hope and goal which set the tone for success and supported positive change within the ICT process... This can be summed up in one quote from Julie Foudy (team captain) via Svrluga (2004):
"The thing I love most about this team, which I think will be the legacy, is it was always more than just soccer. It was about giving back to fans and communities. . . . It's empowering to these young kids, when we had male role models our whole lives, to finally see women doing this."
References
Akrivou, K., Boyatzis, R. E., & Mcleod, P. L. (2006). The evolving group: Towards a prescriptive
theory of intentional group development. Journal of Management Development, 25(7), 689-706.
doi:10.1108/02621710610678490
Maisonet, E. (2017, October 03). The Miseducation of the 2004 U.S. Men's Olympic Basketball
Team. Retrieved from https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2731575-the-miseducation-of-the-2004-
us-mens-olympic-basketball-team
Svrluga, B. (2004, August 27). U.S. Women Win Soccer Gold Medal: Era Ends Joyously for
Pioneering Team. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A36021-
2004Aug26.html?noredirect=on
At the group level, the ideal self could be described as a shared ideal, or vision, which would be derived through:
- emergent awareness of a shared hope;
- collective imagery regarding the ideal purpose and functioning of the group; and
- realization and articulation of a core identity of the group.
In the case of the Olympic U.S. Men's Basketball team from 2004 (who we will focus on for this particular ICT case study) there we numerous reasons that contributed to their demise. Firstly, these Olympics came only a few short years after the September 11th attacks. Two big-time players, Mike Bibby and Tracy McGrady cited security reasons as means to skip the Olympic Games. Additionally, nearly ten National Basketball Association (NBA) superstars had ongoing life events that precluded them from attending the Olympics in 2004.
This was only the beginning of the end for a team that was to be plagued with Negative Emotional Attractors (NEA). Aside from the lack of participation from NBA superstars, the average age of the final team assembled was just 23.5 (Maisonet, 2017). Compounding the already negative aura surrounding the team and its reliance on young and upcoming players, Larry Brown, the selected head coach of these Olympics, was considered a conservative and "old-school" coach who did not mesh well with the younger generation of players whom he was set to coach.
With the uncertainty and pessimism setting in for a group of young players assembled haphazardly, who would be able to provide the hope and collective imagery regarding an ideal purpose for the group moving forward? The answer was supposed to be two NBA superstars whose clout on the court and talent should be able to lead any gathering of players to an Olympic gold medal. Allen Iverson and Tim Duncan were superstars in their own right, but very different in how they approached leadership during those Olympics. While Iverson was outspoken, Duncan remained quiet. As the two elder statesmen of the team, their inability to inspire their teammates and the nation collectively was detrimental to the young team and its success (or lack thereof). Not to mention, Iverson had a rough relationship and past with Larry Brown whom had coached Iverson from 1997 through 2003.
In conclusion, there were too many factors that crushed the hopes of the Olympic U.S. Men's Basketball team. A lack of continuity from the previous Olympic team (2000), young and relatively immature players, a generationally different head coach, and lack of overall leadership. The NEAs added up quickly and never fully allowed the Olympic U.S. Men's Basketball team to get off the ground with hope or a common goal. They obtained a bronze medal in the 2004 Olympics and are considered today as one of the worst teams assembled for the Olympics (men's basketball). In the end, the Olympic U.S. Women's Soccer team was simply everything that the men's basketball team was not: a mature team with a hopeful and visionary coach who led her ream to a gold medal in the 2004 Olympics. They had a common hope and goal which set the tone for success and supported positive change within the ICT process... This can be summed up in one quote from Julie Foudy (team captain) via Svrluga (2004):
"The thing I love most about this team, which I think will be the legacy, is it was always more than just soccer. It was about giving back to fans and communities. . . . It's empowering to these young kids, when we had male role models our whole lives, to finally see women doing this."
References
Akrivou, K., Boyatzis, R. E., & Mcleod, P. L. (2006). The evolving group: Towards a prescriptive
theory of intentional group development. Journal of Management Development, 25(7), 689-706.
doi:10.1108/02621710610678490
Maisonet, E. (2017, October 03). The Miseducation of the 2004 U.S. Men's Olympic Basketball
Team. Retrieved from https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2731575-the-miseducation-of-the-2004-
us-mens-olympic-basketball-team
Svrluga, B. (2004, August 27). U.S. Women Win Soccer Gold Medal: Era Ends Joyously for
Pioneering Team. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A36021-
2004Aug26.html?noredirect=on
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