Russell Rule # 5: Invisible Man

This is by far my favorite Russell Rule.  In the first place, it offers some insights into the thought dimensions experienced by Russell above all other players in history (except possibly Cousy).  Second, it has helped me countless times as I've applied it to my personal life.  Thanks, Russ.

Russell Rule # 5: Invisible Man

I love this chapter, because, more than anything else, it's about psychology. I think the spectacular has become the standard of excellence for many of today's players (not a Duncan or a Kidd, but for many). There's a certain conformity in the way they become so preoccupied with finding an opportunity for the monster slam or block that they overlook more subtle ways to use psychology to gain a competitive edge.

Russell's concept of invisibility being a powerful leadership style is difficult to generalize. It is best explained in some examples used by Russell:

(1) Xerox used it by branding their process so that people referred to "Xeroxing" something rather than copying it. This gave the company an inherent competitive advantage over other copying companies that were
racing Xerox to develop better copying machines.

(2) The Cold War remained cold until the collapse of the Soviet Union, not because we had vastly superior military strength but because the Russians had to respect the invisible THREAT of vastly superior military strength on our part.

(3) Even a deceased loved one can exercise invisible power by continuing to influence those left behind.

Russ' sub-rules regarding Invisible Man:

1. Invisibility offers an extra dimension that is an opportunity to augment power and to intimidate, rather than to outmuscle, the competition.

2. Becoming invisible sometimes requires a conscious effort to ensure that others don't see us as we really are—in other words, to use misdirection of deceive them.

3. Invisibility can open doors for those who see potential in something that does not now seem to exist, such as a supermarket that opens a store in a depressed area and becomes extremely successful because of
the unique way it serves its constituents.

The sixth man can be used as an invisible threat in basketball, and Russ mentions Frank Ramsey as an example. His scoring ability gave the Celtics the same shot in the arm that Havlicek and Vinnie Johnson provided later. Russ says, "I saw what that did to other teams.. They reacted as though the Celtics had six men on the floor instead of five. Even when Frank was on the bench, opposing coaches began guaging their
matchups, their substitutions, with Frank in mind. Imagine how insidious that was."

Russ tells of having to face Elvin Hayes for the first time late in Russ's career, when non-physical advantages became even more important. He decided to deny Hayes the ball, fronting him. Well into the second
quarter, Elvin had taken only two shots. Russ sidled up to him during a stoppage in play and said, "Hey, I heard you were supposed to be the main man. How come these guys don't pass you the ball?" Elvin shrugged, but Russ could see he was thinking about it. Elvin eased up as though he was no longer expecting his teammates to get him the ball. Russ didn't have to play him so tough the rest of the game.

One of Russ' favorite tactics was to allow an opponent to get by him because Russ knew he could block the ball from behind. Players began to sense his absence and, not knowing where he was, would become tentative about shooting. Then, to confuse them even more, he'd sometimes take a long stride to the left before blocking the shot from a new angle and deflecting it toward a teammate. Now the other player had even more to worry about, just at the time when he had thought he was figuring out Russ' pattern.

In a sense, Russ even tried to make himself invisible to teammates on the theory that the less they consciously thought of him on the court, the better they were focusing on their own roles. Once, during a timeout, Red ordered Russell to go back in the game, and Russ had been in the game all along.

Russ even mentions how he was invisible to Sam Jones on the now-famous Laker-beating play in the fourth game of the 1969 finals. Sam slipped as he shot the ball and later said he had instinctively adjusted to put a lot of backspin on the ball to give Russell a shot at the rebound. But Russ had taken himself out of the game to get more shooters in.

Russ is careful to distinguish between the psychology of being invisible on the court and the actuality of playing very physically; they need not be contradictory Basically the Celtics of his era had to be willing to give themselves up—in effect, to be invisible—if they wanted success.

Finally, in this chapter, Russ talks briefly about playing Wilt. He knew he could have blocked Wilt much more than he did, because Wilt's right-handed shot was fairly easy for the left-handed Russell to reach.
However, Russ knew that blocking Wilt would just get Wilt angry, and an angry Wilt was a terror. So Russ concentrated on moving Wilt out or over a couple of inches more than Wilt wanted or getting Wilt just a little off-balance so Wilt would often miss the shot and Russ would be in position for the rebound. Sometimes Wilt would even move back or over without Russ' being right on him, because he sensed Russ would be there. Wilt would be oblivious to the fact that Russell had anything to do with the misses.

This chapter captivates me, no question about it!!  If Russ had published a book containing only this chapter, I would have been perfectly satisfied and would simply have reread the chapter every day.  Just think about it.  A mortal becoming more effective due to becoming less visible.  I find it an almost scary concept, and yet I know it works.  So do surviving players from the 50s and 60s.

Sam