Point well taken: the Eastern Conference champion Nets went from terrible to terrific this season. Why? Because Jason Kidd told them they could. (NBA).

There is an old story, perhaps apocryphal, about Red Holzman watching the Celtics' lineup being introduced during Boston's halcyon days of the 1960s. The legendary Knicks coach sat stoically as the first four guys came out, one by one, before turning to his trainer and remarking, "Those are four pretty good players."

Then Bill Russell's name was called, and he joined the other four lined up at the free-throw line. Holzman quickly changed his tune: "Now there" he concluded, "are five great players."

This is the essence of the sport that is the most interactive of them all--the only game in which a single player can maximize a team's collective skill ...