“With too much data I risk paralysis, anonymity on social media is modern bullshit”

Ettore Messina touched on very interesting topics in an interview for A Better BasketballL.

The coach of Olimpia Milano, new Italian champion for the third consecutive time, spoke about modern basketball and some regulatory changes he would introduce.

Messina, however, also focused on topics such as data analysis, the use of social media in sport and the relationship with younger players.

About the data analysisMessina claimed the need for to interpret and the validity of human assessments.

The coach’s judgment remains very important, one cannot aseptically rely on numbers. The data cannot be applied equally to all players and all situations. In San Antonio every day in the office I found a little book with the statistics of the next opponents. At a certain point I said that I didn’t need scoring averages, for example I needed to know against whom the points were scored because there were players who made baskets much more against weak opponents than against the first ones. So I asked: give me the numbers obtained against the top ten teams, let me understand how much a player scores in the first or last quarter, who plays with him when he scores. Having too much data can lead to a situation of paralysis.

Then the Sicilian coach spoke about his use of socialhow they can influence young people and the plague of haters.

I use social media to a limited extent: I haven’t been on Facebook for some time, I have Instagram for purely personal use, I use Twitter for aspects not too linked to basketball. And I try not to read the comments. I’m annoyed by those who, thinking they’re pleasing me, compliment me because I don’t react to what I read. People who appreciate you have less time and desire to write it, except in exceptional cases. While those who hate you insult to gain personal satisfaction. We live in a world in which Liliana Segre is insulted on social media, which makes the idea of ​​this undergrowth in which everyone can write anonymously what they want, a filth from our system that we have to live with. I try to stay away from it but I understand that a 23-24 year old wants to know what people think of him. The advice is to try to isolate yourself, develop an inner strength that gives you the ability to evaluate yourself honestly and trust the judgment of those around you. Unfortunately, however, many media and organizations are based on social media, if you consider that already when I was in Spain, Barcelona and Real Madrid had a team that analyzed fan sentiment on the web. Social media now influences politics, let alone sport.

Finally Messina spoke about how his approach with the players has changed, especially the most young.

Now players have a shorter attention span than in the past, we need to give them timely and precise feedback. Once upon a time you could do one-hour video sessions and watch the whole match again, now there are clips. Popovich defended the “less is more” principle, never putting more than 15 clips in a session. I would never have thought of sending advice via WhatsApp, it was just a meeting. In any case, regardless of the methods, the important thing is that the communication is honest, harsh criticism if necessary but without spraying the pill.