Khristian Lander needs to learn that adulthood comes quickly enough without rushing through adolescence.
There is a reason most high school students don’t jump straight into their profession. They need to mature toward becoming adults.
The worst part of maturation is that the last people to know they needs maturity are the people themselves. Add Khristian Lander to the long list of high school juniors who believe they know more than they do.
Lander is a top 10 ranked basketball recruit in the class of 2021, and is committed to play at Indiana University. He may re-class to 2020 and become a freshman this fall. Like many high school students, Lander is in a hurry to move through the maturity process to enjoy what is next.
He’s young, so this is not to blame Lander for failing to recognize his shortcomings, but he needs to take a deep breath, enjoy the moment, and understand that trying to quicken the entrance to adulthood cheapens it.
Boys want to become men, and when they do – men understand that learning never stops. The “there” Lander wants to get to does not exist. No human being ever stops making mistakes or learning from them. There is no destination in life, just a journey.
Lander made a mistake without realizing it in answering a question posed to him by Jeff Rabjohns at Peegs.com, “I feel I’ll be a leader as soon as I get there (to IU). I have a high IQ as a player, and I feel I can come in and be effective.”
That is what Lander has heard others say, so he said it. He might even believe it. Over time, he will learn that it’s total nonsense. Former Pacers forward Paul George, whose lack of maturity is well chronicled, told me something eerily similar when he signed a contract extension. It was silly then – and it remains silly.
Here is an immutable truth about leadership – there are no leaders without followers. If Lander believes he’ll walk into Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall and immediately gain Al Durham, Justin Smith, and Joey Brunk as willing disciples before learning where the crapper is, he’s delusional.
Two things people cannot define for themselves are intellect and leadership capabilities. Any fool can say he or she is smart and a leader. Deeds define those two characteristics. Lander needs to walk the walk and stop with the talk.
When high school students speak to the media, all comments should be about teammates, coaches, family, and team goals. When asked to describe themselves, high school students always step on the same land mine. They claim what they aspire to. That’s what people who lack self-awareness do, and 17-year-olds always lack self-awareness.
Maybe Lander does have a great basketball IQ and perhaps he will lead IU Basketball as many others have before him, but it won’t be because he speaks it into truth. It will be because he begins the process of grasping the importance of service and learning with the same enthusiasm he has embraced while developing his game.
Basketball and life are about the balance of what we need versus the needs of others. Seventeen-year-olds don’t understand that concept and they shouldn’t. Legendary coach and TV analyst Al McGuire used to say, “The best thing about freshman is that they become sophomores.” I assume many coaches said it before McGuire because it’s one thing all coaches – minus John Calipari – agree upon.
That’s true about high school juniors too. They become seniors and then freshmen before being sophomores.
Lander should relax, learn, and enjoy the ride. Charging through the acquisition of wisdom short-circuits the process. Until Lander begins to understand the games of basketball and life, he should confine his comments to something other than thoughts about himself. Maybe better yet, wait to talk until he has something to say.
That’s true for every high school junior who believes he or she knows something about life and those who live it.