Training the Mind to Overcome Stress with Derrick Rose, Tyreke Evans and OJ Mayo

The human brain is a funny thing. It controls every aspect of the human body, from the fluid movements made on the basketball court to being able to decipher whether the pitch is a fastball or a slider, all in about the same time it takes toblink an eye. With training, practice and mental preparation, the brain can go through the ins and outs of physical activity with little or no hindrance and control the body’s actions in ways that it was trained to do. Conversely, when the brain is under pressure or in times of high stress, the physiological chain of command operates differently and elite athletes are required to train their bodies to adapt to the change in stress levels that come at the end of tight games and in high-pressure situations.

With LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and a host of other free agents taking over the American media, it’s easy to forget that less than a month ago, the Lakers overcame the stress and pressure of the 4^th quarter and willed their way to their 16th championship over the Celtics. The biggest key to the Lakers victory was overcoming the stress, pressure and exhaustion and get the body to react in a normal way in spite of the circumstance. When faced with non-normative conditions, the physiological reactions to stressors do not occur in the same ways as before and players must train their bodies to react to the impending changes. To prepare the mind for the upcoming season, Derrick Rose, Tyreke Evans and OJ Mayo are already putting in work with renowned NBA trainer Rob McClanaghan in workouts designed to match explosive drills with drills designed to test a player’s cognitive limits.

Even before the Lakers completed there title defense against the Celtics, Rose, Mayo and Evans were back at work, training their mind and bodies to overcome the stressors of the long NBA season and pressure packed situations. McClanaghan runs the players through hard-hitting workouts that switch between explosion drills and either shooting drills or exercises that engage the player’s mind and makes them think. This forces the body to engage the mind at times when it is under high stress, in this case from fatigue as a result of the explosion drills.

“Some of these guys, rightfully so, are tired. If Tyreke’s tired, Derrick picks him up. If Russell Westbrook’s tired, Derrick or Tyreke can pick him up,” said McClanaghan at a private workout at Lon Angeles’ Harvard Westlake High School.

The goal of the workouts is to train to mind to handle end of game situations by replicating the physiological response to the mind being tired before the pressure is multiplied in front of thousands of fans. Training the mind to react to fatigue before pressure situations allows players to better handle tough decisions in a big moment because they already know how the body will react to stress.

“All these drills make you push yourself and make you go hard so that when you’re tired you know that you’ve been through this before and you can do it,” said Derrick Rose.

“He gives you little time to rest so when an overtime game comes and down in the clutch, you’ll be prepared for it,” said Tyreke Evans, last year’s NBA Rookie of the Year. “When you’re tired, you have to be able to think,” Evans continued. “It helps you focus in late games when you’re tired and make good decisions.”

For Rose, Evans and Mayo, the offseason is not a season to take off. The rest of the NBA should be warned.

“I’m working out every day. I’m not taking a day off,” said Rose.

Special thanks to Jack Jensen at Dime Magazine and Rob McClanaghan at Wasserman Media Group LLC.