I obviously posted this thread with an agenda, so here it is:
It seems to me that no competitive sport requires more balance between team and individual skill than Ultimate Frisbee. At the competitive level, it is impossible to have a single player carry a team in any capacity. While in most other sports, good teamwork is always beneficial, it is not fundamentally necessary to win. Here's the breakdown:
Baseball: It is truly a joke to call this a team sport. You can mix and match any skilled players to make a winning team. Defensively, almost no communication is necessary as everybody knows what to do in almost every situation. Offensively, there is almost zero inter-teammate coordination required (other than "I'm going to pop it up (or bunt), so run at the right time" or "I'm going to steal a base, so don't swing away.")
Football: Close, but not quite. Most offensive play is scripted, minimizing the amount of dynamic communication required to be effective. Plus there's too much emphasis on the quarterback and his ability to make the correct decisions. An effective Ultimate team will never have a single handler.
Soccer and Hockey: More close ones. Probably the closest of them all. In fact, I'd have to say the difference between these sports and Ultimate in this respect is almost negligible. If it weren't for the fact that a single player can (theoretically) never pass the ball/puck, I'd say they were equal.
Basketball: Kinda close, but there's something fundamentally wrong when a single player can (virtually unaided) score 80 or 100 points in a single game.
Interestingly, in all of the above sports, either the emphasis is on individual skill or it is possible for a single player to move the playing object without any assistance. Neither of these holds for Ultimate.
Disagree with me? Have any other contenders? I'd love to hear your thoughts.
It seems to me that no competitive sport requires more balance between team and individual skill than Ultimate Frisbee. At the competitive level, it is impossible to have a single player carry a team in any capacity. While in most other sports, good teamwork is always beneficial, it is not fundamentally necessary to win. Here's the breakdown:
Baseball: It is truly a joke to call this a team sport. You can mix and match any skilled players to make a winning team. Defensively, almost no communication is necessary as everybody knows what to do in almost every situation. Offensively, there is almost zero inter-teammate coordination required (other than "I'm going to pop it up (or bunt), so run at the right time" or "I'm going to steal a base, so don't swing away.")
Football: Close, but not quite. Most offensive play is scripted, minimizing the amount of dynamic communication required to be effective. Plus there's too much emphasis on the quarterback and his ability to make the correct decisions. An effective Ultimate team will never have a single handler.
Soccer and Hockey: More close ones. Probably the closest of them all. In fact, I'd have to say the difference between these sports and Ultimate in this respect is almost negligible. If it weren't for the fact that a single player can (theoretically) never pass the ball/puck, I'd say they were equal.
Basketball: Kinda close, but there's something fundamentally wrong when a single player can (virtually unaided) score 80 or 100 points in a single game.
Interestingly, in all of the above sports, either the emphasis is on individual skill or it is possible for a single player to move the playing object without any assistance. Neither of these holds for Ultimate.
Disagree with me? Have any other contenders? I'd love to hear your thoughts.
:beer:
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