Do motivational pep talks really work on NBA players?

[T-Mac for MVP]

I feel those who would get motivated find a way to motivate themselves; they don't need the coach to motivate them. These are grown men after all.

[carrottop12]

Some do. Being a part of a team mentality makes it far easier to feed off of others motivation then it does to have to find motivation in yourself.

[ljp24]

It works better when you have your superstar hitting shots after the speech

[Reks]

or a superstar or leader working harder on an aspect in a game (ie defense) to lead by example

[Eric12]

When a whole bunch of people are pumped, it's easier for you to get pumped, so I'm going to say yes.

[Texas Longhorns]

It really depends on what kind of player it is.

[farzi]

I don't think so, if you look at the halftime pep talks they show pieces off, most of the players are staring at their shoes, a spot on the wall etc.

They're too big to pay attention to some short guy yelling at them

[loserX]

Sure. But pep talks are psychology, and like most psychology you can't help people who don't want to be helped. If the player is open and receptive to it, then it can definitely work. Just like pre-game rituals and crowd cheers...grown men "shouldn't" need those to get pumped up either, but they can definitely help.

[5DOM]

Sure. But pep talks are psychology, and like most psychology you can't help people who don't want to be helped. If the player is open and receptive to it, then it can definitely work. Just like pre-game rituals and crowd cheers...grown men "shouldn't" need those to get pumped up either, but they can definitely help.

+1