For the first time in years, the owner of the Sacramento Kings was mentioned on Late Night and it wasn't as the punchline of a joke!

If you haven't heard of Malcolm Gladwell, you should stop what you're doing and check out a few of his Ted talks and books.  I don't think there's anyone alive right now who's better at taking extremely complex ideas and concepts, and explaining them in a way that anyone can understand.  Someone (at a bar) actually told me recently that they thought the Kings should hire him on as a consultant.  I don't know if it was the persuasive argument, or the setting (at a bar), but the idea made perfect sense at the time.  And Gladwell might have a closer connection to the Kings than you'd imagine.

In his new book "David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants," Gladwell explores the the art of using ones "underdog" status to their own advantage. He introduces a concept called "desirable difficulty," wherein a disability or a hindrance that might cause deficiency in some areas can actually be the cause of heightened abilities in others.  It's a great read that i'd highly recommend and in all honesty, this book is ABOUT YOU in more ways than you realize Sacramento.  And wouldn't you know it, the very first chapter of a book about underdogs conquering giants, is about our favorite software developer turned NBA owner… Vivek Ranadivé.

Jimmy asked Malcolm about that very chapter on Late Night last night. Gladwell begins to tell the humorous story of a software developer who coaches his 12 year old daughter's youth basketball team all the way to the national championship game by realizing that his lack of basketball knowledge, and his player's lack of talent/experience, actually allowed him the freedom to try unorthodox strategies.

Check out the video!

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