Quote:
Originally Posted by Hoover
Last question. Do you think this sort of thing ever happens in professional sports as a strategy? Are they bad for doing this or are they trying to do their best i.e. set up their seeds so they have a better shot at the ultimate win? Legal issues? Bookies?
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Quote:
Originally Posted by karomata
Only in FIRST can thowing matches be strategically gainful, sometime it can be worth it to throw a match. It all depends on how you want to play the game, if you want to be ethical and moral, following the core values of gracious professionalism and other various beliefs common in FIRST.
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This discussion happens in professional sports all the time - especially those that have a draft (hey - FRC has a draft!) It's rather common for pro teams to (be rumored to) give less than 100% in games at the end of the season in order to gain a favorable lottery pick in the next draft. Sacrifice the present to secure the future.
Another example - the onslaught of fouling that happens in the last few minutes of practically all close basketball games, at any level. It's considered good strategy to act in a way that is against the rules of the game, hoping your opponent doesn't take full advantage of your penalty.
Intentional walks in baseball. Intentional grounding in football. Playing the metagame is universal.
Is your priority bringing a pretty banner home to your sponsors, teammates, administrators - or is it to win a single match with two teams you may have barely known before the event started?
Are these tactics moral? Ethical? That's debatable.
Are these tactics strategic and smart? Absolutely.
If FRC is going to emulate the sports world, then these gray areas will exist. The question becomes: Do we play smart, or do we play clean - at an event called The Superbowl Of Smarts? (keeping in mind the true values are not absolute, but rather points on a shifting spectrum)