The Knicks are back on the skids. With the return of superstar Carmelo Anthony, the Knicks have lost eight of their last ten games. How is that?

In the New York Times, Howard Beck reports, "Mike D'Antoni and the Knicks parted ways Wednesday—an event that seemed fated once the franchise acquired Carmelo Anthony, an immense talent whose individual playing style clashed with D'Antoni's spread-the-wealth offense."

I don't think it matters if you are leading an organization or a project team. Great leaders stand out and share many of the same qualities. Earlier this morning, I came across Jeff Haden's article on Inc.com. Although his articles aren't directed at project leaders, I think the five common qualities he calls out are relevant. What do you think?

"Remarkable bosses aren't great on paper," aruges Haden. "Great bosses are remarkable based on their actions."

Basketball is on a lot of people's minds these days. With the first games of the NCAA tournament over and part of history now, I couldn't help but make the comparison between a winning basketball team and a winning project team.

I recently stumbled upon a Reuters Management Tip of the Day that speaks to this connection, "Once the lofty subjects of purpose, goals and plans have been determined, team leaders need to pay attention to the actual mechanics of how the team will actually do its work."

Is a workforce that's "satisfied" with their jobs enough?

Not if you need an engaged workforce that takes ownership of what they do and is expected to consistently perform at a high level.

Last Saturday was probably the first day of the year that really started to feel like spring to me. It was relatively warm, it was Saturday, and although I didn't feel confident enough in the warmth in the valley to cruise up one of the canyons, I did take the bike out for several hours and visited some of the quite towns in central Utah. It felt good to put some miles underneath me.

I've discovered that on the motorcycle I'm content to ride on roads that I typically don't in a car. On the bike I'm usually not in the mood to quickly get from one place to another and am often in the mood to explore. Once you get off the highway, you discover some pretty interesting things. It made me wonder if sometimes we spend too much time on the freeway at work trying to quickly get from one place to another—or from one task to the next.

After fourteen years as quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts, Payton Manning says good-bye. Arguably one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, I have to admit it's sad to see that he won't be finishing his career in Indy. Granted, his neck injury has forced the Colts organization to ask a lot of tough questions about whether or not he'd be able to contribute at the same level as in past years, but without him, last year was a dismal season.

It got me thinking, "What about the key players on a project team?"