You're listening to TED Talks Daily, where we bring you new ideas to spark your curiosity

every day. I'm your host, Elise Hu. The NBA finals kicked off yesterday, so I think a lot of us

are thinking about basketball. Harlem Globetrotter and mixed media artist Maxwell Pierce thinks about it all the time,

too, but not in the way you might think. In high school, Maxwell's coach told him to stop trying

to dunk the basketball, but he didn't listen, and it changed everything. Although we were playing

sports, we weren't coached to be very playful. I learned that there was

a seriousness in respecting the quality of the game. But ironically, it was my playfulness

that got me to this point in my career. Play is the most important ingredient in every person

and every industry's evolution. Maxwell, who's also known as hops because of his ability

to jump quite high, has spent his career proving that creativity and discipline aren't opposites.

In his talk, from our first ever play at TED conference, he argues that the same playful

mindset that got him to both places is available to all of us.

He also shares more about his artwork, which he makes from a variety of mediums, including old basketballs and nets.

Play has given me the flexibility, but also the vision to see these materials as something more than just what we use on the court or on the field.

Stick around after the talk.

We caught up with Ted's curator Chloe Shasha Brooks,

who shared a few more thoughts about Maxwell,

what he shared on stage,

and what it was like working with him behind the scenes.

That's all coming up right after a short break.

And now our TED Talk of the Day. I am a member of the Harlem Globetrotters, a legendary exhibition basketball team that is credited for integrating the NBA,

popularizing new moves like the Aleoup,

...