I like the basketball metaphor.

Commenter BB_Bagatar, in reply to a post from Ta-Nehisi Coates:

I almost think of it like stepping onto a basketball court.

There are some cats who love being the best guy in a pickup game, just dominating lesser opponents. It may be fun, but it's no way to get better.

If you want to improve, you have to play up. So you find guys who are better than you, play with them, and study. Figure out what works for them, maybe pick up a move here and there. Be willing to reinvent your game and try on different roles.

Intellectually, if you are not willing to take games outside your home court, the one who is going to suffer the most, in the end, is you.

Or, put another way, as James D. Watson once said: "Never be the brightest person in the room."