The more I watch them, the more convinced I am that they are on the autism spectrum.

They are singularly focused on their goals, they don’t have solid social skills, and seem to be unaware of what’s going on around them.

That’s not a knock on them at all, it’s just something I’ve been trying to pay attention to lately. They have a lot of the same characteristics of children with autism (really, I mean Aspergers syndrome, but that’s no longer an official term). It seems like they’ve learned how to function in society really well, but when they get excited (aka when they’re coaching a match), more of their instincts come out.

Again, I want to be clear, I’m NOT saying that being on the spectrum is a negative thing. If anything, I think it’s helped them get where they are in life.

Source: I am the father of a child on the spectrum. I also worked with autistic children while in college.