The bench has the best view of the whole game. Learn from where you sit.

Being out of the action is a bad place to be and a good place to see from. The person not carrying the ball can watch the patterns, notice who is tiring, and see the shape of the thing. That does not make sitting out pleasant, and it does make it useful.

Give the time a job rather than spending it waiting for your turn. Watch closely enough to say what is actually going wrong out there. When you get in, you will know something the people who never sat down do not.