A Pen And A Napkin

Coaching is about relationships and personal dynamics, and often times we associate that with our players, our parents and our administrators. An often forgotten group of people that you need to communicate with in a positive manner is your relationships with your other head coaches. In this episode, Tony and I breakdown different strategies and perspectives that you should consider when navigatin...

Part II of our two-part podcast with Matt Kramer drops this week! This week, we jump more into Coach Kramer's philosophy as a coach, including taking care of the classroom, what you should be looking for (or not looking for) in a job, hiring assistant coaches, fundraising, "Run and Stun" and much more. Really enjoyed this episode with Coach Kramer, and don't forget to check out his books on Amazon...

Most quality programs in today's modern basketball environment have players playing for AAU programs, but it is part of our job, as high school coaches, to help our players with this process. This week, Tony and discuss things that you should be doing as a high school coach to make your players aware of when picking a program, including finding the right fit, financial considerations. expectations...

In the first half of my conversation with Matt Kramer, we discuss both of the books that he has written; "The Best Laid Plans of a High School Basketball CEO" and "A Coaching Life". In our conversation, we discuss the origins of the books, building up his program, getting fired twice, coaching at a basketball factory, and other things! If you're interested in ordering Coach Kramer's two books, her...

Formal discussions and sit downs with your players are necessary to run an efficient program, to build trust and to show transparency within your program. This week, Tony and I discuss things that you should do in your exit interviews, things not to do and other ideas to help with your formal sit downs with your players. We also have our weekly trivia, an extended numbers discussion and the usual...

Pleased to have on retired basketball coach and Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Famer Eddie Andrist on the podcast this week! Coach and I discuss alot of different topics, including his run and jump philosophy, his relationship withDick Bennett and Bo Ryan, his coaching experiences, his international experiences, communicating with parents, and much more. Great conversation with o...

Many times we focus on honing our coaching skills during the season and in-season games, but we also need to think about how we are going to coach our teams during the summer. You're going to have different thoughts and concepts that you're going to want to employ during the summer to help your team get ready for the winter. Tony and I go through these concepts, along with trivia and a discussion...

Alot has been said about basketball in the last few weeks, but instead of it being centered on the men's game, it's been about the women's game, and the major reason for that is one player; Caitlin Clark. I thought I'd do my best to summarize my observations and opinions on Clark in this narrative podcast format . . . hope you like it!

Really excited to have Tony Siske, the head boys basketball coach at Crete (NE), on the podcast this week! Tony comes from a family of coaches and has experienced a wealth of success at multiple stops in the state. In this pod, we discuss getting players to buy in to the program, leaving jobs, keys to a long coaching career, teaching his defensive philosophy and numerous other discussion points; e...

One of the great challenges of the spring is to put together a quality summer schedule for your program. You want to play alot, but you don't want to play too much. You want your kids to commit to the program, but they have to be teenagers. You need to do stuff, but you don't want to make it too expensive for parents. In this episode, Tony and I navigate the important details of putting together y...

Being clear, transparent and honest in your post-season evaluation and communications is really important to getting your "Improvement Season" off to a great start. In this episode, Tony and I break down the important elements that you should address during individual meetings, how to have a productive meeting and how to make sure that your lines of communication are clear.

In our latest episode, North Polk (IA) Boys HC Aaron Dose comes on the podcast! In a great conversation, we discuss a variety of topics, including trying to get over the hump against an opponent, youth development, passing and ball handling drills, pressbreaks and much more, including . . . fishing??? Enjoy this conversation with one of Iowa's up and coming coaches!

The season is long, full of emotions, ups and downs and then, for most of us, it comes to a crashing halt. What are some things that you can do and should do after your season is over? Tony and I dive into that this week, along with our usual trivia. In an extended podcast, we also give our amateur predictions for the NCAA tournament, and our brackets have been busted already . . .

Jon Palicki, the GBB HC at Resurrection College Prep (IL) jumps on the podcast this week to chat about a variety of different topics. We discuss offensive and defensive philosophies, while we also discuss podcasting, coaching and teaching at two different schools at the same time, being part of the state board and numerous other topics. Enjoy this podcast!

In our last roundtable discussion of the 2023 state tournament, I sit down with Tom Tvrdy of Omaha Marian (NE), Kelly Cooksley of Broken Bow (NE) and Nate Pribnow of Fremont Bergan (NE) to discuss a variety of topics, including the implementation of the shot clock, building a championship culture, Improvement Season plans and much more!

Our second state tournament roundtable features Kirk Walker of The College of St. Mary (NE), Steve Selk of South Sioux City and my main man Casey Hall of Millard West. We discuss a variety of topics, including different state tournament formats, Improvement Season adjustments, summer camps and much more! Also, Carter Plum gives his "Pizza Review"!

In the first of three roundtables from the Nebraska Girls State Tournament, Nate Wall, Dexter Goodner, Tom Krehbiel and I sit down to go through a variety of topics. We chat about holding kids accountable, defensive transition, differences in the mens and women's game, making yourself better during "Improvement Season" and much more! We had a great time at "The Mellow Mushroom" in the Haymarket Di...

Many times people believe that once the last buzzer goes off, your season is over. In actuality, you still have numerous things left to do at the end of the season before you move forward. This week, Tony and I discuss your responsibilities as a coach and what you can or should be doing to finish your season before the next season starts.

Kristin Meyer, the head girls basketball coach at West Des Moines Dowling (IA) jumps on the podcast this week for a great conversation! We talk about a variety of topics, including leaving one highly successful program for another, being Caitlyn Clark's high school coach, scouting, half court defensive philosophy and communicating with parents. Great conversation this week with one of Iowa's best!

The game becomes different in the post-season, and you have to do some things differently while also maintaining your routine. This week, Tony and I break down some things that you need to consider as you move further and further into the post-season, from what to worry about to what you should not be doing. Alot of great thoughts shared this week!

There are four major roles in every competition; players, coaches, spectators and officials. In this episode, Tony and I discuss various things to think about when working with officials; how to approach them, what not to say, how to use humor to help you get your point across and many other thoughts about working with the folks that make every competition go!

Jake Nannen is one of Nebraska's up and coming basketball coaches, and we're really excited to have him on for episode #161. In this episode, we discuss a variety of different topics, from his background to coaching and sharing of athletes in a small town. We also talk about implementing a system in your program from top to bottom, we trade ideas on defensive concepts, we take a look at stats and...

Some of the toughest decisions that you have to make as a coach is who you are going to play at the end of the season. This week, Tony and I go through the different scenarios and thoughts that we have on narrowing your rotations, the variables to consider and how to break the news to those that might not be receiving the minutes they anticipate. In addition, we have the world's worst trivia quest...

Jenna Bolstad, the head Women's Basketball Coach at Miles Community College (MT) is our guest this week! Jenna is a real up and comer in the coaching profession, and she shares with us alot of her philosophy, including her favorite drills, building a great camp, coaching international players, preparing to be a head coach, game management and much more. Enjoy this week's podcast!!

One of the challenges of any head coach, especially as the season moves forward, is making sure that all of your players feel valued and part of the program. Many times you get focused on your Varsity group or your rotation players, and because of that, some players on your may not feel as involved in your program. This week, Tony and discuss strategies to try and make all players feel involved in...