A Pen And A Napkin

Episode #159 features BJ Blase, the boys basketball coach at Central City (NE). In this episode, we discuss a variety of topics, including the importance of facilities, teaching kids how to win, not rushing players up, transition offense, building a playbook and building a tradition where there hasn't been alot of tradition. Enjoy this episode with one of Nebraska's best!

Andy Gillen, the highly successful boys HC at Ogallala (NE) comes on the podcast this week to discuss a variety of topics, including his influences like Phil Jackson and Bill Belichick. We also discuss "Truth Sessions", the pros and cons of multiple stops, building chemistry, his defensive philosophy and much more! Great conversation with one of western Nebraska's best!

Every team is going to have its strengths, and almost every team is going to have some sort of weakness; most teams are going to have multiple weaknesses. How do you minimize those weaknesses, and how do you improve those weaknesses while also playing to your strengths? That's what Tony and I break down this week!!

Terrific conversation with Dane Bacon, GBB HC at Bellevue West (NE) High School. Coach Bacon and I go through a variety of topics, from rebuilding the culture of the T-Bird program to the keys to winning close games. In addition, we talk about their recent 93-91 game (you read that correctly), along with shooting drills, transition offense, BLOB philosophy and more!

January is a tough month for basketball teams; no holiday break, the grind of the season has set in and it can be a battle to get the performances that you would like to get from. your team. This week, Tony and I discuss some of the strategies that we have used to help our teams work our way through "The Dog Days" of the basketball season!

We're back on the interview trail with Jason Dolliver, the head girls coach at Pender (NE) High School. Coach Dolliver and I touch on a variety of topics, including being a leader in the community, changes in coaching basketball, his basketball influences, how he gets his teams to not foul, communication with parents and much more! A terrific interview with one of Nebraska's best educational leade...

90-95% of the parents in our programs are terrific people who understand their boundaries and are supportive of the coaching staff. However, we all know that, from time to time, parents can sometimes be a little too passionate about their children and their goals. This week, Tony and I break down our experiences in working with parents and strategies that you can use to help work through these sit...

Game day organization and preparation are what we are geared to do; it's one of the biggest reasons why we coach! In this episode of "The Coaching Staff", Tony and I break down our game day procedures, how we prepare for competitions, how we organize our benches, what we do at our pregames, halftimes and post games, and much more!

It's essential that you have an organized bench during your games to make sure that your team's execution can be as sharp as possible. In this episode, Tony and I discuss bench organization, the use of managers and how to stay as organized as possible!

We're all coming up on a nice holiday break, and there are numerous ways to make your team better, depending on your circumstances. This week, Tony and I discuss two quite different circumstances that we are under over the holiday break and how we play to navigate them. Of course, we will have our trivia, our sporting events to look forward to and a thank you from APAAN!

DeMarcus James, the highly successful boys HC at Fort Worth OD Wyatt HS (TX) comes on the podcast to discuss a variety of topics, from marketing your program to the growth in Texas basketball to playing a challenging schedule. Along with that, we discuss transition offense, SLOB's and off-season development. Great discussion with a terrific coach from the Lone Star State!

Scouting is both an art and a science . . . what makes a good scouting report? How much is too much? When do we simplify too much? What should we be worried about? What should we NOT worry about? Tony and I tackle these questions and much more, including a round of "History 101" by Coach Vis; enjoy!

This week we are excited to talk to Tim Sandquist, the highly successful Men's HC at Kirkwood CC (IA)! Coach Sandquist touches on a wide variety of topics, including his basketball journey, hiring of assistant coaches, the stresses of being a head coach as opposed to an assistant, practice execution, half court defense and more! Terrific conversation with one of the best JuCo coaches in the countr...

As games begin and the results starts to get real, there's a process that almost all of us go through; what to change and when to change it. This week, Tony and I talk about all of the things that may bring about those changes and our advice for making changes. We also to through our usual trivia and we end up talking a little World Cup!

Our newest episode features Justin Bowen, a terrific up and coming coach from Southside (AL). Coach Bowen has coached numerous sports and has already made a big difference in his first season as GBB HC at Southside. We chat about his influences, coaching multiple sports, things he felt like he was and wasn't prepared for, the "Champ Chain", defense and much more! Great conversation with a young, r...

Every coach wants to be prepared and have enough of their scheme in to function early in the season, but we also only have so much practice time available and we have alot of things to focus on. In this episode, Tony and I break down what we have implemented on offense, defense and special teams, and what are the things that we consider as we implement those schemes in our first couple of weeks of...

When we put together our thoughts and plans for our seasons, we tend to error on the side of the most optimistic outcomes. Realistically, there are going to be things that go wrong; injuries, bad practices, underperformance, etc . . . This week, Tony and I discuss these very scenarios and more and what you can do to work through the situations when things go wrong . . .

Ras Vanderloo, the highly successful boys head coach at Sioux City East (IA) comes on this week and we have a great conversation! We talk about coming from a coaching family, being involved with USA Basketball, aspects of youth sports and coaching that should be emphasized, delegating responsibilities to your assistants, and much more! A really fun conversation with one of Iowa's best!

In order to build a quality program, we have to have special nights to create traditions and honors for people in the past, present and future. Some of these nights have direct ties to our current programs, while other nights can serve our community at large. In this week's "Coaching Staff", Tony and I go through some special nights that we've put together in the past and things we're thinking abo...

The GBB HC at Mustang (OK), Katie Smith has built one of the best programs in the Sooner State. On this week's pod, Coach Smith discusses playing for her father, how to build a great culture, how to run a quality summer league and much more! A great conversation with one of Oklahoma's best!

This week, we are really excited to welcome on Katie Smith, the GBB HC at Mustang (OK) High School. Coach Smith discusses a variety of topics including how to put together a quality summer league, slogans to get her important cultural messages across, playing and coaching with her father and much more. A great conversation with one of Oklahoma's finest!!

As coaches, it is important that we teach the game properly and efficiently. In this episode, Tony and I break down teaching methods, how to get the most out of your team, what your priorities should be, and much more!

Today, we're celebrating the 150th interview podcast of "A Pen And A Napkin" with former University of Kansas and University of North Carolina Head Coach Roy Williams! Coach was very gracious with his time, and we had a wide ranging discussion, from his coaching influences to retirement, running an efficient offense, improving from year one to year two, Michael Jordan and much more! Enjoy episode...

Have a solid plan going into your season is essential for success, but what are some of the things that you should consider when putting that plan together? This week, Tony and I break down how we put together are practice schedules going into the season, including when to implement certain concepts, how to implement certain concepts and other considerations. Enjoy our conversation!

We had a great night last night at Wine 121 in Omaha as myself, Sarah Goodwin from Bennington (NE) High School, Kirk Walker of the College of St. Mary's and Shawn Gilbert, the Head WBB Coach at Midland University sit around and talk some hoops. We chatted about how to handle a cancer on the team, early season adjustments, establishing roles, integrating new players into your program, what a head c...