A Pen And A Napkin

Casey Hall and I are back for our review of "Winning Time"! This week, we finally hit some serious basketball material with Episode IV "Who the F . . . is Jack McKinney?". The Lakers hit training camp, McKinney tries to become a head coach and Jerry West comes in to save the day! Enjoy our review!

We're all, to a degree, selfish and want what's best for our programs; however, we DO have to think about alot of factors as we put together our summer programs. In this "Foundation Friday", we talk about the factors that you need to consider as you put together your summer program, plus a big announcement about how things are going at "A Pen And A Napkin"!

Casey Hall and I take a deep dive on "Winning Time" Episode III, uniquely titled "The Best Is Yet to Come". This episode highlights the search for a new Lakers coach, with Dr. Buss adamant that Jerry Tarkanian is his guy. Other subplots include Earvin Johnson's acclimation to Los Angeles socially and Jerry West finding his way. It's our favorite episode so far, so enjoy!

Ever wonder what it's like to win a state championship? Ever wondered what needs to be done to win a state title, or wonder what were the intangibles that led to that championship? We have that handled right here with this podcast! Five state championship coaches, from the first one (Mohs, Martindale and Stoffel) along with a 12-timer (Flynn). We add in a repeat champion in Tim Cannon and the stor...

The state tournament is a tremendous opportunity to network, to watch high level basketball and to learn from various situations that present themselves. In this pod, I've taken a look at some of the things that I saw last week at the Nebraska state tournament that a coaching staff should consider looking at and prepare for, especially as your season progresses.

Casey Hall and I breakdown Episode II of "Winning Time", HBO's new series on the 1980's Los Angeles Lakers. We chat about the overall episode, then dive into our categories and give our grades on the episode.

In the last of our four state tourney roundtables, Jerome Skrdla of Gretna (NE), Nate Wall of David City Aquinas (NE) and Jimmy Motz of Norris (NE) come on the pod to chat it up at the N-Zone in downtown Lincoln. We discuss timeout usage, developing community support and much more! Enjoy this great discussion, and when in downtown Lincoln, grab a bite to eat at either the Mellow Mushroom or the N-...

Another day, another roundtable!! Millard West's finest, Marc Kruger and Casey Hall, along with Paul Markley, jump on the pod at the N-Zone in downtown Lincoln, Nebraska. In this pod, we chat about what we look for when voting for postseason awards, how to make all of your players feel valued and much more, including a food review by Carter Plum!!

Another day, another roundtable! Tom Tvrdy returns to this roundtable, along with Sarah Goodwin, GBB AC at Bennington (NE) and Paul Markley, GBB HC at Ralston (NE). We chat about our own self improvement, communication with our players, helping our players balance out their summer activities and much more!

Dexter Goodner of Ord (NE), Tom Tvrdy of Omaha Marian and I sit together, eat some Mellow Mushroom pizza, and discuss a wide variety of topics, including lessons learned from this season, off season development, selection of summer camps and much more! Enjoy the first of many podcasts this week from the Nebraska state tournament!

Casey Hall and I get together to review "Winning Time", the new HBO series about the 1980's Showtime Lakers! We go through what we like and what we didn't like, including our favorite and least favorite scenes, the basketball realism of the episode and other awards. Hope you like it!!

Grant Cole, GBB HC at Auburn (NE), jumps on the podcast this week to discuss a variety of different topics. On the pod, we chat about returning home to coach, working with numerous family members, his half court offensive and defensive philosophy, scouting and breaking a 40 year state tournament drought. Alot of great thoughts shared; enjoy!

As we wrap up our seasons, it's easy to look back at the tangible entities, like wins and losses, as a way to evaluate our season. But what are some other things that you should be looking at other than wins and losses, and what are ways that you could or should be measuring yourself in those areas? Here are some thoughts on this in this extra "Foundation Friday"!

At the end of our seasons, we have given all that we have to give, but there should be a time of recovery, both mentally and physically. Some of this stress is self-induced, while much of it comes from outside sources. What are the warning signs that you should be looking for, and what are some things that you can do to help yourself? Here's some thoughts on this very important topic.

Almost every program is dependent on a strong youth program. The focus is, of course, on the development of skills, but what are the other things that you should worry about and consider as you get ready to move from one season to the next? This week, my youth coaches and I had our end of the season meeting, and here are the things that were at the top of our list!

Jacob Mohs, the boys basketball coach at Ashland-Greenwood (NE) HS, comes on the podcast this week to talk about a variety of different topics. We chat about his coaching influences, coaching different sports, what he learned about a winless season and developing his youth program, along with how he developed his "offensive standards" and how they teach their motion principles. A great listen!

100 Foundation Fridays!!!! Hard to believe that this is #100, but here we are! This week, we're going to talk about the do's and don'ts of discussing with your players about their season and their futures, from questionnaires to timing of these discussions. It's important that you put alot of thought into each and every one of these discussions, so here's some tips on a very important topic that w...

Just a quick hitter pod on updates, apologies and future plans for "A Pen And A Napkin" . . .

Nate Pribnow has rebuilt Fremont (NE) Bergan into a perennial state tournament contender, and in this week's podcast, he shares a bunch of great information about his program. We discuss playing in what is probably the best conference in the state, sharing athletes, offensive and defensive philosophy, servant leadership, melding AAU and high school ball and much more. Great conversation!!

It's early February, so we're all looking for an edge heading into. post season play. What are the things that we should be focused on as we head into the final stretch of the regular season? Fundamentals, execution, confidence and camaraderie are at the top of the list, but here's some of my thoughts on prepping. your team for the home stretch!

Every team needs days off; that's obvious. But sometimes, especially this time of year, it's great to take a day off WITH your team and do something that will boost morale and energy for the stretch run of the season. In this "Foundation Friday", we talk about different ideas that you can use to "surprise" your team with a great bonding experience!

Legendary Minnesota coach Larry McKenzie comes on the podcast this week. A 6-time state champion, Coach McKenzie talks about building up programs in two different schools, finding his calling as a high school coach, developing the Minnesota Black Basketball Coaches Association, pressure defense, "The Creed" and creating an individual plan for each player. Terrific conversation with a great coach!

Newly minted IGCA Basketball Hall of Famer (Class of 2022) Don Martindale comes on the podcast this week! The GBB HC at Estherville-Lincoln Central, Martindale has 12 Regional Final and 5 State Tournament appearances on his resume. We chat about influences, the origins of the Estherville "Midgets" nickname, rebuilding a program, organizing a youth program and much more. Enjoy listening to one of I...

The best way to evaluate our teams and make them better is by meticulously watching our own game footage. There are good ways and bad ways to use game footage to your advantage, so this week we'll go through some of the things that I've picked up upon when it comes to game evaluation, along with how to share those things with your team!

This week's episode features Greg Berdnt, GBB HC at Hastings St. Cecilia's (NE) HS. With a career record of 126-17, Coach Berdnt has built a juggernaut at St. Cecilia's, and he details his "Competition Culture", the bond with his child hood friends and what it taught him about coaching, coaching at lower levels, half court offense and defense and much more!