A Pen And A Napkin

Episode #223 features Jim Simons, the head boys basketball coach at Omaha Westside (NE) High School. Coach Simons has built a consistent winner at Westside step by step, and Coach Simon's rise up the ranks was literally step by step. Jim tells us about his journey, how his coaching philosophy has changed, the influence of other coaches and coaching baseball on his philosophy, coaching AAU and much more. A really fun conversation with one of Nebraska's best!

What's the most important skill in basketball? SHOOTING! So, how do you teach shooting? Tony and I discuss some of our basic fundamentals that we use to teach shooting, and then we each throw out five of our favorite drills that we use in our practices. Along with that, we have trivia, a discussion about the NBA playoffs and our (very) amateur WNBA predications for the upcoming season!

We're really excited to have on for Episode #222 Brad Fischer, the Head Women's Basketball Coach at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh! Coach and I start the pod discussing the Milwaukee Bucks and what they need to do this offseason, then we dive into his high retention rate in his program, building a once proud program back up, pack line defense, practice planning, scouting and much more. Terrific conversation with one of DIII's best HC's!

We, as coaches, are supposed to evaluate our players and our AC's, but how much time do we spend evaluating our own performance as a head coach? This week, Tony and I break down different things that we can evaluate ourselves on, and how to do it, from the people you should talk to other evaluation methods. Along with that, we have trivia and a deep dive on the NBA playoffs. Enjoy!

Really excited to have Matt Ducharme, the WBB HC at UMass-Dartmouth, on the podcast this week! Coach Ducharme has done a great job building his program into a consistent winner, and he talks about recruiting, being at an institution for an extended period of time, offensive philosophy, scouting, influences and much more. Really fun conversation with a very good young coach!

After the season, we know that we, as coaches, need some time to recharge and get your feet back underneath you. At the same time, we sometimes lose sight of that for our players and what is good for them, so how do we help our players recharge? Tony and I dive deep into this topic, along with other topics, including trivia and our TWIB segment, where we discuss NBA playoffs and the transfer portal. Enjoy!!

We're really excited to have Sharman White, the Boys HC at Pace Academy (GA) who moonlights as the HC of USA Basketballs U17 team. Coach White is also just coming off of coaching the McDonald's All-American game and the Nike Hoops Summit, so we chat about that entire process, building a program from scratch, coming back to high school ball after coaching collegiately, X's and O's and much more! Great chat with one of the best in the country!

Our lives as coaches are becoming more and more demanding and busier than ever, so how do you balance all of the responsibilities that you need to perform and stay on top of it all? This week, Tony and I discuss methods and philosophies of what you can do to make sure that you are organized and on top of everything that needs to be done within your program. Along with that, we have trivia, and in our TWIB segment, we discuss the WNBA draft, Kentucky's hire of Mark Pope and a small preview of the NBA playoffs.

Really excited to have one of Nebraska's best, Johnson-Brock's Boys HC Lucus Dalinghaus, on the podcast this week! Coach talks about his background, running the table and repeating this past season, how his educational background has helped with his coaching, some of his favorite drills, and much more!! Really good conversation with a terrific small school coach from Nebraska!

What a great month March was!! So many story lines, alot of great basketball, the growth of the women's game and two great champions . . . Tony and I break down the tournaments and what we learned from watching the tournament and how it can affect your program. We also have a special trivia section right before we discuss the Kentucky job, Tara VanDerveer retiring and more!