A Pen And A Napkin

Nick Nurse is one of the best coaches in the world, and he shares his coaching journey in "Rapture", detailing everything from his childhood in Iowa to coaching in England, Belgium, the D-League and eventually the NBA. He discusses his coaching philosophy, how he learned from his mistakes, communication with players, building a strong work ethic and much more. A great read that would make a great Christmas present!

One of the newest members of the 500 win club in Nebraska, Kearney Catholic GBB HC Rick Petri comes on the podcast to discuss his dual role as AD and coach, coaching with his daughter, getting kicked out of a conference, rebounding, the importance of passing, teaching motion development and growing as a coach. Great information!

In this "Foundation Friday" on a Monday, we'll dive in on two things; first, I'm asking for my listeners help for something near and dear to my heart, a big ask, if you will. In the second half, we focus on why we do what we do and why it is important to focus on the big picture in coaching and our coaching relationships.

Longtime MOC/Floyd Valley Boys HC Loren DeJong comes on the latest edition of the podcast to discuss his evolution as a coach, building a program in a small town, the influential coaches in his life, building a defensive mindset and developing players within your program. Terrific information from one of Iowa's best!!!

As you examine your team for the upcoming season, what is the best way to put together the pieces of your program and how do you truly evaluate your players? Along with that, how do you decide your rotation and how deep would you ideally go into your bench? Here are some thoughts on roster construction and evaluating your team going into the upcoming season.

In celebrating our 1 year anniversary, APAAN welcomes back Dick Jungers, GBB HC at Newell-Fonda (IA). We go through last year's epic comeback in the state championship game, along with building your program and getting positive involvememnt with the community. We also discuss disrupting the opposition's offenses in various ways, among other topics. Great to have a life-long friend back on for our first 2x interviewee!!

As we creep closer and closer to the start of the season, what is your plan as far as what you are going to do for your practices? What is your strategic view point for implementation? How are you planning week to week? Here are some thoughts and ideas on what you can do to help plan for your entire season before it even starts to get the most out of it.

Long time Norfolk Catholic (NE) GBB HC Tim Kassmeier hops on the podcast this week to discuss a variety of topics, including being at the same school for almost 3 decades, getting your players involved in building the culture of your program, footwork drills, variations of shell drill and a bunch of other stuff. Great podcast!

Practice is going to be starting for most high school coaches in the next few weeks, and many of us are already working on practice plans. What do you want your practice to look like? What, other than the obvious drill work and X's and O's, do you want or need to emphasize? What are other factors that you might need to consider as you build your program on a daily basis? Here are some thoughts on what you could/should be emphasizing and executing in practice.

In a quick hitter interview this week, Ames (IA) Boys HC Vance Downs jumps on the podcast for a variety of topics, including discussing the strength of Iowa as a "basketball state", out of bounds philosophy, building a solid staff, game day preparation and more! Alot of good information in a short amount of time!!