For this episode I am joined by a former girls varsity basketball coach, current social studies teacher and author – Carl Pierson.  Carl spent 17 seasons as head coach at 4 different high schools and is also the executive director of the MN girls basketball coaches association.  He is also the author of two books – “The Politics of Coaching” and “The Other Side of Glory”.  Carl and I chat about his head coaching days, how basketball helped shape him as a person, AAU basketball, his favorite Twitter account and his current bout with cancer.

Our guests for this episode are two former University of Minnesota basketball teammates – Jim Shikenjanski and Richard Coffey.  Jim and Richard were apart of the same recruiting class playing from 1986 - 1990 and were also a part of the team in Coach Clem Haskins first year as coach.  Their team had struggles at first but found success as they reached the Sweet 16 in their junior season and the Elite 8 as seniors.  We discuss those Gopher teams and what made it so memorable to be a part of them.  

Both Jim and Richard also have their own kids that happen to have pursued basketball at a high level.  Jim's son Max is a soon to be senior at Stillwater HS and stars on the football field and the basketball court.  Richard has had three kids play D-1 college basketball including his son Amir who followed in his footsteps at the U of M and is now in the NBA.  We hear from them on what it’s like to see their own kids go down the path of a college athlete as a former athlete, how they’ve handled the struggles and what advice they share with their kids. 

Joining me for this episode are two newly retired MN boys high school basketball coaches – Kris Fadness from Austin and Dana Kallman from Chaska.  Between the two of them they were in the head coaching role for 47 seasons and have combined for nearly 800 wins.  Both have coached their team in the state tournament, won numerous conference titles and were passionate about coaching the kids in their communities.  They are also stepping aside at a time where they are both in their 50’s and arguably have a lot left in the “coaching tank”.  In this episode we discuss what life is like for a high school varsity head coach and the year-long grind it has become, why they retired and where they see high school basketball in 15 years.  

Enjoy this conversation in the Bare's Den with Kris Fadness and Dana Kallman.

In this episode we explore the world of Junior College Basketball.  I think it’s slightly misunderstood and is an important area in the collegiate basketball landscape.  Joining me are two legendary Minnesota coaches that were both successful coaches in the JUCO world.  Jay Pivec has over 600 wins and a good majority of those came from his time as head coach at Minneapolis Community College.  Jay was recognized as national junior college coach of the year in 2009 and was inducted into the national junior college hall of fame in 2010.  And the second guest- Ron Larson just retired as the head coach at Anoka-Ramsey Community College.  Ron amassed over 700 wins as coach at ARCC and St. Francis high school and is in the Minnesota Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame.

Ron and Jay explain the differences in the three divisions of JUCO basketball, where most players that go the JUCO route play at the next level and why JUCO basketball is important.  This episode is a must listen for those wanting to learn more about junior college basketball or are looking to play at that level.

Timberwolves radio play-by-play voice Alan Horton joins for this episode to chat about his path in broadcasting and the Timberwolves.  Alan's career has brought him to San Diego, Seattle and then to Minnesota.  He was the play-by-play voice for the Minnesota Lynx during their championship seasons of 2011 and 2013 and has now been the voice of the Timberwolves for 15 seasons.  Alan shares what it's like to broadcast solo all of these years, what goes into his preparation and then we dive into the upcoming 1st round series of the Wolves & Grizzlies.  Enjoy this conversation in the Bare's Den with Alan Horton.

This episode newly crowned Minnesota class 4A boys state champion head coach James Ware of Park Center high school joins the show.  James led the Pirates to a 31-1 and record this season and the first boys basketball state title in school history.  James was also  a decorated player himself starring at Hopkins high school and playing in college for both Colorado St. and Texas Tech.  Hear about his path as a player, becoming a coach and the magical season for Park Center this year.  Check it out!

We brought back Ryan James from Prep Hoops, North Star Hoops and Breakdown Sports to preview the 2022 Minnesota boys state high school basketball tournament.

Ryan gives his thoughts on some of the top teams and players and gives his prediction on a winner for each class.  We also touch on some MN Mr. Basketball and Gopher men's hoops as well.

The mini-series on Minnesota basketball legends continues as we are joined by Randy Breuer.  

Randy was a dominating big man in Lake City who was 6 foot 8 as an 8th grader and grew to reach 7 foot 3.  Randy helped lead Lake City to back to back to state championships in 1978 and 1979 where they finished the 79 season undefeated.  He was also the Minnesota Mr. Basketball co-winner in 1979.  He then went on to play for the hometown University of Minnesota Golden Gophers where he led the team in scoring and rebounding his last three years.  He was also a big part of that Gopher team that won the 1982 Big Ten regular season title.  Big Bru was drafted in the 1st round by the Milwaukee Bucks in 1983.  He played 11 seasons in the NBA including three with the Minnesota Timberwolves.  We are joined in this conversation by fellow Lake City alum Jeff Munneke.  

We discuss Randy's career, how a slab of cement by the hog barn helped hone his skills and how the Gophers won their 1982 Big Ten championship.  Enjoy this conversation in the Bare's Den with Randy Breuer.

Basketball is in the family to say the least for Isaiah Dahlman.  His grandfather (John Kundla) was the first coach for the Minneapolis Lakers and also coached at the University of Minnesota.  His brother Noah and sister Rebekah were also prep stars that went on to play collegiately at the D1 level.

Isaiah was one of the best players in the entire state in the early 2000’s at Braham High School and led an amazing three year run for their school winning 3 straight class 2A state basketball championships.  Isaiah finished his high school career as the state’s all-time leading scorer with 3,366 points and was also voted Mr. Basketball in 2006.  From Braham he took his skills to Michigan St in the Big 10.  Although he ended up not having a huge role on those successful Michigan St teams hear how Isaiah still felt his career was a success and why Coach Izzo called him the “ultimate Spartan”.  

Starting with this episode we are going to bring back the mini-series on MN basketball legends.  Last season’s guests were some of our most popular episodes where we had on Barry Wohler, Janet Karvonen, Blaine Joerger, Coach John Carlson and his son Alex and Khalid El-Amin.  This season I’m excited to speak with a few more players that were standouts on the hardwood here in Minnesota.  

Dusty Rychart is our first guest and I couldn’t be more excited to share this episode with you.  Dusty was a true grinder growing up on the iron range in Grand Rapids, MN.  Dusty has an amazing story of hard work and perseverance that led him to the University of Minnesota as a walk-on and ultimately to professional basketball in Australia.  Here how Dusty constantly kept betting on himself,  relying on his hard work and used the fuel from his doubters to help reach his goals and become a very consistent – reliable layer wherever he played.

Enjoy this conversation in the Bare's Den with Dusty Rychart.