The Maine Basketball Rankings Podcast

Back from a short summer hiatus and Southern Maine Sting and CMCC's Steve Carey joins me to talk about the value of AAU, finding a program that isn't out to exploit your kid, and how AAU has changed over the years.

Plus, how can a parent get their kid crossed off a college's list of recruiting targets? What a program like CMCC is looking for and so much more.

Long considered one of the best distance runners in the state of Maine, Robert Gomez went viral when he stopped to carry a fallen runner to the finish line during the TD Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race.

Gomez is also a coach, so we discuss various strategies for the 10K that can help you maximize both your training in the weeks before the race and on race day itself.

Eastern Shore Training: https://www.easternshoretraining.com/

Like a lot of people, Connor Daigle started running to get in shape for basketball season. It didn't take long for him to fall in love with the sport.

As he finishes his sophomore season at UMaine, he joins me to talk about track vs. roads, training for the heat, goals going forward, and his hopes to 3-peat at The Waldoboro Day 5K this Saturday.

Register for the Waldoboro Day 5K: https://runsignup.com/Race/ME/Waldoboro/WaldoboroDay5K

Because I'll be damned if someone's going to come on my podcast and say nice things about Kyrie Irving, Adam Robinson joins me to go over the Celtics/Mavs storylines, including how ridiculous the coverage is and how we think the series might play out. Oh, and Adam has a hot take about Al Horford.

Plus, some of the standout performances from the Class A Track & Field championships, mini golf, and we wearing our cool new swag, courtesy of Maine Sting.

The Celtics are back in the Eastern Conference Finals, much to the chagrin of every talking head on ESPN, so Jon Duke joins me to preview the series, talk about why the media is so hell-bent on burying Tatum & Company.

Plus, we talk about Joe Mazzulla, do a quick preview of next year in A North, and more!

Michael Hathaway has built Leavitt into a football powerhouse. Last year they repeated as Class C state champions, going undefeated despite playing a schedule that included some of the biggest schools in the state. We talk about how the program was built, the value of a good coaching staff, and what the MPA should do to fix scheduling.

Plus, the growth of the Maine Elite Passing Camp (returning this July) and why Adam Robinson is ducking the smoke.

Maine Elite Passing Camp: https://www.facebook.com/MaineElitePassingCamp

Shots by Shields: https://elliottshields.myportfolio.com/

The COVID-19 pandemic was probably the biggest collective challenge of our lifetimes. Now Thornton Academy Athletic Director has co-written (with Dave Eid) the definitive record of that time: what happened, how the sports world of Maine responded, and how we ultimately overcame it.

We talk about that, plus the evolving role of an Athletic Director as Gary plans to retire at the end of this, his 17th year at Thornton Academy.

More about Stolen Seasons: https://www.stolenseasons.com/

Look, you probably didn't watch a lot of Cleveland games this year. But Cavs fan Griffin Conlogue did and he'll join me to talk about the matchup and what the Celtics have to do to advance to the conference finals.

Plus, we talk about Mount Blue and go over Griffin's Four Faves on Letterboxd.

Griffin's Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/gc_93/

A couple of weeks ago, Bob Beatham, Jr. wrote an open letter on Eastern Maine Sports making the case for a return to the 4 class system for basketball.

We talk about his case for 4 classes and a couple other things he'd change to improve Maine high school basketball.

Read the letter: https://easternmainesports.com/2024/04/10/maine-high-school-basketball-needs-to-return-to-4-classes/

Now that the Celtics finally know their first round opponent, I sat down with local Heat fan (and acclaimed sports journalist) Mike Mandell to discuss the series, the likelihood of another Miami upset, the spring sports season, and a bunch more.

Mike Mandell on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MichaelJMandell

Read him in print: https://www.centralmaine.com/author/mike-mandell/