A Pen And A Napkin

Tony and I have discussed how to take care of yourself for the short term, but this week we discuss a longer term view . . . how to sustain a long career. From organization to being a life long learner to knowing yourself, we've got a laundry list of tips to help coaches to not just thrive this year, but for many years. In addition, we've got trivia and a bunch of different topics in our TWIB segment, including the NBA gambling scandal and players from the G-League having collegiate eligibility. Enjoy!

Really excited to have on for episode #299 Dick Wettengel, the head girls basketball coach at Council Bluffs St. Albert's (IA). Coach has been involved with the game in the Council Bluffs area for over 50 years, and last year his squad cut down the nets in Des Moines. We discuss his influences, building his program brick by brick, pressure defense, sharing of athletes and much more. A really fun conversation with a coach who richly got his flowers this past spring!

The goal of every offense is to create the best shots for the best players, but how do you get down to the details of accomplishing that goal? This week, Tony and I break down the intricacies of getting great shots, from your set list to passing and screening. We also have a good TWIB segment, where we discuss Giannis, J-Kidd's new contract, a preview of the NCAA Top 10's and a preview of the NBA Pacific Division. Enjoy!

It's the best $5 I've spent in a while . . . after years of negotiation, I was finally able to bribe John Carrier from Nova Classic (MN) to come on the podcast! John and I discuss a bunch of different topics, including hiring AC's, offensive basketball, building a culture, making basketball fun for the players while also getting them to work hard, plus we take a deep dive into sharing the game and why it's important to be a life long learner. A great podcast with a bunch of great information!

There are very few people who we can associate with one word or phrase, but when you think of Nolan Richardson, "40 Minutes of Hell" immediately comes to mind! Coach Richardson was one of the best coaches of the 1980s and 90s in college basketball, leading Arkansas to its one and only national championship in 1994. We'll talk about the ups and downs of Coach Richardson's career, have some trivia, take a deep dive on the state of the WNBA and then break down what is perhaps the NBA's toughest division. Enjoy!

Chad Mustard is the boys basketball coach at Omaha Roncalli Catholic High School, and he has had a varied and exciting career. A former All-Stater in multiple sports in Nebraska who played multiple sports at the Division II level and eventually found himself on multiple NFL rosters, Coach Mustard brings those experiences and more to his coaching resume. In this episode, we talk about those things, along with fundraising, taking steps in growth in the program. pressbreaks, player development and much more. A really fun podcast with one of Omaha's best!

The first female team that we are breaking down on the "The Great Teams" podcast is a terrific one! Pat Summitt's last national championship team in 2008 finished the journey of going "back to back" with one of college basketball's greatest players, Candace Parker. We break down the roster, the schedule and the journey of this squad with Nate Wall and Jacob Brindle; enjoy!

We had a great time getting together before the Omaha Metro Basketball Coaches Association clinic last week! Dave Hubert of Ashland-Greenwood (NE), Bruce Chubick of Omaha Central and Derek Sonderland of Tri-Center Neola (IA) jumped on the roundtable to discuss a variety of topics gearing up towards the season, including practice planning, quotes and more!

One of the greatest challenges that faces most coaches is how much time and energy to devote to installing your offensive system. Spend too little time on it and your offense starts the season clunky and uneven, even moreso than it's already going to be. Spend too much time and other areas of your team suffers, like your team defense or rebounding. In this episode, Tony and I breakdown some ideas that you can use to help you install your offense and your sets, from time management to best practices in practice. We also have our trivia, a lively...

Really excited to feature Bruce Dall, the girls basketball coach at Cedar Rapids Prairie (IA) High School. Dall, the 2024 National High School Basketball Coach of the Year, has won multiple state titles and has chosen to make the leap to a higher classification in Prairie, and we discuss those changes and how it has affected his philosophy. In addition, we talk about being in shape as a coach, peaking at the end of the season, pressbreaks, pressure defense, half court defense and much more! A really fun conversation with a terrific coach!

As summer turns to fall, it means that we are taking more and more steps towards the start of our seasons! To prepare for your season, your players need to both be in shape and bond over situations that could generously be called "shared suffering". This week, Tony and I break down numerous different activities that a coaching staff can put their team through to get them ready for the upcoming season, both inside and outside the gym. In addition, we have trivia, a discusssion on both the WNBA playoffs and bubbling gambling issues in basketball. We finish up...

Here is part II of our two part series breaking down the clinics and drills that were shared at the USA Gold Camp in Omaha over Labor Day weekend! Excited to have John Jungers from Omaha, Dominic Amorosa from Houston, Texas, Ryan Hintz from Kansas City, Missouri and Brandon Shaver from Lake Travis, Texas discussing topics to help players and coaches grow while working with some of the best youth players in the country. Enjoy!

The topic was so good last week that we had to divide it into two podcasts! This week, Tony and I dive into the second part of our pod about leadership in your program and how you can be the best leader possible for the program. We addressed leading by example, staying calm, having high standards with minimal rules, be a developer of a whole program and have great passion for your job! We also have trivia, some TWIB topics, including predictions for the WNBA brackets and a preview of the NBA's Central Division. Enjoy!

This week's interview series is of the "Quick HItter" style; we've got four coaches that worked the USA Gold Camp with me in Omaha a couple of weeks ago, and we're going to break down their clinics and what they did in their clinic. Brandon Henderson discusses rebounding, while Karen Self chats about finishing around the basket. Ras Vanderloo talks about 3 x 3, while James Bush comes on to talk about the camp and learning from other coaches. This was alot of fun to put together, and we've got part II next week!

Being the leader of your program means so much more than the X's and O's (although you have to be technically sound as a teacher as well). As the CEO of the program, you need to refine your leadership skills to benefit everyone in your program. This week, Tony and I were going to talk about all of these concepts, but our conversation was so good that we're going to split it into two weeks, so enjoy part one of our conversation, with more to come next week. In addition, we will talk trivia, the Kawhi "no-show" endorsement deal...

USA Basketball Gold Medal winning coach Scott Fitch is our guest for episode #292! Coach Fitch led the U16's to another gold medal this summer, and he comes on this week's podcast to talk about relationships, things you canlearn from international basketball, his full time job as a social media speaker, organizing your game day, building a culture and much more! Coach Fitch comes from a family of coaches, and the influence of his father is evident as you talk to him. Enjoy this week's podcast!

Lute Olson is, at times, forgotten in the history of college basketball, but this week, Tony and I are here to make sure that Coach gets his flowers for his career. Starting out as a high school teacher and coach for 13 years, Coach Olson got his start at Long Beach CC before moving on to Long Beach State and the University of Iowa. After nine years in the Hawkeye state, Olson moved on to the University of Arizona, where he took a dormant program to a blue blood for the next 25 years. We discuss Coach Olson's career, his influence...

Omaha Westview (NE) GBB HC Jason Simons makes his maiden voyage on APAAN this week as he discusses a lot of great topics! We chat about his move from a smaller school to a bigger school, player development, starting a program from scratch at Westview, the importance of good administrators, favorite drills and much more! Coach Simons has taken his program to the state tournament by year 3, and this year they go from the hunter to the hunted; listen to see how they're going to handle that shift! Great podcast!

NEW PODCAST ALERT!!!!!!!

The game of basketball has been around since December of 1891, but have we ever really settled this question . . . what team, at the game's highest levels, has been the most dominant single season team ever? We're not just talking about the NBA or college basketball, but the most dominant basketball team ever? In this new series, we're going to use math, the eye test and debate to try to figure out which team is the best basketball team ever at the four highest levels of the game (NBA, Men's and Women's College Basketball...

Having multiple ball handlers is key to having a team that takes care of the basketball and doesn't turn it over consistently. In this week's podcast, Tony and I break down overall philosophies that we have when it comes to developing better ball handling practices, and we also go through a few of our favorite ball handling drills. In addition, we have trivia and also discuss some of the headlines coming out of the WNBA, including Paige Bueckers' 44 point game. Also, happy retirement John Wall! Enjoy this pod

John Thompson, the longtime men's HC at North Carolina Wesleyan, comes on the pod this week to discuss a variety of topics! Coach talks about his career, his influences, the importance of basketball to his state of North Carolina, how to be a leader for the entire institution, player development, offensive basketball and helping your players grow through your programs culture. This was a really fun pod with a great veteran coach; enjoy!

Tony and I went to the wise Greg Berge once again to discuss eight issues that can prevent teams from achieveing their goals. From Energy Vampires to cliques to trust, all of these issues can derail any team at any level. Tony and I advise to really use this down time in August and September to address how you plan on working through this issues if they were to crop up within your team this year. In addition, we've got trivia, TWIB and more! Enjoy Episode #140!

Really excited to have on the "Guru of the Post", Coach Brandon Henderson from Riverside Prep (CA) high school! Coach Henderson goes through alot of stuff in this podcast, including his journey as a coach, taking over this program late in the summer and how he plans on creating the culture and standards he wants to have in both the short and long term. In addition, we discuss moving from multiple schools and how that has helped him develop, along with post play, BLOBs, offensive development and much more! Alot of fun talking hoops with one of my Snow...

Tony's back, and we're back with a new episode! This week, we're going to discuss how to develop floor generals and leaders on the floor. We chat about the qualities that are within a floor general, things you can do to develop them within practice, and some of the best ways you can communicate your expectations to those leaders. In addition, we also have our trivia, TWIB (with some Arby's) and much more! Enjoy the pod!

Really excited to have Matt Thomas, the new boys HC at Highland (MO) high school! Coach Thomas is a veteran coach who is looking to get the Highland program back to where it was in the recent past, so we will discuss that, him coming back to the head coach's chair, non-negotiables, watching film from practice, "Desert Island" drills, packline defense, the influences of Don Meyer and Jim Boone, and much, much more! This was a really fun conversation with a Snow Valley guy, one of the "Last of the Cowboys"!

Tony and I have come up with a new idea for "The Coaching Staff"; let us know what you think! We've talked about great coaches on the podcast before, so we've decided to feature and breakdown the career of a great coach once a month . . . unfortunately, Tony couldn't be on the maiden voyage of this concept, but I was able to recruit Jim Simons from Omaha Westside to help me out. We break down the successes, failures and influences of Coach Thompson, all the good and the bad. We also have some trivia, Coach Simons gets some Arby's and...

I'm really excited to bring to the world episode #288, which features Derek Keizer, the head boys basketball coach at perhaps Iowa's most storied boys program, Western Christian (Hull). In this episode, Keizer details his basketball journey from coming to Western as an AC as Dordt College, going "back to back", 65Six Basketball, offensive transition, giving responsibilities to AC's and much more! This was a really fun podcast to discuss the ins and outs of taking over one of the most prestigious programs in the state of Iowa!

It was a great night at Wine 121 with new Ralston boys HC Tom Krehbiel, Omaha Roncalli boys HC Chad Mustard and Elkhorn boys HC Nick Thompson to chat about a bunch of different topics, including summer goals, things that they learned this summer from other teams, what they have planned for the interim time and much more. Alot of fun at Wine 121!

Getting through the rush of June and early July is a gauntlet for most coaches, but now you're on the back half of the summer and your time is not as crunched with workouts, leagues and camps. For many coaches, there's a temptation to just completely unplug and getaway, and to a degree, that should be done, but you also should use this time to focus in on a few things before you hit the next season. In this pod, Tony and I throw out some suggestions for what you can and should be doing with your basketball time...

After almost a year of scheduling conflicts and 25 years after I tried to recruit her to Briar Cliff, Carrie Eighmey comes on episode #285 to discuss a variety of topics. Eighmey, who is entering her second year as head coach at South Dakota, discusses her journey, what she's learned as she's climbed the ladder, both from her experiences and from a couple of key mentors, the art of recruiting, getting players to buy in, communication and working with administration, among many other things. This was a really fun conversation with one of America's up and coming female coaches!

I had a great conversation with Jared Ronai, the head men's basketball coach at Mount Vernon Nazarene (OH), for episode #284. In this episode, we talk about a variety of topics, including his basketball journey, building a program through footwork and culture, "RULE", establishing standards of behavior, motion offense, pressure defense and much more! Coach Ronai is definitely one of the up and comers in the game, so enjoy this podcast!

There's a good chance that at some point in your career you're going to take over a program that is not only struggling on the floor, but it is struggling off the floor, lacking in energy and excitement. This week, Tony and i discuss a bunch of different ways to lift up a struggling program and how to make it stronger, from establishing an identity to building your youth program to attracting support throughout the community. In addition, we've got some interesting trivia for you, along with a discussion on the NBA free agent market, WNBA updates and a...

Rebuilding a once-proud program is not as easy as it seems, but Jory Collins, the head women's basketball coach at North Dakota State University, is well on track to getting the Bison back to the elite. In this episode, Coach Collins shares with us his journey from Kansas to North Dakota. He also discusses rebuilding the culture at NDSU, winning the BLOB game, :08 scores, offensive transition, getting to the NCAA tournament and much more! A really fun episode with one of America's up and coming coaches on the women's side!

If you are going to maximize your abilities as a coach, I firmly believe that you need to be a voracious reader and to have the ability and drive to pick up on coaching tidbits through literature. This week, Tony and I break down and explain some of our favorite coaching books that we have applied to our coaching journeys, and if you haven't read some of these books, you need to get on it right now! In addition, we have our basketball history, trivia and TWIB segments to share, including our reactions to the early off-season moves by...

What a great morning talking with Herb Livsey and Don Showalter, the two men most responsible for Snow Valley Basketball School, which kicked off their 30th summer in Iowa this week! We take some time to discuss "Last Of The Cowboys", the history of Snow Valley, stories about the camp and much more! In addition, Wes Bruns of Cedar Rapids (IA) comes on for a short interview about working through adversity and life in semi-retirement!

Because of some travel complications, we're dropping "The Coaching Staff" a day early . . . Tony and I wanted to go through a list of things that a new coach (especially) needs to be aware of before the step onto the sideline or as they take over their new jobs. From adversity to organization to finding a higher meaning, here's a great starting point for any new coach who is wondering what to expect, especially off the court. In addition, we have trivia, a discussion of the Lakers sale, the draft this week and predictions for Game 7!

I was back at home last week visiting family and friends, and my friend Kiley Yates from South O'Brien (IA) HS helped me bring together Derek Keizer from Hull Western Christian (IA) and Loren DeJong of Siouxland Christian (IA) HS together at my buddy Chad Lang's restuarant "Langer's" in Sheldon for a great podcast! We discussed summer strategies, staying in coaching for an extended period of time, sustaining a successful program, what these coaches learned from their highly successful seasons and much more! A great podcast with three of Iowa's best boys basketball coaches!

We've got a two-parter this week! We'll kick it off with NBA draft guru (and Omaha native) Rafael Barlowe breaking down the top end of the draft, discussing players with Omaha ties, some foreign players that may sneak up the draft board and other sleepers in the draft. In the second half of the pod, up and coming coach Jordon Klein discusses his rise up the coaching ranks, including his new positoin at Fort Hays Tech in Goodland, Kansas. Enjoy!

Both teams in the NBA Finals, the Pacers and the Thunder, have really built an identity on their aggressive defensive systems. In this week's pod, Tony and I discuss various methods and philosophies to attack defenses that are really aggressive, from both a program point of view to a daily expectation. In addition, we have our weekly trivia, a discussion of the Finals to this point and did the Knicks do the right thing firing Thibs?

It's tough taking over a new job, but it can be even tougher taking over for a legend, but that is what John Gianforte, the new GBB HC at Cedar Rapids Xavier (IA) is doing this spring! Coach graciously jumped on the pod with us this week to talk about a variety of topics, including his basketball journey, "re-recruiting" his players, adapting his system to a successful system, building a program from the bottom up, working with parents, community service and "Exit Tickets". Two Italian guys had alot of fun putting this together, so enjoy!

Tony and I are excited to have our first guest EVER for "The Coaching Staff" in Greg Berge, head boys basketball coach at Lake City (MN) and "culture guru"! We go through a bunch of topics during the podcast, including building a culture, building leaders and accountability within your program, battling for players attention in the "TikTok" generation, bringing joy back to the game for our players and much, much more! We also discuss the NBA playoffs and the NBA Finals matchup between Oklahoma City and Indiana. We had alot of fun with Greg, and you're going to learn...

We had a great time chatting with Steve Smiley, Northern Colorado University Men's HC about a variety of topics for episode #278! In this episode, we talk about coaches journey through the JC ranks to a Division I AC to now the head man. In addition, we talk about NIL and the effects of the portal on mid-major programs like his, the influence of the legendary Don Meyer and his network of coaching friends, bench organization, implementing your scouting report, turning defense into offense and much more! Had a lot of fun talking hoops with one of the best young...

Fremont Bergan (NE) Boys HC Ryan Mlnarik comes on the podcast this week, fresh off of an unlikely state championship run this spring, the first #8 seed to win a state championship in years! Coach Mlnarik discusses his journey as a basketball coach and his stops along the way, navigating the season with a very young team, hitting the tournament trail and the process they went through to win a title, and more! We also talk about how he sets up his practices, offensive transition and his half court philosophy, among other things! Great chat with a newly minted state...

We spend alot of time during the season devoted to developing the team game, but many times at the end of the season it comes down to either getting a score or a stop in an isolation situation. This week, Tony and I break down the importance of one on one and why you should be working on it in practice. In addition, Tony and I will drop over a dozen drills that you can bring back to your program to help develop your one on one abilities on both sides of the ball! We also have trivia, a...

Episode #276 features state champion GBB HC Kristina Danella of Glen Ridge (NJ) High School! Coach Danella has had a well traveled career at both the collegiate and high school level, and we dive into that, along with her successful playing career at the Division I level and how that has affected her coaching style, along with some transition offense, offensive sets, communicating with parents, her state title journey and many other things. Alot of fun with a terrfic young coach from the Garden State!

Although most of the topics that are discussed on this podcast deal with current coaching issues, one thing that we rarely think about until it happens is what life is like without coaching. This week, Tony and I break down the do's and don'ts of life without coaching, including prepping for the next stop, what we should look for in our next position, how to handle the situation if it wasn't your choice to step away and much, much more! In addition, we've got a new segment at the top of the pod, trivia, NBA playoff discussion and an...

Four girls basketball coaches got together last week at Wine 121 here in Omaha to talk some hoops; Gretna East's Wade Coulter, Oakland-Craig's Scott Guzinski and APAAN's all around pinch hitter Marc Kruger got together to discuss their 2025 journey, of which each team played on the final day of the season. We talk about those journeys and look ahead to the summer of 2025 and how they plan on putting their teams together. We also talk about what our coaches want to get better at as they prepare for the summer of 2025. Enjoy our roundtable discussion!!!

One of the elements that makes life difficult for many coaches is the parents of the kids that they coach. It's easy to put all of your difficult parents into one basket, but there are different kinds of difficult parents. In this epiosde, Tony and I break down those types of parents, along with our swan song for opening numbers. In addition, we have our trivia segment and our TWIB segment, including a big thank you to Coach Pop and a discussions of the NBA playoffs. Enjoy!!

Jared Blackwell took over the legendary Sandy Creek (NE) girls basketball program four years ago and has worked hard to put the Cougars back amongst the elite in the small school spectrum of Nebraska. In this fun podcast, Coach Blackwell talks about building the program back up after some down years, the influence of Russ Ninemire, the adjustments you make going from an assistant coach to a head coach, scouting, game day superstitions and much more! A really fun conversation with one of Nebraska's up and coming coaches!

Every team needs to have players that are going to keep things together and do great things without the ball in their hand; hit their partners with a great pass, screen well, be a great help side defender, and on and on the list goes. The more that EVERY player on your roster buys into the elements of being a glue player, the better your team will be. Tony and I break down the elements that makes glue players so important, and we also discuss the NBA playoffs, St. John 's dominating the transfer portal and more!

Coach Derek Sonderland is a veteran girls basketball coach in southwest Iowa, having coached almost a quarter of a century in various stops, including his current school, Tri-Center Neola, where he's on his second run as head coach. Coach Sonderland discusses those travels, along with some influences in his career, what his team needs to do to improve for next season, the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union, building a strong culture, some of his favorite drills and much more! A really fun conversation with a terrific coach!

Mr. Tony D. Vis is back, so "The Coaching Staff" is back! This week we talk about Don Meyer's "Five Stages of Coaching", which is a prominent topic this time of year as coaches take inventory of where they are at and what are they are looking to do in their next steps of their career. After we break that down, we've got trivia, a WNBA draft breakdown and a discussion of the NBA playoffs.. Great to be back with Tony on the pod, and I hope you enjoy it!

Kris Freeland has been the long time boys head coach at Dundy County-Stratton (NE) and has built a very solid small school program year in and year out. In this pod, we talk about Coach Freeland's position as an administrator and how he balances that out with his coaching duties, along with the influence of Greg McDermott and Tom Kropp on his career. We also talk about his "Improvement Season" plan, developing your program through it's youth, unique traditions about the DC-S program and much more! A really fun conversation this week!

Tony and I had some scheduling conflicts this weekend, so we were unable to do our usual thing . . . but I still had some stuff that I wanted to throw out there, so here's a shorter, solo pod with just me (for better or worse).

I'm really excited to announce that my second book will be available on July 1st, 2025! It's called "The Last Of The Cowboys: The Story of Snow Valley Basketball School",and at the center of the story is America's oldest, continuous basketball camp. Founded in 1961 in California, then later adapted and brought to Iowa...

Sidney (NE) Boys HC Austin Lewis comes on the pod this week to chat about a variety of topics, including working as an administrator and a coach to get people to work together, keeping kids invested in your program, some of his favorite drills, shell drill, breaking down practices into groups and swinging back and forth between two classifications. A really fun conversation with one of Nebraska's up and coming coaches!

March Madness is upon us, and special situations, per usual, are at the forefront of the great games. It's alot about preparation and repetition to get the execution that you want and need in these clutch moments. Tony and I break down our thoughts on BLOB's, SLOB's and EOG situations, what we like to do to prepare our teams for these situations and how we put together our playbooks. Along with that, we've got our thoughts on the great UConn run in the women's tournament while giving our predictions for what is going to happen tonight in the men's...

Bennington (NE) Boys HC Luke Olson jumps on episode #270 this week to discuss a variety of topics! We chat about his family's coaching tree, being a mental skills coach, the growth of his community and how they've tried to adjust their program to it, developing their youth program, practice culture and much more! Coach Olson has done a great job in building up the Badger program and has them on the brink of taking them to heights they haven't seen; terrific chat, so enjoy!

Tony and I are back with multiple references to The Beatles and Kip Dynamite to help explain the important qualities of what you should be looking for in an assistant coach and how you build out your staff. We go through a multitude of qualities that you should look for in your individual coaches and then how to put them all together as one unit. Along with that, we have our trivia, a discussion on March Madness and an extended "Arby's" segment about the coaching carousel! Sit back and enjoy!

A veteran of the game for over half a century, Dave Bollwinkel from the Chicago Bulls joins the pod this week! Coach Bollwinkel started out as a high school coach before moving his way up the ranks to becoming a Division I HC at St. Mary's (CA) before spending the last 25 years as an NBA scout. We also talk about the in's and out's of coaching, the draft process, changes that he's seen in the game, and much more! Enjoy this great conversation with Coach Bollwinkel!

It's the best weekend of the year! Love having so much basketball on, and I'm sure that many of you are like me in that it has been non-stop hoops the last four days! In this week's pod, Tony and I take a look at both tournaments and what are some of the things that we can learn from them, both on and off the floor. Along with that, we have trivia, and we have some new candidates to buy Tony and I some Arby's! We wrap things up with "Who's Up?" and "Who's Down?", so enjoy this week's...

We have a great episode with episode #268 with McCool Junction (NE) Boys HC Jabe Wurtz! Coach Wurtz has raised the level of the program at McCool, finishing with the third place trophy this year at the D1 state tournament this season! Coach Wurtz and I discuss some of his influences, making the climb to the state tournament, half court offensive principles, BLOB defense and working with your administrators. Coach Wurtz is a rising star here in Nebraska, so enjoy his podcast!

Tony and I are back after a week off, and we're here to talk about shooting. As we all know, the three point shot has never been as important to the game as it is now, and as we step into the off-season, it's imperative that we find shooters and improve them so that our offenses can be as efficient as possible. Tony and I discuss how we can help shooters develop, along with some trivia, a discussion on the dismissal of Fran McCaffery, and other topics. Enjoy the podcast!

We had alot of fun at the "Mellow Mushroom" with Coach Nate Wall, Centura GBB HC Laetheion Brown and Sidney GBB HC Tyler Shaw last Friday at the Nebraska Girls State Tournament! We talk about a variety of topics, including gardening and how that can play into developing your coaching skills. We also talk about the summer, finding the right camps for your team and looking forward into next season. A really, really fun conversation!

Thanks again to Mike and his crew at the "Mellow Mushroom" in downtown Lincoln! Mike and his staff always take care of...

It's time once again to sit down at the Mellow Mushroom in Lincoln, Nebraska to discuss a bunch of different topics related to the state tournament. We chat about the excitement of the state tournament, the preparation level that you need to have at the tournament, mistakes we've made, and how to bridge the downtime between your substate title game and your first round state tournament game. Along with that, we have Carter Plum's "Mellow Mushroom Review". Enjoy the pod!

We all got into coaching so we could help plan large meals, right? Well, the end of the year banquet is important to your program, as it is the last time that this edition of this team will be together, so everyone deserves a great send off. In this episode, Tony and I break down the details of putting together a good banquet and how to retain favor with parents, players and administrators. We also have trivia (or do we???), a discussion about Diana Taurasi, some of the scum of the earth and a tribute to one of Iowa's...

Kyle Courtney has built a really nice program at Rapids City Christian (SD), and he is our guest for episode #265! Coach Courtney has spent time in a variety of places, and he discusses how those travels have influenced his career. Along with that, Coach Courtney discusses his run and jump defensive philosophy, getting to the state tournament last season, the unique culture of his program and much more. Really fun conversation!

Breaking bad habits and building good ones are the key to any player's or teams success. In this episode, Tony and I discuss strategies that you can implement to help yourself, your players or your teams to break bad habit and create new habits that are going to be much more positive for you. We also have our trivia portion, alot of great #21's, a down time for Jayhawk fans, an good time for Fighting Irish fans, and our "Who's Up?" and "Down?" segment. Great discussion on creating the positive habits necessary for success!

On episode #264 we are pleased to have Mike Vuncannon, the head boys basketball coach at Columbus Scotus (NE)! Coach Vuncannon has been with the program for over 20 years and has the Shamrocks on the brink of a state tournament appearance. In this episode, we discuss Coach Vuncannon's influences, correlating being a golf pro with coaching basketball, the rigors of playing in a really tough conference, his half court offense and defensive philosophy and much more, including "The Scotus Way". Really fun conversation with Coach Vuncannon!

As we enter into tournament time, the pressure mounts on both coaches and players. How do you get your players to relax, enjoy the moment and make plays under pressure situations? That's what Tony and I take up this week! We discuss visualization, breathing, practice situations, one on one conversations and much more to help you put your players in the best situations possible. Along with that, we have some trivia, a great TWIB segment breaking down the big headlining games in both men's and women's college basketball, Tom Izzo's great week and much more!

Basketball lifer and longtime NBA player development coach Dave Severns is our guest for this week's podcast! Coach has had a long career in the game, and currently serves as a scout for the Indiana Pacers. Coach discusses his career, his "Hoop Of The Day" tweets, some of the best coaches he's seen this year, being a great assistant, networking, building trust and some of his favorite skill work drills and concepts, with much, much more! A really fun conversation with a guy that just loves basketball!

February and March are when the microscopes really come out when it comes to your team's attention to detail and ability to execute under pressure. What are some of the things that you should be working on, and how should you be working on them? That's what Tony and I break down this week on "The Coaching Staff"! Along with that, Tony and I discuss a couple of big NBA trades, the Texas-South Carolina match up, Dickie V's return to the announcer's booth and much more!

Mid-American Nazarene MBB HC Adam Hepker is our guest for episode #262! Coach Hepker, after an outstanding playing career, has taken over at his alma mater and continued to build on the legacy of Rocky Lamar. Coach Hepker discusses Coach Lamar, how playing overseas influenced his coaches career, the ability to tell players the truth, practicing with great temp and much more. A really fun conversation with one of America's best young coaches!

Late January is a time period where we are stereotypically hit with numerous disruptions, from injuries to illness to discipline issues to transfers and players who unfortunately decide to quit. When these things inevitably happen, how do you navigate through the process and still keep your team moving in the right direction? That's the topic that Tony and I are breaking down this week. We do that, along with trivia, and then an in-depth discussion on the MASSIVE Luka for AD trade. We finish up with some WNBA signings and our "Who's Up?" and "Who's Down?" segment.

Brad Vaught, the head women's basketball coach at North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC), comes on "A Pen And A Napkin" for episode #261. Coach Vaught has built a strong program over the last five years at NIACC and his team is on the brink of a national tournament birth this season. Coach Vaught discusses some of his coaching influences, the advantages of going the JUCO route, how recruiting may change with new eligibility rules, his offensive philosophy, working with parents and much more! Great conversation for episode #261

It's late January, and we are in the proverbial "Dog Days" of basketball season. You still have to have the urgency to get better, but you also can't burn out your players and make practices so intense that they don't have the proper physical and mental rest that they should have, so how do you do that? That's what Tony and I discuss this week, along with our TWIB topics, Who's up and down and much more!!

Todd Hale, the veteran boys head coach at Atkinson West Holt (NE), comes on the podcast to discuss a variety of topics. Coach Hale discusses his influences, constantly adjusting your program, bringing in outside instructors to his program, some of his favorite drills, practice set up and much more! Coach Hale has built a solid program at West Holt and it shows in this interview!

Hey, just joking on that earlier post this morning! You got a preview of this week's interview podcast, but here's Tony and I from last night discussing thoughts and strategies on how to kickstart your team in January!

We are officially in the middle of January, and by now we have some teams that are really hitting their stride, while other programs are struggling. There are a variety of reasons why teams may be struggling, but the question we ask ourselves when we are in that situation is "How do we get ourselves out of this?" This week, Tony and I go through numerous scenarios and give out our advice to help coaches and programs who may be at a place that they didn't anticipate being at right now.

Along with that, we have our...

How many times, as high school coaches, have we complained that our players and our parents really don't understand what Varsity athletics is truly all about? Well, here at "A Pen And A Napkin", we're going to do our best to help educate and change that!

May 3rd and 4th, 2025 at Omaha Marian High School will be our 1st Annual "Varsity Preparation Academy" basketball event! This will help both players and parents of girls going into grades 6th-9th for the 2025-26 school year prepare themselves for the opportunity to play Varsity basketball! Taking the best from...

Chip Daehling is the boys basketball coach at Douglas County West (NE) High School, and he has built a high competitive program the last few years, culminating in his first trip to the state tournament last season. In this week's pod, we discuss that state tournament birth, building his program, replacing a strong senior class, building an identity in his program, moving up a class and much more! A really fun podcast with one of Nebraska's up and coming coaches!!

At the heart of any defense is your defensive transition philosophy. This week, Tony and break down the importance of defensive transition, drills that you can use to help implement your philosophy and help with repping your transition, and then we wrap up our discussion with various different methods that you can transition. We have our trivia, our TWIB segment and Who's Up? and Who's Down? to cap everything off, including a discussion on Mick Cronin's "soft" comments . . . enjoy this week's podcast a day late (sorry, I was sick yesterday!)

Brandon Shaver, the head boys basketball coach at Lake Travis (TX) High School comes on the pod this week to chat about a variety of topics. Coach Shaver discusses his interview process, building a culture through his "Man Up Monday" program, getting the community involved, the importance of working camps outside of your own, networking and much, much more! Alot of good stuff to help you build. your program with. Enjoy our. conversation!!

Once you have been established and the wave of immediate responsibilities have been taken care of when you take over a job, one of the first things you may consider doing is building up your alumni network within your program. Having alumni support is always a bonus to have with your program, so Tony and I go through a variety of different ways to build your network and support from players that came before your current team. We also have trivia, another twist in the Jimmy Butler saga, the power of the SEC and much more!

Matt Sayman is our first guest of 2025, and I'm excited to have him on! Coach Sayman is the boys head basketball coach at Grapevine Faith (TX) High School, and he has built a terrific program that starts with building shooters first. We discuss that, along with his writing of the book "The Leftovers" about his experiences with the Baylor program during the last days of Dave Bliss and the first days of Scott Drew, his own "JAMODI" podcast, building their culture at Grapevine, turning his life around at age 30 and much more. Alot of fun talking hoops with Coach...

Merry Christmas, or as we say in our house "Happy Festivus"! This week, Tony and I discuss our Christmas wish lists for the game of basketball, especially at the high school level. We talk about rules, contracts, parent relationships and a whole slew of stuff that we'd love to see changed about the game. Along with that, we have trivia, TWIB and "Who's Up?" and "Who's Down?" . . .

Tony and I sincerely hope that everyone has a great holiday season!! We'll be back in two weeks, as we're taking next weekend off to spend some time with family...

Dave Slifer is in his 35th year of being a head coach at the collegiate level at the NAIA and NCAA DII ranks, and he has a great story to tell! This week, Coach Slifer and I discuss his career (with a few minutes down memory lane) while also discussing his coaching family (literally), signing a multi-year deal, winning a national championship, offensive and defensive philosophy and much more. A really fun conversation with one of DII's best coaches!

There's nothing better than having a packed, loud gymnasium with great student bodies going after it in the dead of winter. We'd all love to have a great student body presence, but how do we build that up within our programs? That's the topic that Tony and I dive into this week, and we give our thoughts, tips and advice on how to build a great student body presence at your games. We also have trivia, TWIB and our "Who's Up/ Who's Down?" segment as I jump on my soapbox to talk about the NCAA tournament's possible expansion . . . Enjoy!<...

It was a privilege and an honor to have on "Basketball Lifer" Clay Moser for this week's interview! Coach Moser has coached all over the country and the world, from the Los Angeles Lakers to China, and he discusses his experiences coaching with everyone from Jim Valvano to Phil Jackson. Coach also discusses networking, his consulting programs, analytics and how to come up with simple formulas to rate player efficiency, how to evaluate players, what makes great coaches and much, much more. A great conversation with one of America's smartest basketball minds!

Building your team's defense step by step, brick by brick is integral to your team's success. This week, Tony and I discuss the basic things that you should be looking at to build your team's defensive system, from offensive board coverage to rebounding on your defensive end and everything in between. Closeouts, communication and defensive transition need to be at the core of everything that you do defensively!

We also have some trivia, our TWIB segment, and who's up and down; enjoy this week's show!

Samuel Schlautman is the head girls basketball coach at David City (NE) and has built the program into a place where they are ready to make a run at the state tournament here in Nebraska this season! Coach Schlautman comes on the podcast to talk about his influences, growing numbers in your program, trying to create more offense, the pressures of returning everyone from a good team, BLOB's, transition defense and building a solid cultural foundation for his program. Enjoy this week's podcast!!

Much of our success as coaches is due to how we manage late game situations. In this pod, Tony and I break down late game situations that you should be prepared for as soon as possible, including late game shot selection, fouling up 3, fouling, delay game, pressbreaks, timeouts and "special teams". We also have our weekly trivia, a discussion on Danny Hurley and Maui, remembering Lou Carnesseca, the surprising Houston Rockets and a quick "Who's Up" and "Who's Down" . . . enjoy!!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope that everyone enjoys this "appetizer" of a podcast with Karen Self, the highly successful GBB HC at Seton Catholic Prep (AZ). Coach Self has spent all 33 years of her coaching career at Seton Catholic, winning 12 state championships and is closing in on the all time record for wins for any basketball coach in the state of Arizona at 832! In this pod, Coach Self and I discuss her almost walking away from coaching after one season, the lessons she's learned in her coaching career, the chase to 832, her half court defensive philosophy, statistical analysis, being...

There's a big difference between being the hunter and the hunted, and if you are fortunate enough to be the hunted, you are going to face the prospect of people aiming to come after you and upset you. This week, Tony and I break down the steps that you can take to prevent being upset, even though it is almost inevitable that you are going to be upset by someone in your season. We go through things you can do with preparation and practices, along with the mindset that you need to drill into your team to avoid being...

Very excited to have Lincoln Christian (NE) GBB HC Scott Klein on the podcast this week! Coach Klein won a state championship last season with his squad, and he has everyone back from that team for this season except for one starter. Coach Klein discusses his basketball journey, their run to the state championship, taking over a program with high expectations, transition offense, pressure defense and much more. Really fun conversation with a great basketball coach!

As you approach your early season individual and team development, there are numerous questions that you need to answer to put your team in the best situation possible. What are those questions you should be asking of your program and of yourself? Tony and I break that down throughout this episode, things that you need to try to answer to the best of your ability to help set your team up for as successful of season as possible!

Along with that, we have trivia, we have our TWIB segment where we discuss South Carolina WBB and their...

Mark Potter is the former head men's basketball coach at Newman University (KS), and his story is both special and difficult to tell. Coach Potter is a major advocate for mental health, and he knows first hand the toll that anxiety and depression can take on anyone after he went through his own mental health crisis almost 15 years ago. Coach Potter goes into detail about his story, his struggles and his new mission in life to hep others know that it's okay not to be okay . . . it's a great story to hear right before the start of the season...

Tony and I are back together this week (thanks Casey!!) and we're excited to talk about preseason player meetings and their importance! We discuss some things that you should be doing to help create a positive atmosphere while also being honest and transparent with important issues with your players. Along with that, we also break down some best practices, like taking notes during your meetings, amongst other things. We also have trivia, give out some Arby's and we discuss some of the big headlines of the beginnings of the professional and college basketball season. Enjoy!

I cannot thank everyone enough for their support over the last 5+ years of APAAN, and we've hit another major benchmark with episode #250!!! I'm really pleased to have on Creighton University WBB HC and longtime friend Jim Flanery on the pod this week. Flan has one of the most experienced and cohesive rosters in the nation this year, and we discuss a variety of topics, including his development as a coach, the evolution of the program, how he develops his motion offense, scheduling a tough slate every year and much more! We had a great time chatting, and I hope...

Tony was really busy this week, so I called in Mr. Casey Hall to come in and pinch=hit this week! Coach Hall was the lead assistant for the Class A state champion Millard West Wildcats last season, and they have their three leading scorers back from last year's squad, so I thought it would be good to discuss 'staying hungry' and keeping that same motivation going after a degree of success. We go through a bunch of different things, and we also have our usual segments on trivia, multiple Arby's winners and a great chat on the direction...

Really excited to have on Ryan Coenen, the GBB HC at Woodbine (IA) for episode #249! Coach Coenen has "built" a dormant program at Woodbine into a consistent winner, including a 2023 state tournament run, the first for the town since 1974. In this pod, Coach Coenen discusses his "competitive cauldron", his RRP philosophy, developing high standards, zigging and zagging, his emphasis on defensive transition, building a great practice and much more! Really enjoyable podcast with Coach!