Basketball Coach Unplugged (A Basketball Coaching Podcast)

Basketball Coaching Pods
Basketball Coaching Pods
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This Podcast will discuss basketball coaching with Coach Steve Collins. Coach Collins will do this with interviews and on topic discussions. (Discussion will revolve around basketball topics such as: Offense, Defense, Motivation, Team Building, Youth Basketball, High School Basketball, college basketball and much more...) We will publish weekly shows at 6:00 am..... Please check out our site if you like our podcast. www.teachhoops.com.

  1. 3h ago

    Who Gets Back When You Miss?

    https://teachhoops.com/ Transition defense, the first three steps after a shot goes up, and the easy baskets you are giving away. Coach Steve Collins once had a team that was excellent in the half court and kept losing close games anyway. So he sat down with a stack of game film and a legal pad and asked one question about every basket his team gave up: was our defense set, or not? The answer was not even close. Far more than a third of the opponent's points came before five defenders were back. In this deep dive, Steve takes on the part of defense that starts on offense. He explains why your own shot is the starting gun, why every player needs to know exactly who is back before the shot goes up, why the first three steps go to the paint and not to a man, how to stop the ball and talk, and why the frustration tax after a missed shot is costing your team more than you think. It is a practical plan for the opening weeks of the season, built to take away the easy baskets. Part 1: The Shot Is the Signal The film study that revealed where the points were really coming from Why defense starts the moment your own shot leaves a player's hand, not when the other team gets the ball The three steps that decide transition, and why nobody gets to stand and admire a shot Finishing every drill that ends in a shot with a sprint back, so the first step becomes a habit A safety rule simple enough for a tired sophomore: the point guard is always back, the player at the top is the second man back Why the rule itself matters less than every player being able to say it out loud Stopping scrimmage to hold one player to his job, and what it taught him Part 2: The First Three Steps and Beyond Sprint to the paint, not to your man: basket, ball, man, every time Why a sprinting defender beats a backpedaling one The daily paint touch drill, whistled on the release, with everyone in the paint before the ball crosses half court Stopping the ball and talking: the first man back makes it change direction and yells "Ball!" Playing outnumbered: protect the rim, fake at the ball, and force one more pass The frustration tax: the one second of hanging your head that turns into a layup the other way The scorer who made a deal to be first back after every miss, and how it became a point of pride Why the coach yelling at the official is not coaching transition defense either Chapters 00:00 Coach Unplugged intro 00:16 Opening: where the points really come from 01:08 Pre roll: TeachHoops.com transition defense drills 01:26 The film study and the legal pad 02:21 Takeaway 1: The shot is the starting gun 03:48 Takeaway 2: Decide who goes back before the shot 05:54 Takeaway 3: Sprint to the paint, not to your man 07:11 Mid roll: TeachHoops.com transition defense progression 07:36 Takeaway 4: Stop the ball and say it 08:45 Takeaway 5: Do not pay the frustration tax 10:27 This week's challenge 10:37 Post roll: TeachHoops.com This week's challenge: Chart one scrimmage and count every basket you allow before your defense is set. Format: Deep Dive, two parts. Resources: Transition defense drills, teaching progressions, practice plans, courses, and on court clinics at https://teachhoops.com/ Recorded at the Fifth Quarter Studios in Madison, Wisconsin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  2. 1d ago

    Can a Coach Change the Way They Lead? Dr. Matthew Raidbard, Part 2

    https://teachhoops.com/ Lead Like a Pro, finding the toughness and leadership in a crowded gym, building relationships that transcend basketball, and the advice he would give his younger self. In Part 2, Coach Steve Collins and Dr. Matthew Raidbard dig into how a coach actually changes the way they lead. Dr. Raidbard explains what his book Lead Like a Pro walks you through: figure out the style you are really practicing, decide whether it matches your values, then learn from real coaching stories and practical tools how to grow into the leader you want to be. From there the conversation turns to the court. Teaching five players to move as one, what college coaches really look for in a recruit, why relationships off the floor earn trust on it, and how to correct a player without tearing him down. It wraps with a rapid fire round and the one piece of advice Dr. Raidbard would give his younger self. In this episode A menu of leadership options, and matching them to your own values Why sport and level matter less than you think for leadership style What the book walks a coach through, from self assessment to practical tools Naming the book, and two years from first draft to release The hardest thing to teach: getting five players to execute one plan Breaking it down part by part, letting players fail, and repping it over time What college coaches look for in a recruit: toughness, leadership, and talking on defense Why the difference between the fifth and ninth best player in the gym is what kind of teammate he is Building relationships that transcend basketball, and why the wins follow The one coach he would spend an hour with: Pat Summitt Rapid fire: game day routines, superstitions, and the best player he has seen in person Correcting players one on one instead of across the gym His advice to his younger self: listen, be patient, and have empathy Chapters 00:00 TeachHoops.com pre roll 00:56 Lead Like a Pro and a menu of leadership styles 01:52 Does the sport or level matter? 02:20 What the book walks you through 04:12 The next step once you know your style 05:08 Naming the book and two years of writing 07:56 The hardest thing to teach 09:20 Letting players fail and repping it over time 10:44 What college coaches look for in a recruit 13:04 TeachHoops.com mid roll 13:32 A coaching philosophy built on relationships 15:24 An hour with Pat Summitt 16:48 Rapid fire questions 20:32 Superstitions and chewing gum 21:00 Correct players one on one 22:24 Best players and the Jordan versus LeBron debate 23:48 One skill, the shot clock, and the jump ball 24:44 Advice to his younger self 25:40 Raidbard Leadership and where to find the book 26:36 Post roll Coach challenge: The next time a player makes a mistake, pull him aside and ask "What happened there?" before you tell him what went wrong. Resources: Learn more about Dr. Raidbard's work at Raidbard Leadership, and find Lead Like a Pro wherever books are sold. Practice plans, leadership resources, courses, and on court clinics at https://teachhoops.com/ Missed the start? Go back to Part 1 for Dr. Raidbard's coaching journey and leadership research. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  3. 2d ago

    How Do You Know What Kind of Leader You Really Are? Dr. Matthew Raidbard, Part 1

    https://teachhoops.com/ From a 24 hour drive for a Division II job to Dartmouth, Chicago State, and a study of 200 college coaches who did not know their own leadership style. Dr. Matthew Raidbard did not have a relative in the business, a friend in the business, or a practical degree. He had a history major, a resume full of travel team experience, and a habit of following up one more time than anyone asked him to. That relentlessness got him a Division II assistant job in Silver City, New Mexico, and started a college coaching career that ran through Dartmouth, Florida Gulf Coast, and eight seasons at Chicago State before he moved into athletic administration. In Part 1, Coach Steve Collins and Dr. Raidbard walk through that journey, what changes from Division II to the Ivy League to a traditional Division I program, and why he calls Chicago State the toughest job in the country. Then they get to the research behind his book, Lead Like a Pro: a study of more than 200 college basketball coaches, and the surprising gap between the leadership style coaches think they practice and the one they actually do. In this episode The games that hooked them both on basketball, from conference championship week to the old Wisconsin Field House How coaching his younger brother's travel team turned into a career Relentlessness as a separator: you only need one yes Learning to do everything at a small Division II school, from game operations to driving the softball team Dartmouth, the Ivy League experience, and going toe to toe with Jeremy Lin and Harvard Florida Gulf Coast and the difference between Ivy recruiting and traditional Division I recruiting Eight seasons building Chicago State, and why it may be the toughest job in college basketball Earning a doctorate while coaching, and moving into compliance and administration His current role as executive senior associate athletic director at the University of Hartford The dissertation that became the book: do coaches know the leadership style they actually practice? Why transformational leadership, paired with quick decision making, came out on top The five leadership styles every coach should understand Chapters 00:00 TeachHoops.com pre roll 00:28 Meet Dr. Matthew Raidbard 02:20 The games that hooked us on basketball 05:08 Coaching his brother's travel team 06:58 The 24 hour drive to Western New Mexico 07:46 Relentlessness and the one yes 08:52 Two years at Division II 09:48 Dartmouth and the Ivy League 11:12 TeachHoops.com mid roll 11:40 Florida Gulf Coast 12:08 Eight seasons at Chicago State 12:56 Obstacles from Division II to Division I 16:44 Why Chicago State is the toughest job in the country 18:40 Moving into administration 19:36 Hartford and life as an athletic director 20:32 How the book Lead Like a Pro came about 21:56 The gap between the leader you think you are and the leader you are 22:24 The best leadership style for coaches 23:20 The five leadership styles 23:48 Why coaches need real leadership training 24:16 Post roll Coach challenge: Write down the leadership style you believe you practice. Then ask one assistant and one player to describe how you lead, and compare the answers. Resources: Dr. Raidbard's book, Lead Like a Pro, is available wherever books are sold. Practice plans, leadership and culture resources, courses, and on court clinics at https://teachhoops.com/ Continue the conversation in Part 2. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  4. 3d ago

    Why Is Your Gym So Quiet?

    https://teachhoops.com/ Teaching players to talk on defense, and why a quiet team is usually a confused team. Walk into almost any gym during the second week of the season, close your eyes for one defensive possession, and listen. Sneakers. A dribble. Maybe a coach. Five kids guarding the ball and not one of them saying a word. For years Coach Steve Collins treated that silence as a toughness problem, stopping practice to yell "Talk!" and getting about two possessions of noise before the gym went quiet again. What finally changed his thinking was simple: kids do not stay quiet because they are shy, they stay quiet because they are not sure. A quiet team is usually a confused team. In this two part deep dive, Steve walks through how to give players the words, how to give every spot on the floor a job that comes with a word, how to make talk count in practice, and why the coach sometimes has to get quieter so the players can get louder. Part 1: Giving Them the Words Why "Talk!" is a wish, not an instruction, and why getting louder as a coach does not fix it The real reason teams go silent: kids are not sure where the ball is going, who has help, or what the word even is A six word defensive vocabulary: ball, help, screen left, screen right, switch, shot Giving every word exactly one meaning, and quizzing freshmen in the huddle until it sticks Why timing matters as much as the word: early talk wins possessions, late talk just explains them Assigning talk by position: the ball defender, the help defenders, the screener's defender, and the closest player to the rim on a shot The quiet guard who got one job, the "ball" guy, and could be heard from the parking lot by November Part 2: Making It Stick Scoring the talk: in the shell drill, a stop with no talk is not a stop Scrimmage rules that reward a five player talking stop and take away a point for an uncalled shot The manager with a clicker counting every defensive call, and the number players started asking for before the score The silent possession, and letting players discover for themselves what happens without communication Why the coach yelling every rotation teaches players to wait for his voice instead of using their own Getting the whole staff on board, because one quiet head coach and three loud assistants changes nothing Coaching between possessions instead of during them, and the October day Steve folded his arms under the basket Praising the talk out loud, not just the steal or the charge Talk is information, not volume, and how a talking defense becomes a team that talks in timeouts, huddles, and hard January nights Chapters 00:00 Coach Unplugged intro 00:16 Opening: the quiet gym 01:07 Pre roll: TeachHoops.com defensive drills and communication progressions 02:21 Why quiet teams are confused teams 02:29 Takeaway 1: Give them the words 04:09 Takeaway 2: Every job has a word, and the quiet guard 06:05 Takeaway 3: If it is not scored, it is not real 07:44 Mid roll: TeachHoops.com shell drill progressions and the coaching community 08:04 Takeaway 4: Sometimes the coach has to get quieter 09:58 Talk is information, not volume 10:34 The six word challenge and post roll This week's challenge: Pick your six defensive words, teach them tomorrow, and do not count a stop in practice until you hear them. Format: Deep Dive, two parts. Resources: Defensive drills, shell drill progressions, communication teaching tools, practice plans, courses, and on court clinics at https://teachhoops.com/ Recorded at the Fifth Quarter Studios in Madison, Wisconsin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  5. 4d ago

    What Should You Say in the First Five Minutes After a Game?

    https://teachhoops.com/ Win or lose, why the postgame talk should be short, and what to save for tomorrow's practice. The longest talk Coach Steve Collins ever gave a team came after a win. Twenty two minutes in a hot locker room, kids still in their jerseys, parents waiting in the hallway. He could not remember one thing he said, and when he asked, neither could his players. That night became the starting point for how he learned to handle the first five minutes after the horn. With openers right around the corner, this two part deep dive is about the postgame talk, win or lose. Steve explains why those minutes are a feeling moment instead of a teaching moment, the simple three piece structure that replaced his long speeches, and why the real corrections belong in tomorrow's practice, after the film and after a night of sleep. He also covers the part most coaches never plan for: their own temperature walking through that door, and the one kid who is hurting on the way out. Part 1: Short on Purpose The twenty two minute postgame speech after a win that nobody, including Steve, could remember Why right after a game you have the most emotion and the least clarity, and so do your players Keeping the talk under five minutes, because long talks steal joy after wins and become punishment after losses Avoiding the staff pile on: one voice in the room, with assistants giving their thoughts in the hallway first The three piece talk: one truth, one thing to be proud of, one thing for tomorrow Ending every postgame talk with the same ritual, win or lose The twenty point loss, the assistant who said "Three sentences," and the hungry practice that followed Why clarity, not softness, is what earns a team's trust after a hard night Part 2: What to Save, and Who to Find Why you remember the game wrong right after it ends, and what the next morning's film usually shows No individual call outs and no whiteboard breakdowns in the postgame locker room Why the late night text to your team never teaches anything The folded sheet of paper in the jacket pocket that turned postgame frustration into the next practice plan Closing the loop by opening the next practice with the topic you named after the game Checking your own temperature: the walk in, the clipboard, the door, and ninety seconds with your staff first The kicked water cooler after a road loss, and what it really taught the team Letting a big win be loud without promising the world, because practice is eighteen hours away Finding the kid who is hurting on the way out with one steady sentence Chapters 00:00 Coach Unplugged intro 00:16 Opening confession: the twenty two minute talk 00:51 Welcome from the Fifth Quarter Studios 01:19 Pre roll: TeachHoops.com day after game outlines 02:21 Why the postgame talk goes sideways 02:26 Takeaway 1: Under five minutes, win or lose 04:06 Takeaway 2: The three piece talk 06:16 Picking back up 06:33 Takeaway 3: Save the fixes for tomorrow 08:31 Mid roll: TeachHoops.com day after game practice plans 08:53 Takeaway 4: Check your own temperature 10:09 Finding the kid who is hurting 10:53 The challenge 11:03 Post roll This week's challenge: Keep your postgame talk under five minutes, and save every correction for tomorrow's practice. Format: Deep Dive, two parts. Resources: Day after game practice plans, film review templates, correction drills, practice plans, and courses at https://teachhoops.com/ Recorded at the Fifth Quarter Studios in Madison, Wisconsin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  6. 5d ago

    What Is Your Bench Doing When It Is Not Playing?

    https://teachhoops.com/ Keeping the eighth through twelfth players locked in, ready, and part of the team, not a row of spectators in warmups. Picture the third quarter of a close game. Your starters are grinding, and down the bench one kid is retying a shoe that does not need it, two are whispering, and your twelfth man is staring at the scoreboard. Then a starter turns an ankle and you have to call one of them in. Coach Steve Collins opens this episode with the moment every coach dreads, and the early career loss that taught him a bench player who has been watching like a fan is not ready to play. In this two part deep dive, Steve walks through how to keep your eighth through twelfth players locked in during opening week and all season long. Every player gets a real job, the bench learns how to sit like it belongs in the game, and the cold check in becomes something you practice instead of something you hope for. And because some of these kids will not play much, Steve explains why their role in practice, in the locker room, and in your attention matters more than their minutes. Part 1: Engaged, Not Spectating The foul trouble loss where a sub checked in without knowing the score, the defense, or his man Why "be ready" means nothing, and the specific bench jobs that do: tracking their best scorer, calling the defense, counting deflections, watching box outs, and scouting the other bench Pulling a bench player aside at a timeout and getting a real answer Writing bench jobs on the pregame board right under the starting lineup, same size letters Teaching your bench how to sit like a drill: posture, eyes on the ball, standing for charges and extra passes, meeting every teammate who comes out Why warmup tops come off in the second half The junior who barely played but changed the temperature of the gym every night Part 2: Ready to Go In, Part of the Team Why we ask bench players to go from cold to perfect, and never practice it The weekly scrimmage where a sitting group gets dropped into a late game situation with no warning The five thing check in routine: score, time, fouls, who am I guarding, what are we in Giving your bench its own coach, so nobody gets called in cold Why practice reps matter more than game minutes for players at the end of the bench Naming one bench player, out loud and specific, in the locker room after every win Why a deflection from your eleventh man should get the loudest cheer of the night Being honest about where a player stands, and what would earn more minutes Why the kids at the end of the bench are the ones who come back years later Chapters 00:00 Coach Unplugged intro 00:16 Opening hook: what your bench is really doing 00:52 Welcome from the Fifth Quarter Studios 01:20 Pre roll: TeachHoops.com bench role sheets and culture tools 01:41 The sub who watched the game like a fan 02:34 Takeaway 1: Every player gets a job 03:56 Takeaway 2: Teach them how to sit 05:56 Picking back up 06:13 Takeaway 3: Practice the cold check in 08:17 Mid roll: TeachHoops.com late game scrimmage formats 08:42 Takeaway 4: Small minutes, real role 10:50 The challenge 11:01 Post roll This week's challenge: Before your first game, give every player on your bench one written job, and check it at your first timeout. Format: Deep Dive, two parts. Resources: Bench role sheets, late game scrimmage plans, substitution routines, practice plans, and culture tools at https://teachhoops.com/ Recorded at the Fifth Quarter Studios in Madison, Wisconsin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  7. 6d ago

    Are You Calling Timeouts or Just Stopping the Clock?

    https://teachhoops.com/ When to burn one, what to say in thirty seconds, and why most timeouts send players back out knowing less than when they sat down. Coach Steve Collins has a confession. For his first five years as a head coach, he called timeouts mostly for himself. He was frustrated, the gym was loud, and he needed it to stop. One night, down six in the third quarter, he talked fast and loud for a full minute about everything, and his point guard walked back onto the floor and asked, "Coach, what are we running?" That was not a timeout. That was stopping the clock. In this deep dive, Steve breaks down how to decide when a timeout is worth spending, how to use the first ten seconds with your staff, what to actually say in the thirty seconds you have, and how to practice the timeout itself so it becomes calm, routine, and useful by opening night. Part 1: Why and Who The minute long timeout that left the most important player on the floor knowing nothing The four jobs of a timeout: stop a run, fix one thing, set up a play, give tired legs a breath Why timeouts are money, and the late game possession Steve watched helplessly after spending them early Budgeting timeouts: one or two in the first half, and always two saved for the last three minutes Giving your team one possession to answer a run before you stop it Using the first ten seconds for a quick staff huddle, then speaking with one voice Part 2: What Gets Said The thirty second script: what is happening, what we do about it, and who does it The clipboard trap, and why a timeout is the place to call a play you own, not teach a new one Managing emotion before information, because upset players cannot hear X's and O's The senior who needed a hand on his shoulder before he could hear the next assignment Practicing real timeouts in the middle of a Tuesday scrimmage until they become routine Rehearsing the late game timeout with the clock running, so February is not the first time Keeping a postgame timeout log to learn how you coach in the hardest moments Chapters 00:00 Coach Unplugged intro 00:16 Opening hook: calling timeouts for the coach 01:16 Preroll: TeachHoops.com special situations and end of game plans 01:39 The point guard who did not know the play 02:31 Takeaway 1: Know why before you call it 04:35 Takeaway 2: Staff first, then one voice 06:20 Takeaway 3: The thirty second script 07:39 Midroll: TeachHoops.com after timeout plays and community 08:01 Takeaway 4: Emotion first, then information 09:08 Takeaway 5: Practice your timeouts 10:45 The challenge 10:56 Postroll: TeachHoops.com This week's challenge: Write down your four reasons to call a timeout, and do not call one this season unless you can name the reason. Format: Deep Dive, two parts. Resources: After timeout plays, end of game situations, special situations playbooks, practice plans, courses, and on court clinics at https://teachhoops.com/ Recorded at the Fifth Quarter Studios in Madison, Wisconsin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  8. Oct 18

    What Does Your Team Do in the Hour Before Tip?

    https://teachhoops.com/ The pregame routine, the warmup that actually warms them up, and the locker room words that matter in game one. It is forty five minutes before tip. The music is too loud, two players are on their phones, and the point guard is retaping an ankle that does not need it. Coach Steve Collins spent his early years running game night on a vibe instead of a plan, then trying to fix everything with a speech four minutes before tip. His teams came out flat in the opener three straight years. In this deep dive, Steve walks through the hour that decides more games than coaches admit. How to build a pregame plan backwards from tip, why most warmups look organized but leave players cold, and what to say, and leave out, in the locker room before game one. It is practical, minute by minute, and ready for opening night. Part 1: The Plan and the Warmup Why Steve's teams came out flat three openers in a row, and why he finally blamed the hour instead of the kids Writing the pregame backwards from tip, with every player and every staff member knowing where to be at each mark Nerves love empty time: giving players a job so worry has nowhere to go Why eight of ten high school warmups look the same, and why that leaves you down eight Building the warmup from the game backwards: movement, ball handling on the move, passing against a defender, shots from your offense, and something live Rehearsing the exact warmup in practice so the first run is never in front of a crowd Part 2: The Locker Room Three things, under three minutes: one on offense, one on defense, one on effort If it was not taught on Tuesday, it does not get said on Friday Reading the temperature of the room, and why the same talk fails a wired team and a tight one The scorer's table story that loosened up a frozen young team before an opener Why the last words should be about belief in the players, not one more reminder to box out Looking like a coach who expected to be here, and the five minute postgame review that builds a routine Chapters 00:00 Coach Unplugged intro 00:16 Opening hook: the hour before tip 01:13 Preroll: TeachHoops.com pregame plans and game day checklists 01:38 Coaching on a vibe and flat openers 02:24 Takeaway 1: A plan, not a waiting room 03:49 Takeaway 2: A warmup that warms them up 06:10 Takeaway 3: Three things, under three minutes 07:13 Midroll: TeachHoops.com pregame talk frameworks and community 07:40 Takeaway 4: Match the room 09:14 Takeaway 5: The last words are about them 10:48 The challenge 11:02 Postroll: TeachHoops.com This week's challenge: Write your pregame hour on one sheet of paper, minute by minute, and run it in practice before your first game. Format: Deep Dive, two parts. Resources: Pregame warmup plans, game day checklists, locker room talk frameworks, practice plans, courses, and on court clinics at https://teachhoops.com/ Recorded at the Fifth Quarter Studios in Madison, Wisconsin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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This Podcast will discuss basketball coaching with Coach Steve Collins. Coach Collins will do this with interviews and on topic discussions. (Discussion will revolve around basketball topics such as: Offense, Defense, Motivation, Team Building, Youth Basketball, High School Basketball, college basketball and much more...) We will publish weekly shows at 6:00 am..... Please check out our site if you like our podcast. www.teachhoops.com.

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