Episode 195: George Karl, Basketball Coaching Insights From The Legend

Dec 22, 2021

01:05:29

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Guest: George Karl, One of the All-Time Winningest Coaches in NBA History

One of the all-time winningest coaches in NBA history George Karl joins the Basketball Podcast to share his basketball coaching insights from a legendary coaching career.

The 2012-13 NBA Coach of the Year, George Karl most recently served as head coach of the Sacramento Kings from 2015 to 2016.

Throughout his career, Karl collected 1,175 wins over 22 winning seasons with a .588 winning percentage. He also led his teams to 22 postseason appearances including the NBA Finals in 1996 with Seattle. Karl’s NBA coaching career has included time with the Cleveland Cavaliers (1984-86), Golden State Warriors (1986-88), Seattle SuperSonics (1992-98), Milwaukee Bucks (1998-2003), the Nuggets (2005-13), and the Kings (2015-16). While with the Denver Nuggets, Karl became the seventh NBA coach to record 1,000 career wins.

Karl was a standout high school star who was recruited to play at the University of North Carolina. In four seasons at Chapel Hill, Karl earned All-ACC honors three times and was selected by the New York Knicks in the fourth round of the 1973 NBA Draft. Karl made his head coaching debut for the Cleveland Cavaliers in 1984, and would go on to coach 1,999 games for the Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors, Seattle SuperSonics, Milwaukee Bucks, Denver Nuggets, and Sacramento Kings. 680 of those games were for his hometown Nuggets.

During Karl's career, his teams advanced to the playoffs 22 times in 27 seasons, making three appearances in the conference finals and one trip to the NBA Finals. Karl coached the likes of NBA icons Ray Allen, Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Allen Iverson, Shawn Kemp, and Gary Payton.

Presently, Karl is a co-owner of Truth+Media, a media business developing rich and engaging content focused on sports and leadership. The Truth+ podcasts, Sonics Forever, and Truth+Basketball with George Karl have become top hoops podcasts internationally in countries including the US, Australia, Canada, and Spain.

Breakdown

1:00 - His Philosophy and Influence to Others

4:00 - Aggressive Defensive Approach

9:00 - Freedom To Players

15:00 - Analytics

17:00 - At The Rim

22:00 - Giving Up At The Personnel

24:00 - Modern Game

28:00 - Learnings and Coaching Experience

33:00 - Making Practice Fun

36:00 - Playing Basketball in Practice

43:00 - Suggestions to Young Coaches