Idaho Basketball Coaching Podcast

We are fortunate to have Nate Sanderson on this episode. Sanderson is a highly successful girls basketball coach in the state of Iowa. You probably know Sanderson from the Coaching Culture Podcast and his work at the Thrive On Challenge. It is through these platforms where Sanderson has helped coaches around the world create strong cultures within their programs. In this episode, we discuss the end-of-season assessments, mentoring assistant coaches, and staying confident as a head coach. Did you know ... the Idaho Basketball Coaching Podcast now has a newsletter. Check it out at https://coachingidaho.substack.com.

We are fortunate to have Adam Hiatt on this episode of the podcast. Hiatt is the head men’s coach at Montana Tech in Butte. The Ore Diggers just finished the season 29-5 and advanced to the quarterfinals of the NAIA National Tournament. Hiatt’s Idaho ties run deep. He was a standout player at Bonners Ferry High School, and then spent 2 years at Ricks College — when it was Ricks College. He also got his college coaching start at the University of Idaho under George Pfeifer and was the head coach at Westminster College in Salt Lake City.

We are fortunate to have Kareem Kalil on this episode.  Kalil is a high school coach in Denver, where he had the opportunity to coach both the girls and boys teams at DSST: Byers. The girls team won its conference, qualifying for the state tournament for the first time in the school’s history. Kalil also spent 3 months coaching at College Prep Academy in Italy, and will be heading back next week to finish the season. In this episode, Kalil talks about differences between coaching in the United States and Europe and ways to incorporate authentic learning into your program.

We are fortunate to have Jim Winger on this episode of the podcast. Winger is the long-time boys head coach at Lake City High School in Coeur d’Alene. Winger started as the head coach at Coeur d’Alene High in 1992 and then moved to Lake City when it opened in 1994. He stepped away from coaching for 5 years, but returned in 2008. At the time of this interview in early January, his team was the top-ranked 5A team in Idaho and in the top 40 rankings of teams nationally.

We are fortunate to have Francesco Nanni on this episode of the podcast. Nanni is an Italian professional coach, who has more than 10 years of experience at various levels in Italy. He has established a big social media following from his clips of game breakdowns and drills. Nanni recently released a serious of videos through Basketball Immersion that provide coaches with hours of drills for developing 1-on-1 skills for players at all levels.

We are fortunate to have Basketball Development Coach Steve Dagostino on this episode.  Coach Dags has helped develop players of all ages and all levels since 2008. He and his staff typically train more than 1,000 players per year. Coach Dags is a Court Coach for USA Basketball’s junior national team, and runs NBA Pre Draft workouts. Besides working with NBA players, he also coaches his daughter's youth team.

We are fortunate to not just have one coach on this episode, but three coaches with us today. The common thread among today’s guests? We all spent some time coaching basketball in Idaho this summer.  Well, 3 of the coaches are actually from Idaho. The fourth coach, Alex Sarama, is from England and spent a week last June in the Gem State  conducting clinics on implementing his BDT Offense with Lake City, Skyline, and Sandpoint girls basketball teams. Since that time, I’ve spent a lot of time discussing the game with Skyline’s Ty Keck and Lake City’s James Anderson. My conclusion: You won’t find two more knowledgeable basketball coaches in the state — especially when it comes to Sarama's BDT offense.  The podcast is a discussion about our experiences coaching the BDT offense since Sarama's visit. If you are considering adopting the BDT offense, this the podcast episode for you.

We are fortunate to have George Couros on today’s podcast. Originally an educator in Canada, George is an Innovative Teaching, Learning and Leadership consultant based in Florida. I had the opportunity to participate in a workshop led by Couros last month at my school, and I’m currently reading his book The Innovator’s Mindset. I’ve really enjoyed applying his message and approaches for encouraging an innovator's mindset in my classroom … and also in my basketball coaching. Couros is also a basketball junkie. He played the game growing up and also has experience as a coach and referee. He's a proud season-ticket holder to the Orlando Magic.

We are fortunate to have Nate Colvill on this episode. Colvill is the new head women’s coach at North Idaho College. He comes to Coeur d’Alene with an extensive basketball background, having played at the University of Montana in the 90s. He has coached at both the high school and college level, including a stint as an assistant for the Lady Griz where he coached my current assistant coach Madi “Madison” Schoening. Colvill is an expert in post development and recently held a post camp in Coeur d'Alene. He also has a daughter who is 6'7 and is being recruited nationally.

We are fortunate to have Nabil Murad on this podcast. Coach Murad is from Ireland, and we conducted the interview at a hotel in Dublin.  (Apologizes for any disruptive background noise.) Murad has coached basketball around the world, including the United States and UK. He is currently coaching in Austria, where among other things, he is the U16 Men’s National Team head coach. Among other things on this episode, Murad discusses Individual Development Plans and encouraging players to be strong communicators and leaders.