Thanks for inviting me to this Blog–Randy Brown

Posted on July 31, 2009 by coachrb

Thanks Dino for inviting me.

In my post-college coaching career I have dedicated myself to assisting the world wide basketball community with several programs and resources.

My web site, CoachRB.com, provided a wealth of time tested information from my 30+ year career as a high school and college coach.icon

My College Coach Now program assists prospective NCAA college coaches by providing programs to quickly move them ahead to their goal. Over the past 30 years I have helped over 100 coaches become college coaches at all levels.

My new venture, WinningPlays.net, is a service that provides via email a winning set play every day of the year. 365 plays. It will launch on September 1st but ordering will begin in the next week. Go to http://winningplays.net

I write nationally for several publications, speak at many clinics, and do video editing for FIBA through Sideline Sports of Iceland.

Lastly, I am the owner and lead instructor of the Iowa Player Development Academy. We are dedicated to teaching players “HOW” to play the game of baskeball. We are the only program of it’s kind anywhere in Iowa.

My goal is to improve coaching in our country by developing a coach certification program by next summer. I will have coaches attending from around the globe and throughout the US in this one of a kind venture. Stay tuned.

My email is rb@coachrb.com so feel free to email me about any of the above.

Randy Brown

CoachRB.com

Iowa Player Development Academy

Filed under: Coach Randy Brown, Coaching Career Path, General | Tagged: , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Randy Brown: Mentor to over 100 Coaches into the Collegiate Level

Posted on July 27, 2009 by Dino Gomez

This past Friday I spoke on the phone for twenty minutes with coach Randy Brown about his coaching career. I asimagesked him a few questions about the process of becoming a coach. In a moment we’ll take a look at those questions and his responses but before we jump into that interview, lets go over his resume.

Randy is a coach of 30 years, 20 of which were with an NCAA team. He has also done work for F.I.B.A, Winning Hoops, and Coach and Athletic Director Magazine. Randy is nationally published and has mentored over 100 coaches into the collegiate level. He has helped develop 12 NBA players including Steve Kerr, Sean Elliot, and Jaamal Tinsley. Randy even coached a while alongside University of Arizona ‘s Lute Olson. Currently he runs an organization which he created called CoachRB, where he helps to mentor other coaches. If you have any interest at all in coaching, be sure to check out his site.

  1. Randy, you are the owner and founder of Coach RB, a website and program that helps to mentor coaches into the collegiate level. Can you tell us about Coach RB and what it encompasses?

Randy Brown– “Well I’ve been coaching for 30 years now. I spent 20 years coaching at the college level 070605dunkand have been fortunate and lucky to have had experience with a bunch of great programs and coaches. So now I’m returning the favor. I use my resources and contacts to help others. I’m very indebted to those who helped me and now I’m just enjoying returning the favor to those who want to learn. In general my site is free to any coach or visitor that wants to learn more about basketball.  Hopefully I’ve provided info that coaches can use and apply.”

2) You have mentored over 100 coaches into the collegiate level from coaching at a lower level such as high school. When you’re helping a coach transition to the college level, what is your main area of focus? In other words, what is the difference between coaching college and high-school hoops outside of the talent level?

Randy Brown: “I would say a couple things. One, a coach needs to know what they are getting into. I’ll tell you that it’s not ESPN, it’s the most physically, emotionally, and mentally demanding job ever. Those that make it as a coach at the college level I call ten percenters. Because only 1 in 10 coaches that come to me and say they wa29ed869nt to be a college coach actually makes it. The others “want to” become college coaches, but lack the desire, energy, and total commitment it takes to do everything possible to make it happen. This is where over 90% of aspiring coaches fail!…. I would also say that it doesn’t matter what you did at any other level.. It doesn’t matter if you have a record as a high school coach that reads 100 to 1 or 1 to 100. Young coaches like to think that because they are winning 70% of the time that they can handle moving up the ranks to the college level. That’s misguided thinking. Many times I scare away young guys that join my program because I’m real with them and tell them what coaching at the college level is going to be. Getting into college is all about your coaching network and the strength of your coaching tree!

The second thing I would say to a coach or teach to a coach trying to to move up is how to network:  how t57145126o meet coaches, how to find a job, or how to find a future job. You have to know to network. Every coach in this business knows just about every other coach in this business. Once a participant does my program, you become aware of the value of developing relationships. A college coach has to be totally committed to their job in every aspect which includes work off the court. I teach the ins and outs of coaching at the college level that are not expected.”

3) I see you graduated from Arizona and were mentored by Lute Olson himself. My father went to Arizona and still currently resides in Tucson . I’m a huge Arizona Wildcats fan and just have to ask you about your experience working with Lute. What did the experience working with him mean to you and out of the many things you gained from coaching alongside him, what is the number one thing you took away?

Randy Brown: “As a young guy growing up in Arizona , Lute was a huge deal. It crushed the people in Iowa when he 29ed869left the University of Iowa for Arizona . But coaching with Lute Olson was like a dream come true. He is a master of so many things. He has one of the sharpest minds in basketball and one of his greatest abilities is making changes in the midst of the game. He does everything well. He recruited extremely well because he is so personable. He always treated everyone kindly. Lute is the most A to Z person I know. He won over 1000 games at all levels which is just a crazy statistic…

Now this may be a surprising answer but the biggest thing I learned from him was how to be personable. As a young high school coach, I wrote Lute a lot to stay in touch or ask for advise. Amazingly, he always wrote a halute_olson1ndwritten note back. He wrote all hand written letters to his recruits. So I adopted that as a coach. Now I’ve written thousands of hand written letters to all types of people for all reasons. He taught me to use the personal touch to develop relationships to build your program the right way.”

4). For those students who are just graduating college who desire a career coaching hoops, what do you suggest is their best first move? How should they go about working their way to becoming a successful coach? Where is the start to a coaching career?

Randy Brown:  “First of all each state has their own coaching certification process. In our state there are certain      29ed869courses you have to take. Anybody can do that. You don’t have to be an education or PE major to get coaching certification. Number two, you need to get experience. Coach a 3rd grade girls team at the YMCA if you need to. But get experience, there’s no replacement for that. Number three, become a student of the game. Convince yourself that you don’t know anything about the game and really study it. There’s nothing like hands on experience so get out there. Find a mentor. If you’re 20 years old, go to the 60 year old coach at a nearby school and sit down for an hour with him/her. In one hour with that coach he will give you all the wisdom and info that you would learn from reading countless books. I’ve mentored a ton of coaches and have helped many into the coaching position they want. The benefits of having a mentor are countless.”

Alright for those aspiring coaches out there this interview was for you. Lets recap what we learned.

  1. You need a coaching mentor- Randy Brown is offering his services to you so be sure to check out his website.
  2. Networking—this is the #1 key to becoming a college basketball coach and is taught in Randy’s CCN (College Coach Now) program.
  3. Get ready for potentially the most intense job possible..
  4. Be personable. Perhaps write a hand-written letter when possible. (Lute taught us that)
  5. Get some experience wherever possible. 3rd grade girls team works.

Thanks again to Randy Brown for his time and wisdom. Want more hoops news? Follow @DinoGomez.

Filed under: Coaching Career Path, General, Interviews | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Oregon Preview

Posted on July 10, 2009 by stone86

Here is the first review/preview for the upcoming Pac10 Basketball season.  It might seem arbitrary that I’ve chosen a look at the ducks first, but it’s the club I know best and for that reason, will be the easiest to do.  So…O

It’s certainly no secret the Oregon Ducks struggled mightily this past year. Only a season removed from an NCAA appearance, and two seasons removed from an elite eight run, the 08-09 Ducks finished the season with eight total wins.  Of those eight wins, just two came in Pacific 10 conference play.  Why were they so bad?  They were young.  The Ducks had one lone senior available for the entirety of the season, Churchill Odia.  Five freshmen: Michael Dunigan, Josh Crittle, Matthew Humphrey, Drew Wiley, and Garrett Sim played significant minutes as head coach Ernie Kent struggled to find a consistent group.  The young players showed promise at times but were wildly inconsistent. Coach Kent took a lot of heat for the difficulties the Ducks faced and at the end of the year met with former Athletic Director Pat Kilkenny about his future.  Not long after that infamous meeting, Kent decided to let go of his long time assistant Mark Hudson in favor of venerable Arizona assistant Mike Dunlap. Dunlap brings an impressive resume to Oregon, including two NCAA division 2 championships and a stop in the NBA with the Denver Nuggets.  Around Eugene there is a palpable feeling that Dunlap will bring much needed energy and direction to the program.

So what does the future hold for Oregon?  Well, the Ducks only lost three players this off-season.  Seniors Churchill Odia and Frantz Dorsainvil have run out of eligibility while sophomore point guard Kamyron Brown transferred under suspicious circumstances.  (Rumors suggest the coaching staff essentially told him there wasn’t a spot for him.)   But the feeling around the program is that the incoming talent should be more than sufficient to cover the losses. The blue-chip of the class is Wisconsin product, and Rivals top 150 recruit, Jamil Wilson, a 6’7” forward.  Apparently Wilson is the complete package with the ability to play both inside and out.  The Ducks also signed Oregon player of the year E.J. Singler, younger brother of Duke star Kyle Singler.  Most believe he isn’t of his brother’s caliber, but he’s a tough kid and should be a solid player in the future.  Lastly the Ducks signed forward Jeremy Jacob and point guard Malcolm Armstead from powerhouse Florida powerhouse, Chipola junior college.  Obviously the coaching staff is hoping the transfers will add immediate depth and experience to a club that sorely lacked steady hands.

More important than the off-season additions however is the return of every player who either started or saw significant minutes.  With another year under their belts, the young guys should be ready for the grueling Pac10 season.

At center, former McDonalds All-American Mike Dunigan has the sheer athletic talent to be a great player in the league but he needs to improve his footwork, along with his touch around the basket.  Dunigan also has some sort of ridiculous penchant for foul trouble, he can’t seem to stay out of it.  Josh Crittle, the lesser known of the two sophomore centers to-be, actually was more consistent than his more notorious counterpart.  Crittle flashed good touch around the basket and usually managed to stay on the floor.  Reports claim that both of the young big-men have shed considerable weight for the upcoming season.  Either way, after last year’s over-whelming trial by fire, the centers should be ready for the quality and size of players in the conference.  Especially when considering conference stalwarts like John Brockman and Jeff Pendergraph have moved on to the NBA.

The guard spots seem to be the most settled.  At shooting guard is the predictably mercurial Tajuan Porter.  The 5’6” shooter is almost lights out when he’s open off the ball but struggles badly when asked to create for others.  For his size he’s not a bad defender, but has been bothered in the past by rangy defenders.  He has a decent pull-up jumper but is inconsistent when asked to finish in the lane.  Look for Tajuan’s play to improve with growth at the point guard position. Transfer Malcolm Armstead is rumored to be a steady player, and Garrett Sim proved that he was dangerous when “on.”  The competition should certainly help. If the Ducks do manage to get good point guard play, Tajuan will have the opportunity to do what he does best, spot up and shoot.


Predicting the starters at the forward spots is nearly impossible.  Senior Joevan Catron is a leading candidate.  He’s a quick but undersized power forward with nifty moves, but he tends to disappear for long stretches.  Also over the course of the years Catron hasn’t demonstrated the ability to shoot very well.  Chances are, sweet shooting big-man Drew Wiley and newcomers Jamil Wilson and Jeremy Jacob will push for time at the 4 spot.  Wiley plays a bit like a guard and needs badly to improve his strength, especially in his hands.  I can vividly recall rebounds being ripped away from him.  Jamil Wilson may have the ball skills and quickness to pose match-up problems at the 4 spot but as a freshman he probably lacks the strength to handle more mature players.  Jeremy Jacob is reported to be a solid player with a nice mid-range jumper, something the Ducks lacked.  His age and maturity may also be a benefit to him.  At small forward the two established guys are sophomore south-paw Matt Humphrey and junior Lekendric Longmire.  Jamil Wilson could also challenge for time here, as he is rumored to be an athletic slasher.  Humphrey and Longmire are passionate guys and good athletes.  Humphrey is the better shooter and more skilled of the two, but Lekendric seems to make big plays.  Humphrey got more and more minutes near the end of last year and I expect the trend to continue with maturity.  Lekendric could be a very nice energy guy off the bench.  In any event, Ernie should have plenty of options with the interchangeability of the 2-4 positions.

In all reality the Ducks should have plenty of opportunities to do well in the conference, but are they mature enough?  It’s been a tumultuous off-season for the conference, with top teams losing a lot of talent and interesting coaching changes.  Other than Washington and Cal the conference is relatively unproven.  I expect the Ducks to finish in the middle of the Pac(k), but could even see them finishing as high 3rd or as low as 9th.  Since that isn’t much of a prediction, I’ll go on record saying they’ll finish 5th.

All-around the Oregon team should be much improved, because really, how hard is it to be better than they were?  Although Ernie doesn’t have a great track-record of late with developing inside big-men, I believe Dunigan is gifted enough to pave his own way.  Look for both his scoring average to jump up into double-digits and rebound numbers to improve as well.  (If he stays on the floor.)    The Ducks must also find consistency handling the ball, turnovers were a problem last season.  The best sign for the future though was the fact that the Ducks never quit on their season… At times they were certainly frustrated, and it showed, but other than a small incident involving Tajuan Porter there was never a lack of effort.  That effort finally paid off in the end of the conference season with back-to-back wins against Stanford and Oregon State.

Possible Red-Shirts:

1)    E.J. Singler
2)    Teondre Williams
3)    Drew Wiley?

Predicted Starters (really wide open…):

1)    Garret Sim
2)    Tajuan Porter
3)    Matt Humphrey/Jamil Wilson
4)    Jeremy Jacob/Joevan Catron
5)    Mike Dunigan

Filed under: General, Mike Viglione | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Better yet, which college team lost the most in the 2009 NBA draft?

Posted on June 28, 2009 by Dino Gomez

It’s fun to discuss the NBA draft in terms of which NBA team will benefit the most from their picks as well as which players were drafted too soon or too late. However it is rare that a rookie comes into the league and dominates right away. They may snatch a starting position and put up impressive numbers in their first year, but they almost never make a huge impact right away. They have to develop first. That is why after the NBA draft it is more fun to discuss the NCAA. Imagine losing an NBA quality player at the college level? Now that makes an impact on your team. So instead of further dissecting where the draft picks are headed, were taking you back to where these players came from to see which programs have gaping holes to fill next season. The rules of this evaluation are simple: Two NBA players that leave the NCAA affect the college they attended more than if just one player left. So below are all the colleges that lost 2 or more players this year to the 2009 NBA draft.Louisville Media Day Basketball

  • Arizona – Jordan Hill (8) and Chase Budinger (44)
  • Arizona State- James Harden (3) and Jeff Pendergraph (31)
  • Uconn- Hasheem Thabeet (2) and A.J. Price (52)
  • Louisville- Terrance Williams (11) and Earl Clark (14)
  • Memphis- Tyreke Evans (4) and Robert Dozier (60)
  • North Carolina- Tyler Hansbrough (13)/ Ty Lawson (18)/ Wayne Ellington (28)/ Danny Green (46)
  • Oklahoma- Blake Griffin (1) and Taylor Griffin (48)
  • Pittsburgh- Sam Young (36) and Dejuan Blair (37)
  • UCLA- Jrue Holiday (17) and Darren Collison (21)
  • USC- DeMar DeRozan (9) and Taj Gibson (26)
  • Wake Forest– James Johnson (16) and Jeff Teague (19)
  1. North Carolina wins or technically loses this contest. Four players from their team left the Baby Blue behind. They have by far the most work to do if they are to match the caliber of their championship team this past year.
  2. Louisville loses the second most.  Terrance Willams and Earl Clark closed business deals for them on the court and losing them hurts.
  3. Arizona State and Wake Forest tie for third. ASU will have a tough time in the Pac-10 without Harden’s scoring and Pendergraph rebounding and blocking shots. Wake Forest finished poorly this last season but will be hard to recognize without James Johnson and Jeff Teague.

Filed under: Dino Gomez, General, NCAA News | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »