PODCAST

A Pen And A Napkin

Martin Plum

A weekly basketball coaches clinic that you can have in your pocket

sports basketball

All Episodes

82:46

A Pen And A Napkin-Episode #289 Brandon Henderson

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/08/14

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

61:10

"The Coaching Staff" Presented by Ruiz Auto-Episode...

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/08/11

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!

84:05

A Pen And A Napkin-Episode #288 Matt Thomas

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/08/07

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

88:20

"The Coaching Staff" Presented by Ruiz Auto-Episode...

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/08/04

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

72:22

A Pen And A Napkin-Episode #287 Derek Keizer

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/07/31

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

65:24

Episode #286-Summer Roundtable

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/07/24

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!

70:59

"The Coaching Staff" Presented by Ruiz Auto-Episode...

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/07/21

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

76:33

A Pen And A Napkin-Episode #285 Carrie Eighmey

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/07/17

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

71:34

A Pen And A Napkin-Episode #284 Jared Ronai

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/07/10

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!

71:24

"The Coaching Staff" Presented by Ruiz Auto-Episode...

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/07/07

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

67:37

A Pen And A Napkin-Episode #283 Jory Collins

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/07/03

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

72:06

"The Coaching Staff" Presented by Ruiz Auto-Episode...

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/06/30

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

69:49

A Pen And A Napkin-Episode #282 Herb Livsey & Don...

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/06/25

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!

70:13

"The Coaching Staff" Presented by Ruiz Auto-Episode...

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/06/22

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

67:14

A Pen And A Napkin-Episode #281 Northwest Iowa...

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/06/19

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

75:19

A Pen And A Napkin-Episode #280-Rafael Barlowe and...

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/06/12

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!

71:15

"The Coaching Staff" Presented by Ruiz Auto-Episode...

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/06/09

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?

66:33

A Pen And A Napkin-Episode #279 John Gianforte

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/06/05

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

79:18

"The Coaching Staff" Presented by Ruiz Auto-Episode...

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/06/02

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

65:38

A Pen And A Napkin-Episode #278 Steve Smiley

A Pen And A Napkin ·

2025/05/29

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

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