"The Opening Tip" Newsletter
Volume XXV: August 15th, 2025
What Should You Look For When Going to Coaching Clinics or Collegiate Practices?
Over the next couple of months, there is going to be a plethora of opportunities to observe higher level (college or professional) practices or workouts, and there will also be numerous coaches clinics that will be made available to you to attend. I love going to clinics and to watch other coaches ‘perform their craft’, and through clinics, you get a chance to see some of the best coaches in your area or in the country sharing their knowledge.
One of the major changes that I have seen in coaching in the last 10-20 years is that less and less coaches are out watching practices and going to clinics. Everyone has their own reasons for that, from basketball commitments (of which, continue to grow for almost everyone) to being overly reliant on internet and social media resources, but every coach should make the commitment to attend some practices and a clinic during the fall season to make themselves better. Not every practice is going to be career alterating, nor will every coach that you see lead a clinic be productive or be relatable to your specific situation. But, you’ll never know that unless you get out and observe!
As you go to these clinics and practices, what should you be looking for or what should you be doing? Here’s some thoughts:
Can you adapt this to your program?: You go to a high level Division I men’s basketball practice and they put in a great lob play for their 7’0” athletic center for a dunk. Great play, but does that work for my team with my 5’9” post player? Probably not. I think the thing you look to do is for adaptations; that great lob play may not work for a dunk for you, but can you do something to get a backscreen for a bounce pass layup? If it’s good enough, find a way to adapt it to your program.
If you add something, you have to take something away: This is an old Coach Meyer thing. You can have only so many teaching points or your players will get confused. Same thing goes for the number of drills that you have, or the number of defenses or sets you have in your playbook. If you decide to add a couple of new drills because of a clinic or a practice, you’re going to have to remove a couple from your rotation. You don’t have enough time for everything.
Try to find practices that will fit your philosophy . . . but be open to new ideas: In a perfect world, we would go to the the clinics and practices that fit our philosophy, but that’s not always the case. If you’re not a packline coach, it probably wouldn’t do you much good to go to a bunch of Jim Boone’s practices, but at the same time, by going to a Jim Boone practice, you may see his logic and consider switching some of your concepts (by the way, that happened to me after I saw Coach Boone speak at a Nike clinic . . .) If you know you are dead set against packline defense, than don’t go watch a program that does packline. However, especially at the high school level, you need to keep your eyes open to new things because you never know when your talent may dictate changes.
Get contact information and build your relationship network: You’re going to a practice or a clinic to watch the coaches or clinicians work, but this is also a great way to make friendships and create a genuine relationship network. Don’t be afraid to start up conversations with coaches or ask them questions when it’s appropriate. Many times, the best people you can talk to are your fellow coaches and attendees (Shameless plug: That’s why we have multiple small group breakout sessions at our annual clinic), so build your network one genuine conversation at a time.
Don’t be afraid to follow up with questions: If you missed something or would like more clarification, don’t be afraid to ask! If a coach gives you their contact information, especially email, take the time a day or two later and email that coach with any questions you might have, thank them for allowing you to come to their practice or compliment them for doing a great job on their presentation. Go above and beyond to build your genuine relationship network, but be sure to be genuine above all else!
Reorganize your notes soon after the clinic or visit: I was obsessive about taking my hand written notes and rewriting them into my computer and keeping my notes organized. The more times that you write something down, the more apt you are to remember it, so take all of these good things, which are often scribbles at their infancy, and reorganize them into a system that makes sense for you. This also makes it easier to share those notes with your coaching staff or others that may request them, but the most important thing is that you’ve commited them to memory by recopying your notes.
Get one good idea per interaction: As you become more seasoned and experienced, you’re going to become more entrenched in your philosophy. There’s nothing wrong with that; I’m much the same way. I’ve studied the game for a long time and I believe what I believe in, but I still want to try to walk away from every practice or clinician that I watch and I want to get, on avearage, at least one thing that I would want to use with my program. If that happened, it was a successful clinic or practice!
Looking for a good clinic to attend? Here’s a couple of ideas to look at!
UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA MEN’S BASKETBALL FALL COACHES CLINIC
@ Hendricks Training Complex
1600 Court Street | 236 Hendricks Training Complex | Lincoln, NE 68588
Southwest corner of Bob Devaney Sports Center
Registration opens at 3:30 PM in the lobby of Hendricks Training Complex.
Clinic will begin promptly at 4 PM.
Saturday, August 23, 2025
4 PM – 7 PM
$40*
Coach Hoiberg and staff will cover a range of topics from player development to
offensive spacing / concepts and practice drills and habits.
*Registration is payable with cash, check or Venmo at the door.
Limited to first 120 registrations. Walk ups are welcome if space is available.
Park in the “P” Purple lot (52) south of Hendricks Training Complex.
After the clinic, you are invited to the Coaches Clinic Social at Barred Owl, located on the
6th floor of The Scarlet, 2101 Transformation Dr, Lincoln, NE 68508
NAVIGATE TO FREDHOIBERGCAMPS.COM TO SIGN UP.
Fred Hoiberg Basketball Camp is open to any and all participants.
Want to learn how to be the CEO of your program? Who are coaches you should study or books you should read? How can I build a great culture in our program?
All of those questions and more will be answered if you decide to invest in “Hoops 365: A One Year Guide To Becoming a Basketball CEO”! “Hoops 365” features 365 separate topics related to building your skill set to run your program with knowledge and efficiency! Each topic gives you space to answer questions, reflect and dive into how you want to build. your program!!
“Hoops 365: A One Year Guide To Becoming a Basketball CEO” will be avialable TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16TH for purchase via Amazon.com for $26.99. Don’t miss out on your chance to enhance your skill set as the CEO of your program one day at a time!
THE WOODEN “PYRAMID OF SUCCESS” PODCAST: EPISODE #25: SUCCESS AND COMPETITIVE GREATNESS
Sadly, our journey has ended with Coach Wooden and his “Pyramid of Success”. In the final edition of this podcast series, myself, Coach Nate Wall and Coach Matt Kern break down the climax to Wooden’s pyramid in a terrific, 75 minute pod that will have a bunch of great ideas for you to implement into your teaching philosophy! Enjoy the series finale!
“THE COACHES CORNER”: Watch the Great Ones Work!
Here are some clips of some of the best clinicians that I have seen in my career. Great coaches and great teachers of the game, their presentation style is something to emulate if you’re ever given the chance to present to other coaches!
“THE LAST OF THE COWBOYS: THE STORY OF SNOW VALLEY BASKETBALL SCHOOL” IS NOW AVAILABLE ON AMAZON.COM!
Snow Valley Basketball School is the oldest continuous basketball camp in America. Founded by Herb Livsey in 1961, Snow Valley dominated the scene through the 1990s in California. Two Iowans, Jerry Slykhuis and Don Showalter, franchised the camp and brought it to Iowa in 1994, were it will be celebrating its 30th year in 2025!
“OFF THE SHELF” NON-BASKETBALL BOOK RECOMMENDATION: “Everything She Ever Wanted” by Ann Rule
I read alot of true crime, but this one left me hanging on every page! Ann Rule has a way of bringing you into the story and making it feel personal, even though you’re not involved in the narrative, and this book really makes you angry, sympathetic, frustated and spell bound all at once! A true story filled with twists and turns!
“OFF THE SHELF” BASKETBALL/LEADERSHIP BOOK RECOMMENDATION: “Player’s First” by John Calipari with Michael Sokolove
We often think that it’s about the system or about our drills, but what Coach Calipari does in this book is explain the importance of relationships and how to get the most out of the player’s performance. He also talks alot about failing and how some of those relationships haven’t worked out as he intended. A really good look at how the best do their job!
A PEN AND A NAPKIN “UNIVERSITY” VIDEO: YOUTH COACHING CLINIC