Hoop Commitment

Episode 123: Today’s episode is a sneak peak into our new book, There Is More Than One Way To Skin A Cat, where I interview nine basketball strength coaches and ask, “What’s your approach to testing and what’s the most common test you use?  And then you get to hear exactly how the Chicago Bulls, Denver Nuggets, Kansas Jayhawks and Louisville Cardinals do it here in the states.  And you’ll also get to hear how professional teams in ...

Episode 122:  Learn everything you need to know about basketball pre-game meals from one of the best in the business.  Jessica Isaacs, RD, CSSD is a Los Angeles-based Sports Dietitian with an eclectic career working with elite-level athletes, creating engaging social media content, and is a highly sought-after speaker and mentor.

She earned her Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Dietetics from Purdue University and is a Board Cert...

Episode 121: Dr Andy Galpin has his bachelor’s degree in exercise science from Linfield college, a masters degree in human movement science from the university of Memphis and his PhD in human bioenergetics. 

He considers himself a scientist, teacher and coach, with his full-time job being a professor at Cal State Fullerton..  As a scientist, he’s the co-Director of the Center for Sports Performance where he conducts resea...

Episode 120: Tyler Whitmer oversees the Olympic Sports Performance department at Boise State, works with their men's basketball program, and started an athlete mentorship group for their athletic department.  Prior to joining the Broncos, He earned his masters of science in Education with a concentration in Exercise Physiology from the University of Kansas and coached at Treasure Valley & Oral Roberts. 

Boise Sta...

Episode 119: Ben Greenfield is a New York Times best-selling author, health & fitness biohacker, and fellow podcaster who is extreme about practicing what he preaches.  I don’t know anyone who pursues mental, physical and spiritual health more passionately than Ben. 

His book, Boundless, is a health encyclopedia that combines timeless wisdom with up-to-date science and then he wraps it with a nice bow by giving simple...

Episode 118:  Lifestyle Performance with Portlands Bryant Ferate.  Bryant is the Assistant Director of Sports Performance at the University of Portland and works with their women’s basketball program.  We’ve had some awesome battles over the last few years, going back & forth during the regular season and WCC tournament championships.  And so this podcast was a great excuse to reach out to him and build our friendship.

Episode 117: There is huge value in doing hard things.  A challenging task can make normal, everyday life seem easier.  If you paddle boarded for 8 hours straight in the ocean, it makes going to the gym for a 30-minute run seem like a walk in the park.  It also raises your pain threshold and gives you confidence that you can try new things.  So many of us focus on how we can do less and less, how we can make our life more convenien...

Episode 116: Today’s guest needs no introduction.  Anyone listening to the Hoop commitment podcast knows who Jay Bilas is.  And I feel so lucky that I was able to pick his brain on what it means to be tough.  If you’re like me, you read his legendary ESPN article and immediately shared it with your players and coaches.  It was the first time that someone defined toughness in a way that inspired me.  

Toughness isn't about pound...

Episode 115: And now to part 3 of the Dr. Dave Tiberio Trilogy! I’ve been excited for this interview because I’m learning how important training fascia is, but I’m not sure I’ve been optimizing it with my players.  As always, DT does an amazing job of taking the complicated and making it understandable. 

Click here if you want to watch the 22-part Fascia Series on Youtube  

Keep listening if you want to learn wha...

Episode 114: This is part 2 with Dr. David Tiberio and he spends the entire episode talking about proprioceptors… what they are, where they’re located, how they communicate with the body, and how we can tweak exercises to improve  performance on the court.  You’re going to love learning the science behind activating specific proprioceptors by training in different ranges, at different speeds, and in different environments. 

Episode 113: Dr. David Tiberio is the dean of the Gray Institute’s 40-week mentorship program, which is known for training, treating and conditioning athletes in all 3 planes of motion.  Dr. Tiberio has published numerous articles in scholarly journals and is professor emeritus at the University of Connecticut.  In 2007, Dr. Tiberio  received the Kendall Award from the American Physical Therapy Association for "outstanding and...

Episode 112: Now I’ll admit that I’m a little biased, but I don’t remember ever seeing a college basketball player with better footwork than Drew Timme.  He is unguardable in a 1-on-1 scenario because of his creativity and endless moves.  

Last year Drew was named the Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year and this year became Gonzaga’s All-Time Leading Scorer. Every ESPN announcer that has ever covered the Zags is in awe o...

Episode 111: This interview is about finding better ways of having your practice time transfer to game success.  As a strength coach, I’m always thinking about how the exercises we do in the weight room impact my player’s ability to move and handle contact on the court.  Just because someone can add more weight onto a barbell, doesn’t mean  they’ve become a better basketball player.  

And what today’s guest shares is that just becau...

Episode 110: Now this month’s podcast is a little unusual, since my guest is the host of another basketball performance podcast, and in this episode, he actually interviewed me.  

We hit it off and so I wanted to share our episode and encourage you to check him out online.  Justin Ochoa is the owner of PACE Fitness Academy located in Indianapolis, working with basketball players from youth to pros in the weight room and on...

Episode 109: Tyler Lesher the Head Athletic Trainer for UCLA men’s basketball program.  He’s a certified orthopedic physician extender and certified strength & conditioning specialist.  Before joining UCLA’s staff, he worked in the NBA and G League. 

Tyler earned his doctorate in Health Science and exercise leadership, focusing on reducing systemic inflammation through nutrition & exercise.  With his extensive bas...

Episode 108:   Cliff Spiller is the Director of Strength & Conditioning for Men’s Basketball at the University of Oregon.  Prior to joining the Duck’s staff, he was an assistant with the NBA’s Utah Jazz.  

We became friends through the Gray Institute’s 40-week Fellowship in Applied Functional Science, so I couldn’t think of anyone better to talk about functional training for hoops.  In this episode, Cliff shares how he...

Episode 107: TJ Conley is the Head of Sports Performance for EWU Men's & Women's Basketball.  He's a former NFL player turned strength & conditioning coach who joined me on the podcast to talk about the importance of speed in basketball.

I’ve had the pleasure of working alongside TJ Conley for years at U-District PT and Gonzaga, and I don’t know if I’ve seen a coach pay more attention to detail.  He ...

Episode 106: The Hooptown Youth League will launch in Spokane, WA in the fall of 2022.  Our schools, private businesses, coaches and basketball experts have all come together to create the best youth basketball league on planet Earth.  

If you want to learn more, go to hooptownusa.com.  Our website will be updated with information by mid-July.

If you want to help or have suggestions to improve the league, please e...

Episode 105: Brandon Davis is a mental performance consultant at U-District PT and holds a masters degree in Sport & Performance Psychology.  In addition to his formal education, he also has real life experience playing collegiate and professional basketball.

Brandon joined me on the show today to talk about pre-game routines.  He shares how to use tools like visualization, meditation and neutral thinking to be your be...