Talking Split

The last of our guests joins us this week, with Bec Mihai in to talk about sleep and the impact that it can have on us. 

We cover what good sleep hygiene looks like, the age old debate of quality or quantity, the different cycles that we may experience when daylight savings hits, or simply dealing with teenagers, and why a consistent sleep pattern might be the best thing for you. 

Sorry to all our parents of newborns out there (Nick included!)

This episode we are joined by Francielle Wilson from Inner Game Psychology for Coach Wellbeing Month, who brings a unique perspective on mental health and wellbeing, based on her elite sports background. Francielle discusses how self care matters, some strategies to be the best version of yourself, setting boundaries for yourself and how to manage white line fever!

Joined by Ben McKechnie from Space Between Psychology this week, to discuss the Mental side of Coach Wellbeing Month. Ben does a great job of unpacking how coaches can be the best versions of themselves when coaching, how a decline in mental health can impact on those around them, and how to cope with stress, especially differentiating between big, and small changes that occur in life.

Week 2 of Coach Wellbeing Month, and  we are joined by Durham McInnis from Core Advantage to talk to the physical side of wellbeing. Durham dives into where to start your fitness journey, what you can do to get the most bang for your buck, the part that nutrition and creatine can play, and of course, recovery and how to make sure you don’t overdo it.
We are also joined by Luke Lehmann as he talks to us before his 24-hour run marathon in support of SmackTalk next week, and his call to action to Unplug from social media for...

Up first this week for Coach Wellbeing Month, is Alex Parr from Eight Nutrition, talking all the good, and more moderately good things in food and drink! We get into when is the best time to eat, how to read food labels, fasting, meal preparation and how to live with a more sustainable and healthy diet in moderation.

It’s been a long run up from when the idea was first raised to now, but over the course of October we are focusing in on Coach Wellbeing. Over this month we are going to dive into 4 main areas that can impact on coaches, Nutrition, Physical Health, Sleep and Mental Health, with experts in the fields coming in to give some advice to coaches (or anyone in the sport) on how they can make some sustainable changes to habits, to live a healthier lifestyle.

Back for Round 2 this week of clips that we have heard on socials over the past little bit, and how they can apply to our coaching and basketball environment. The debut of a new podcast guest this week, with David Peters making his podcast debut after a year in the State Development Coach role, and now in the High Performance Coach for Vic Metro Men role.

This week we delve into some of the social media clips that have been doing the rounds over the years and discuss how they might apply to our situation as coaches, and some of the key points and takeaways. We didn’t manage to get all of them in this week, so stay tuned for Part 2 next week, and if there is anything you’ve come across send it through!

As many of our seasons are drawing to a close or deep in finals, we look at the role the coach has to play in conducting end of season reviews both with their players, their own role, the season as a whole, and what some PD and downtime can look like in the time that they have off.

A bit of a rom-com special this week, and not just about Zoe’s love of a BBQ brisket. The topic this week is “How To Lose A Game in 10 Ways”, and are we as coaches doing anything that can be contributing to our teams losing games? We bounce around several different topics that can make a big difference to the scoreboard over the course of a game, most of the things thankfully, are within our control! If you’ve got any others we haven’t thought of, drop them in the comments and we may end up with another pod around...

Fortunate and grateful to be joined by Errol Amerasekera from Bluestone Edge this week on the podcast as we dive into how to best give feedback in coaching, the impact the brain can have when receiving feedback, creating and defining a psychologically safe environment for our players and coaches, and how we can help make the sport what our players need to thrive. Something for everyone in this one, if you’re a coach, parent, or casual observer of the sport.
You can see and hear more from Errol here: https://www.youtube.com/@AtTheEdgeLessonsInCultureAndLe

When you lose one hyphenated named coach, it’s only right that you replace them with another, and this week we have the State Development Coach for Victoria Country, Fernando Rios-Rodriguez joining us for his podcast debut. 
The topic this week is something we have seen an abundance of at junior basketball of late, in zones and presses. We discuss some of the pros and cons of using them, the impact that it can have on player development, where they have a place in junior or senior basketball, and just as importantly, some teaching points you can use when pla...

Bit of an extended break between pods, but back this week to talk about U16 Nationals review, and the world of Assistant Coaches. We discuss what their role can be, some of the traits of a good assistant coach, how to create a cohesive working environment and how to make sure everyone is on the same page as a coaching staff to give the players the best experience.
As you’ll hear, Besty has made the move to the US to take up an exciting opportunity coaching at a High School. Thanks to Darren for all his work and ef...

Making her podcast debut this week is Kat Gourley the Women’s & Girls Participation Manager at Basketball Victoria. The discussion this week is all around Women & Girls involvement in Basketball as players and coaches, and the role that coaches play in making the sport a safe space, including having male coaches as allies. If you coach women, girls, have a daughter playing, or want to make the sport a better place for everyone, there will be something to take out of this pod.

A podcast for everyone involved in the game, as we are joined by 3 time author, Gavin Freeman, to discuss Sports Psychology. There is something in there for coaches, players and parents, as we dive into how the mind works around sport, how starting or coming off the bench can impact on performance, the sometimes complex car ride to or from games, and how content at training sessions can help the brain – which can be lazy!

Delving into the world of coaching philosophies for this week. We discuss what they are, why they’re vital for coaches to have at all levels, how you would use it to work better with players, and how coaches can go about building one for themselves no matter what level they’re coaching at.
It’s also a sad pod this week, as Coops is finishing one heck of a job at Basketball Victoria. Coops has brought energy, passion, knowledge and vulnerability to his time in the role and especially the podcast where he’s been a big part of educa...

Great to welcome into the podcast Cassie Dover, Head Coach of the Women’s Indigenous Basketball Association (IBA) team. Cassie takes us through her pathway to get where she is, the experience she has had in coaching her own daughter, what she does in the coaches space, the work that the IBA is doing to promote basketball in the community for players, and how as coaches we can make an impact with our players.

Thanks to one of our listeners Coach Funz, we were made aware of a report commissioned by Luka Doncic on the state of the junior game around the world. It’s a fascinating look at what the landscape is in the sport, and the impact that we as coaches can have with our own development, but also player enjoyment. We unpack the 8 Core Principles of the Total Hoops Approach and how it applies to our landscape as coaches.
If you’re interested, you can download the report here: https://lukadoncicfoundation.org/iyb-report/

With the back half of many seasons fast approaching we are anticipating some tight games, so we discuss what the late game tactics are that coaches might need to consider when the pressure comes on! Strap in as as Besty takes us through his recent Japan and US travels, some of the basketball experiences he’s had, and the different styles of basketball from around the globe.

For a lot of coaches, they’re approaching the mid-point of the season and what better time than now to get a check in with your players? It’s a great time to sit down with players and review goals from the start of the season, see if you can set new goals, find out more about your team culture, and give both coaches and players the opportunity to deliver and receive feedback to make it as positive an experience for everyone involved.

We have talked a lot about development on the podcast over the years, so we look to unpack it a little more this week. How does it feel, how does it happen and what can we do as coaches to help assist in the development of the players, when we all live in a world where winning is prioritised by so many? Any coach shoutouts you’ve got, send them through and be sure to check out the Talking Split pages on Instagram and X!

Back for another block of podcasts, and we are discussing some of the things that might go unnoticed from players or parents, about the coaches. There is a whole dynamic that some may not be aware of and can be explored to create a more harmonious environment for all involved. Along with building resiliency in athletes, and the U18 Nationals, there is something for everyone this week!

It’s taken us a while, but we’ve finally got Besty back on the podcast this week and the carrot we had to throw out there was talking about one of his favourites – Shell Drill. It’s a staple of most team training sessions, with onball defence, offball defence and all kinds of cutting and screening options being worked on, so we discuss the different areas of focus, why it’s important and some of the different ways you can run it at your training session.

Joined on the pod this week by one of the other people that make Nick has to answer to, Luke Brennan (Trig) the South East Melbourne Phoenix Assistant Coach. Hailing from WA, we talk about his pathway in coaching, the things he believes in as a coach, NBA Summer League, his Boomers experience and advice for those younger in their coaching with aspirations to progress. Lots of takeaways for coaches of all levels regardless of where they are on their journey!

One of the things coaches discuss the most, is how to get the ball inbounded against pressure defence. So we’ve got you, just over an hour of inbound talk for this week! Actually, with the multiple tangents we go on, it’s probably a fair bit under an hour, but either way, lots of discussion points to hopefully help with one of the bigger pain points we deal with as coaches. If you’ve got a Coach Shoutout, let us know and we will start building up a bit of a list to get through again.

We asked, and you delivered! We are back for a second round of parent questions, and how they apply to the coaches out there. Team Selection, Structures for development, and even how to choose the correct shoes feature in this week! Coops fills us in on his Japan trip, we have a Coach Shout in there (keep sending those in), and we have our Social Split Talk back for another week too.

Fortunate to be joined this week by Michelle de Highden to discuss her coaching journey, and in particular the work that she has done with Fixing the Leaky Pipeline project. Something in this one for coaches of all levels, ages and genders as we unpack the experience for everyone in coaching, and where it can go in the future to create the best environment possible.
For more information on “The Leaky Pipeline”, head here: https://www.ais.gov.au/coach-development/wihpc
For women interested in applying for the Accelerated Women’s Coaching Program, head here: https://hubs.la/Q039mv

Over the years we have had heaps of questions from parents that listen to the Talking Split podcast, so whilst it’s a pod for the coaches we’ve thrown this one open for some of the questions we’ve had loaded up, along with Coach Shoutout, Book Club and Social Split Talk all in the podcast. We’ve still got a few questions we need to get through, so stay tuned for a part 2 on this one, and any questions parents might have – hit the Talking Split socials and send them in!

Whilst it seems like we have been going for a while, believe it or not we aren’t too far off the season actually starting for junior and senior representative basketball. This week we go through some of the important things that all teams should have in place before the season begins, and unpack how to many the most of your time throughout. And a tip for everyone, work on your passing or you will be hearing from Jenna!

Back for another year of the Talking Split pod, and we are starting on the topic of Coach Wellbeing. We can’t have our coaches not in their best shape to help our players, so the team highlight some areas where we as coaches can be better and focus on to start the year. Are going to do a whole month on Coach Wellbeing this year, so if there are any specific topics you want discussed around that, be sure to send us a message on socials!

It’s our last pod for the year, and to make up for it, we doubled the length to a 2 hour Mailbag extravaganza! All the segments are in play this week, Coach Shoutout, Book Club, Social Sightings, multiple story times, oddly enough no Stoicism, but the answers to a heap of questions that the listeners sent in, including is Die Hard a Christmas movie, favourite BBQ side dishes, and even real basketball questions like Team Balance, Switching off after games, and favourite coaches to watch.
Huge thanks to all the listeners over the year, and what better time than no...

When you talk Strength & Conditioning in the Basketball Victoria space, Durham McInnis from Core Advantage springs to mind straight away. We put it out to the listeners last week to come through with any questions and they delivered! We talk about the need for a good hinge, plyometrics, the best warmup in a short amount of time, some myths around strength training and the ice bath and sauna landscape. 

We are getting into that time of year again as the competition winds down, and there is some downtime coming up – but only for some! This is also the time of year where players and coaches get to work on various areas of their game, and try to make their good, great and work on some of their weaknesses. We cover off what a workout should look like, content, time, and some things that can make a big impact in the off season.

One of the age old debates in coaching, is do you teach the system first, or the skill set? And even then, do you start with the offence or the defence? How do you become time efficient, over the course of a season with limited practice time? We bounce around a few of these topics throughout the pod this week, in the hope that we make it easier for the coaches, but still remaining fun and enticing for the players.

There was a warning before we started the pod this week that this may not have been a good idea, and what was supposed to be a podcast coaching behaviours, wasn’t. What we are left with though, is an hour of varying thoughts on coaching, winning, development, how the game is played and coached, and nearly any other topic or tangent we ventured down. In theory we will get to the behaviour topic in a few weeks time, just maybe not with this group of coaches involved on the pod…

It’s the time of year where we focus on the other orange circular object and talk about the things that can scare us as players, coaches and spectators. We enlist the help of some of our loyal Talking Split listeners who sent in their ideas for the pod combined with some of our own thoughts on the subject. Reminder that we have our Mailbag podcast coming up soon, so any questions for the team, just send them in!

On the back of sometimes feeling we are an imposter last week, a little bit more self-reflection this week as we look at how coaches can progress with their own coaching. We discuss how it can change over time, some of the more underrated ways to improve, and some things we wish we knew when we first started out coaching. Far less Oasis references, but plenty of “Story time” and “Aurelius” drops in there to keep you occupied all the same!

A topic this week that raises the question for a lot of coaches, am I good enough to do this? Imposter syndrome is something that a lot of coaches go through, trying to work out if they fit, if they’re the right person, or even if they’re doing a good job with the team they’re coaching. We look back through some of the examples we’ve had in our own coaching, but also some tools and strategies that we have used to work through this. Bonus points for every Oasis song reference you can find – this will make more...

Busy time of year for everyone in the coaching world (is there ever a time where it isn’t?), with selection trials happening around the state, and new teams being formed. As coaches, we have the difficult task, of knowing what the first things are that we can do with our teams and parents to tip off on the right note. We discuss parent meetings, training content, and getting everyone on the same page. It’s also the podcast debut for Nick Mihai, who’s recently joined Basketball Victoria in a Basketball Development Officer role – doubling the coaching department, to 2 people!