Frank Martin

Coaching Philosophies & Developing Toughness

3/20/20

I. Q & A Intro

Have you Changed?

● No he hasn’t changed his Coaching Style at all.

● Where does he see change is in his need for patience. There is so much change for players in the High
School, AAU and Parenting scene that it has made his job more challenging. Parents wanting to
remove any sense of disappointment from their lives - that it has caused changes.

● He has to comprehend how they want to learn and by doing that it shows them he cares how they like
to learn.

Player Changes....
● Coaches need to earn the players trust as well. You need to give them your time to show them you are
worthy of their trust.

● Players are better informed than ever before.... Due to Social Media. He uses Social Media to better
understand those players before they even get to campus.

Raised an Interesting Point about Relationships....

● If a player is only playing 8 mins a game there will always be someone whispering in their ear that you
don’t understand them. And if there is any lack of trust in those relationships.... They’ll believe them.

Do You have a Social Media Policy?

● He doesn’t think “taking it away” helps, you need to “Help them Navigate it” more effectively. It’s such a
big part of their lives it’s almost impossible to “take it away”.

● He stresses the importance of having 1/1 conversations if players are expressing themselves
inappropriately.

● He would prefer to take this individually, “deal with mistakes”..... Rather than have rules for everything.

● Privileges vs Rights..... He sees this as a basic Rule of Thumb. If players express themselves in
inappropriate ways then they lose the “privilege” of having it.

Social Media in the Locker Room

● Your Parents and Former Coaches, and Former Teammates are not part of this locker room.

● Any conversation that is had in that area needs to stay there.

II. Establishing Culture

How do you establish culture?
● It starts on you first day of the job

● You don’t recruit the players to create the culture, you are the one that sets the culture.

● The real goal is to get to the point where the players have bought into the culture and then when new
players come in they are ones that are enforcing the cultural norms with them.

● The quicker you respect those values, the louder your voice can become.

Boston Celtics Example:

● They don’t care what rookies think...
● They want you to understand the way in which they do things.
● Once you bought into their culture your voice can become louder within that culture.

Is it harder to establish Culture with Today’s more transient nature to rosters?

● Yes, because you are a one man show until you can get a group of guys to believe in it, live by it & fight
for it.

● What you can never ever do is you do is let go of the rope when it comes to those things that
you want your program to be about. There are certain things that we stand for that should be non
negotiables.
○ One of his big things is HONESTY.

Caretakers of your Culture Graduating....

● Sometimes you have new players who struggle to handle the level of responsibility that graduated
players held.

● It is important in some years to be unforgiving when it comes to your program’s standards. If there are
players that are not rising to their responsibility then you need to be the one to continue to drive it.

● They’ve had 6 consecutive winning seasons - the first time since the 1970’s and that Culture has been
a big part of it.

Recruiting to your Culture

● Recruiting players that fit your program is perhaps the most important thing. This isn’t an easy thing
though.

● He thinks there is a change in honesty..... Felt as though when he first started people told you the truth
about players, but today people will lie because they want to be the one that helped that player get that
scholarship.

III. Defense

What do you want on defense (on the Macro Level)? How do you get there?
● When you force people to defend you are forcing your team to trust in each other. You can’t play
defense 1/1 so there has to be trust in the teammates playing defense.
 ● His defense is forcing players to play extremely hard.... So they need depth in their roster. And he
thinks that helps his roster. More people know they are going to get in the game.

● I do not believe that athleticism is the determining factor in how good you can be the defensively. He
believes it is your unwillingness to give in.
○ You need to be able to guard your man 1/1
○ No worries about right / left / etc - just need to learn how to keep their man in front of them
○ Plays a lot of 1/1 to do this
○ Will then build out 2/2 and then 3/3

Defensive Points:
➔ They want to challenge every dribble, every pass, every shot in the half court.
➔ “Influence the ball away from the middle”....
➔ Does Not preach baseline.... Does not want players to open their hips.
➔ “Don’t get Beat Middle”

Thoughts on “Options”....
● Many times coaches are giving 19 years olds freedom to make decisions which they are not prepared
to make.
○ Give them if/then decisions

IV. Defensive Drills

Defensive “Guard the Ball Drill”

1. Players back to back at the foul line
2. Offense runs to half court to get ball
3. DEfense runs to baseline then out to defend
4. GOAL is to “Level off the Ball” without Fouling

Another 1/1 “Guard the Ball” Drill

1. O dribbles to the sideline then to the rim
2. X Closes Out on the Ball
3. NO STRAIGHT LINE DRIVES, NO LAY UPS, & NO RHYTHM SHOTS

● Teaching Point - get your nose on their inside hip. The hip closest to half court.
V. Thoughts on Zone Defense

● Wants his team to be a hard nosed man to man team.

● Talked about how his first year their culture was just not in a place where they could play extended man
to man in games - so he would often go to a 32 zone. They worked hard on it in practice, but felt a duty
to help his team win in games.

● Feels like it’s necessary for coaches to have a “change up”.

John Calipari Story - Coach Martin complained that whenever he goes zone someone hits a three.... Calipari
asked what he does when guys make threes vs his man.... He responded that he adjusts. Then Coach Cal
responded... well then adjust your zone.

“On defense it is a game about Gaps” -

● We do not want the ball to split two defenders
● If we keep pressure on the basketball it makes this process more difficult.

When do you know it is time for Adjustments?

● You need to prepare your team so that they already know what you’re thinking. They feel the kinds of
adjustments that need to be made in the game.
 ● It’s sort of a Cat & Mouse Game...

VI. Final Q & A Session

What would you like to see High School Coaches develop in players?
● Hold their Feet to the Fire - too many kids get up and leave when it is difficult, too many leave when
it's not about them.

Players Parents talking badly about the Program... How do you handle it?
● He’d allow parents to come to the practices....Made it clear that this was his teaching ground and they
were there to observe not be involved.
○ He thought it let them see kids succeed or fail
○ Thought it helped them support the team over their own kids

● He would have a preseason meeting with their parents that they would have to attend.
○ Made it clear that in a Basketball Sense - it needs to be support for the team first and then the
player second.

● Transferring because a relationship is irreparable = that’s one thing. But transferring because things are
difficult is not something he is comfortable with.

Clear Cut Program Rules

1. Be on Time
2. Be Prepared Mentally and Physically
3. Give Every Ounce of Energy you Have