“THE TRIPLE DOUBLE” #12 WITH ROB BROST, BOLINGBROOK (IL) HIGH SCHOOL BOYS’ BASKETBALL HEAD COACH – EPISODE 983
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The 12th episode of “The Triple Double” with Rob Brost, Bolingbrook (IL) High School Boys’ Basketball Head Coach. Rob, Mike, & Jason hit on three basketball topics in each episode of “The Triple Double”.
- Rob’s experience coaching at a camp in Bormio, Italy
- The NCAA Academy in Rock Hill, South Carolina that Rob and his son Trey attended
- AAU Reflections from Trey’s Under Armour Tournament in Atlanta
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What We Discuss with Rob Brost
- Rob’s experience coaching at a camp in Bormio, Italy
- The NCAA Academy in Rock Hill, South Carolina that Rob and his son Trey attended
- AAU Reflections from Trey’s Under Armour Tournament in Atlanta
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THANKS, ROB BROST
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TRANSCRIPT FOR “THE TRIPLE DOUBLE” #12 WITH ROB BROST, BOLINGBROOK (IL) HIGH SCHOOL BOYS’ BASKETBALL HEAD COACH – EPISODE 983
[00:00:00] Mike Klinzing: Hello and welcome to the Hoop Heads Podcast. It’s Mike Klinzing here with my co-host Jason Sunkle and with Rob Brost, Head Boys’ Basketball Coach at Bolingbrook High School in the state of Illinois, Triple Double number 12. Rob, we have made it to one year.
[00:00:21] Rob Brost: That’s, it’s crazy, but I love it. I love each one and they keep getting better and better.
[00:00:26] Mike Klinzing: Absolutely. All right. We are going to talk today about some of the recent experiences that you have had this summer basketball wise. We’re going to start with your trip over to Italy. and coach and teach the game to some young Italian players. So talk a little bit about that experience, take it in whatever direction you want.
[00:00:52] Rob Brost: Yeah. I mean, this is the third year in a row that they’ve asked me to do this. And so it’s, it’s been really a unique experience. And one that I’m kind of used to now both Trey and I went, my son, who’s going to be a junior in high school. And so what we do, we fly into Milan and then they pick us up and then we go up into the, to the Alps actually.
To a town called Bormio and you know, they have the biggest camp in Italy run by Airedom Academy. And so we’re there for a week. Camp starts Sunday night and is over Saturday morning. We work with the kids all week on various aspects of the game. And it’s been really, really a great experience for me, both professionally, but also getting to spend some time with Trey in that atmosphere where he can help me demonstrate and do some of the things and, and really participate in the coaching side, actually, of the game.
Instructing those kids. And he’s made some lifelong friendships from kids there that are still connecting with him on social media. And then obviously I’ve made some lifelong connections there over the past three years of doing the camp. So it’s been a great experience. You know, all the way around, not only for me personally and professionally, but also for my son to be involved in it as well.
So it’s been really, really a special thing.
[00:02:27] Mike Klinzing: Has Trey thought at all in these experiences about coaching as a profession? Have you and I, you and him talked about that at all at this point?
[00:02:36] Rob Brost: I mean, we’ve talked about it a little bit. I try not to push that just like I try not to push his plane even. And so if he brings it to me, then obviously we’ll talk about it, but he.
Really enjoys it and they treat him so well. He’s almost like a mini superstar in the town of Borneo, when we walk the little village streets and, and go to shops and all of that stuff. A lot of people recognize him. Know him, get pictures with him all of those things. So it’s, it’s really, really been an experience.
Any autographs yet, Rob? Any autographs? The autographs as well. You, you’d be shocked how many autographs that both of us signed at the camp. So. It’s you know, a situation that’s been very good to us, but hopefully even more importantly, it’s been good to the kids that attend the camp.
[00:03:31] Jason Sunkle: I just got a question, Rob. Could you turn this into an NIL deal when he gets to college?
[00:03:36] Rob Brost: I’m not sure. But the fact that they you know, pay for a lot of his expenses and then obviously all of mine as well. So. That part is really good. So I don’t know if we could turn it into that, but it’s kind of already doing some of that.
[00:03:50] Mike Klinzing: There you go. Tell people how you first got connected with this opportunity.
[00:03:55] Rob Brost: The people from Italy that run the camp had some connections with USA Basketball and asked for some recommendations and fortunately enough for me Coach Showalter recommended me to them. And then the rest is kind of history.
It’s unique getting a call from Italy on your cell phone. And then you, you can’t really understand what they’re saying, but you want to do the camp, but you don’t exactly know what it entails. And so the first time was very unique, I would say, but once you get there and the basketball starts to happen basketball is kind of a universal language and everybody kind of knows what you’re talking about when you get there, but they treat me so well there.
And it’s been such a great experience. You know, I look forward to doing it every year and Lord willing, and they keep asking me, I’ll keep doing it for sure.
[00:04:54] Mike Klinzing: Do they give you an idea of what they want you to specifically teach, or is that something that you can kind of have free reign to teach whatever you want within the confines of the structure of the camp? What’s the preparation process like on your part?
[00:05:12] Rob Brost: Yeah, so here’s kind of the daily scenario, I guess you would say. Okay. Each morning I address the entire camp for about an hour. So there’s an hour session where I, I say demonstrate, but that’s mostly Trey, right? So, so for example, Monday we’ll cover shooting in the morning session in front of all, all, all the campers.
So that’s 200, 250 kids. That are there. And so that’s kind of like a mini clinic, right? For about 50 minutes to an hour. And then I’ll work with subsequent, subsequent groups after that session is over with doing some of the things that I presented in the morning, if that makes sense. And then so teams are split by age group and those, those types of things.
And I’ll work with different age groups throughout the day and then into the evening on some of the things that. You know, I present it on in the morning. And so Tuesday might be ball handling or a ball handling and passing. Wednesday might be short sighted games something of that nature. And so then we progress into other things as the week goes on.
And so you know, I present to the camp in the morning and then I work with groups of 15 to 20 in each age group as the day goes on. And then try to work with as many of the campers as I can you know, throughout the day. So it’s really good. It’s really been one of the most unique and fun experiences of my entire career, to be quite honest.
[00:06:51] Mike Klinzing: Are you sitting down and talking with coaches as well? Like in the evening, are you kind of going through and, and talking to those guys and trying to pick their brain while they’re picking yours at the same time?
[00:07:03] Rob Brost: There’s all kinds of that happening throughout the camp. And so I might get to a late afternoon session at five o’clock, say.
And then the coach might say, Hey, instead of doing shooting, can you do three on three actions or something like that? Something they want to know or learn about and, and how we do it. And so they’re, they’re so attentive now I’m talking about the coaches, but the kids as well, they’re so attentive and really.
Yearn for information, especially from American coaches and, and coaches that have coached at a high level over here. And so that’s a unique part of it. So it’s not just the same thing day after day after day. I have the freedom to kind of do. What I think the camp needs there. And then being, having been there three times now you get an idea of the skill sets of the players and kind of what levels everybody’s at.
So. You know, the first year I was a little concerned about, Hey, what will I do? What will it be? What, what’s going to happen? But now it’s, it’s pretty much second nature and they’re used to me. I’m used to them. And you know, it’s worked out really, really well.
[00:08:20] Mike Klinzing: What energizes you in a different way than what you do at Bowling Brick?
Because obviously, you’re, you’re dealing with a different level of player. It’s a different environment than what you’re typically in. So what energizes you when you go over there? Besides, obviously, you’re in a beautiful country and you’re, you’re doing something in a with, with a group of kids who are obviously enthusiastic and there’s all those pieces, but what, what, what brings you energy?
[00:08:43] Rob Brost: The relationships, right? So it’s very similar to what brings me energy here. It’s just different people, right? And so I’ll get texts or Whatsapp texts, that’s the app they kind of use in Europe, Whatsapp. And so I’ll get Whatsapp texts from kids that are at camp throughout the season.
Hey coach, what do you, what do you think about this? Remember me from camp? Those types of things. So the relationships that we’ve been able to forge there, both Trey and I, And the ability to help people that are eager to learn and do and eager to get better, not only as basketball players, but as people.
And so people ask me a lot, like, well, what’s it like? What’s the skill sets like? Like how, how good are they? Or what, what is it like? I would say the skills in general, our kids by age level now, I’m not talking to everyone, but by age level, our kids are a little bit more skilled. Than they are in, in, in Italy I’m talking about now, but the year, the yearning for learning is, I would say much higher there.
They take things very literally and maybe that’s part of the language gap or barrier that, that we have a little bit. But you know, they take things very literally and they do exactly what I tell them. So even if they have a layup during a drill, they’ll do the drill like they’ve been shown to do the drill, even if there’s a layup open.
And so those are some of the things we have to work on and, and get kind of pounded out of their head rather than in and whereas here, if a kid has a layup, he doesn’t care what the, what the drill is, what the, what the coach says, he’s going for the layup and those are Extreme examples, but you get the idea of what the kids are like, but everybody is super nice.
Everybody is very laid back. Trey and I joke all the time when we walk out of the hotel, some of the hotel rooms still have the keys in the hotel doors with the people stuff inside of it. And so everyone trusts everybody. There’s no there’s no crime there. I have yet to see a policeman. Or any type of law enforcement officer in Borneo ever in the three years that I’ve been there.
And so it’s, it’s really just being around different people in a different culture, but Still around basketball is, is what’s really great.
[00:11:16] Mike Klinzing: Have you picked up any Italian phrases, any basketball coaching phrases?
[00:11:21] Rob Brost: We have now this is not a basketball phrase per se, but we say tutu bene. And that means like, how are you doing?
Are you doing good? Like, are you having a good day? And so we say that, Trey and I sometimes say that to each other even now. Like, tutu bene? Like, are you doing all right? You having a good day? And so you know, that’s one of the phrases and that’s obviously I speak only English and so they have to kind of adjust to me.
And so, Most of the kids understand English and at least the basketball phrases that go with that. But we’re trying to pick up you know, little phrases here and there. But tutu bene is is one that we, we use even around the house here now. So that’s kind of fun.
[00:12:09] Mike Klinzing: You have a restaurant that you go to every year? Do you have a favorite now?
[00:12:13] Rob Brost: We do. It’s actually a steak place there, but they serve these great Italian steaks there. My son loves steaks.
[00:12:21] Jason Sunkle: So do you send pictures to Showalter?
[00:12:23] Rob Brost: We have before. So he’s been there as well. Not to the exact same restaurants, but he’s, he’s been to Borneo as well. So it’s good.
So some of the people know him and know me as well. So it’s, it’s been really, really fun experience.
[00:12:39] Mike Klinzing: To be able to take basketball to a different culture, to a different country. I’m sure just from a standpoint of thinking about basketball, we always. I guess consider it to be a global game, but for you to actually be able to see that, Hey, here’s this game of basketball that you and I talk all the time on here, Rob, about just how good the game of basketball has been to us, to our families, to the people around us, to, again, it’s the key to everything that I’ve done and become and am in my life.
I could tie it all back to basketball and to be able to see that in another country, I’m sure just makes you, again, just think about and appreciate what the game has done for you, but also what it’s doing around the world to just make people’s lives better.
[00:13:30] Rob Brost: Yeah. It’s unbelievable. And it’s, it’s really a blessing for both Trey and I, but also hopefully for the kids that are there and then the coaches as well.
We do every, every time I go there, one of the nights we’ll stay up with the coaches, I’ll present something to them and this’ll be like from. 9 p. m. and sometimes it’ll go till 1, 2 a. m. or we’ll just be going back and forth. It’s just me and the coaches back and forth, just chalk talking. And it’s funny how some of the same, not issues, but some of the same things that we kind of debate, they want to know about too.
Like somebody asked me, are you inside pivot foot or shooting foot? What, what do you do? And so the basketball. Brings us together in a way that maybe a lot of other things can’t, right? And so it’s really, really fun. And to be able to experience the whole thing is great. Even with the food and the the three course meals and the siestas during the day, like all of that is true, like from two to four, you don’t do anything there.
You don’t. You just relax. That’s how it works. We even tried to go to the grocery store, Trey walking. Trey and I walked. The first year we went, I said, let’s just go get some snacks for our room. And we went because we didn’t have camp during 2 to 4. So I was like, let’s go. Well, we got to the little grocery store in town and it was closed from 2 to 4.
So you, you just, you just make adjustments to what the culture is. And it’s so unique. I told you about the hotel rooms. Some people just leave their doors wide open. I shared with you the lot, the keys being in the door. Some people just leave their door wide open. Their stuff is in there. And no one bothers anything.
It’s such a different culture and feel. On n the last day of camp, just something like this would never happen and all the kids bring all of their bags downstairs in the hotel and they put them outside the hotel, outside. All their stuff. And then we go to the gym for six hours and then we come back and everybody’s stuff is still right there and they just grab their stuff and then they get on the bus or however they got there, get on the thing with their prayer that none of that would ever happen like that.
Here, everybody would be worried about their stuff getting stolen. What, but there it’s the exact opposite of that. They trust everybody. No one is wanting, you know what I’m saying? So it’s just really, really a great, great atmosphere. And obviously I’m sure all of Italy is not like Bormio. And when you get to Rome and more Westernized places, I guess, or touristy places, that’s not the case, but.
In the town that we’re in it’s so unique and so it’s like a village. It’s just like a small village. And so that’s really, really fun. And it’s really, really great for me to see. And then for Trey to see as well. And there’s no, there’s no bugs, there’s no screens on any of the doors because there’s no bugs anywhere.
It’s just, you can’t even describe it.
[00:16:49] Mike Klinzing: I’m going to give you a book recommendation, Rob, and it’s not just for you, but it’s for our audience because I think it fits here. And we’ve had the author of the book on, it’s called How Basketball Can Save the World, 13 Guiding Principles for Reimagining What’s Possible.
And it was written by Dave Hollander. He’s a professor at NYU and he actually has a class called How Basketball Can Save the World. But I think it’s a book that for you and for anybody who’s listening that thinks about basketball kind of on a global scale or thinks about how it impacts lives. I think it’s a book that you and anybody who’s listening who hasn’t heard me talk about it before, I think that’s a book that people would, people would enjoy listening.
I think it ties well into this, this conversation about Italian basketball and basketball around the world in general.
[00:17:36] Rob Brost: That’s great.
[00:17:37] Mike Klinzing: The Brost World Tour. Let’s continue to your next step. Let’s continue to your next stop. So topic number two, the NCAA Academy. Tell me a little bit about your experience with Trey there.
[00:17:49] Rob Brost: Man, that was great. Trey got invited to the NCAA Academy, which is the only event during that week that division one coaches can be at in the entire country. And so first, the fact that he got invited to that was, was great. And then on top of it, the fact that I got to go. And just got to go as an observer rather than a coach or, or anything was even better.
And so you know, I had heard about the NCAA Academy, obviously. But you know, I had never seen it really in action and it, they do a really, really, really good job of the organization of it, how they split the teams. It’s just first class all the way around. And they have three pathways there, the individual pathway, which that’s what Trey did.
Then they have the team pathway where they have a 15U and 16U tournament, 24 teams each, I believe. And then they had the JUCO pathway. Where JUCO kids were being evaluated as well. And so it always helps when they’re paying for the hotel, the meals, the transportation, all of it. And so it, it was really unique for me, especially to not be coaching it and in any way, shape, or form.
And so for Trey to get to participate, number one, and then for me to just observe without having to coach was really unique for me. I just got to be a dad. And so that part was really fun. And we talk about how basketball connects. I knew so many people there. So it was. It was great to catch up with a lot of people that were there and were working.
And USA Basketball is kind of runs the tournaments pathway or the team pathway that’s involved there. And so it was just really, really great for both of us again. And Trey had a really good experience. Obviously he could have played better. He could have played worse. I don’t really worry about that, but for him to be able to lace them up against 200 of the best players in the country.
That was a really great experience for him personally as well.
[00:20:09] Mike Klinzing: Do they have any educational pieces that go along with that? Talk a little bit about that side of it.
[00:20:14] Rob Brost: Yeah. So that, that’s a major part of it. So they have life skills sessions. You play in the individual pathway, you play two games a day.
And so either in between or before and after those games, you have life skills. And this is for players and for parents. We went to separate sessions. So all parents went to three sessions of life skills and all players went to three different sessions of life skills. And so for example, on the parent side one of the life skills sessions was on being eligible.
What do you need to make sure that you are NCAA eligible? You know, you have to register in the clearinghouse. You need 16 credits to graduate high school and they four of them have to be in English and so on and so forth. And so the education piece really, really important part of it.
And you have to check in and check out of your life skills piece. And if you don’t attend your life skills piece, then you cannot play in any more games. And so it was really, really well put together. And so, for example, some of my life skills that I went to, one of them was on NCAA eligibility. One of them was on gambling and then one of them was on NIL and NIL activity.
And how that landscape has all changed. And the kids had similar ones, but more designed to them on similar topics. Like I know they had one on gambling as well. They had one on NIL, but it wasn’t exactly the same as the parents, if that makes sense. So they really focused in on the groups that they were presenting to.
So the educational piece was really paramount. in the whole thing. And so, all the kids, whether they were on the individual pathway, team pathway, or the JUCO pathway, everybody had to do those life skills sessions. And what made it even more unique for us, is I had another player that was playing on a team that was there.
So, when Trey wasn’t playing, or I wasn’t at life skills, I could watch one of our other guys who was playing on a team that was there. And so it was just really, really fun and really unique and no pressure on me to really do anything of any sort except for eat $25 worth of food every meal because that was our, our allotment.
So I tried to do that and I gained a couple pounds. Not that, that’s a shock to anyone.
[00:22:43] Mike Klinzing: From the NIL perspective. Rob, what was the NCAA’s? position, what were some of the things that they shared with you as a parent? I’m just curious because the more I talk to coaches around the country, the more it becomes clear what NIL has become, which I don’t think is what the NCAA initially intended it to be.
And I don’t think it’s what Coaches or anybody else in the game thought that it was going to become, which is basically paying salaries for players is basically what it’s come down to. And I was just having a conversation. It’s funny because I had a conversation with a guy who played at Kent. He and I did not overlap at all, but he came in the year after I got there and he and I were just talking a little bit about making donations to a program for NIL.
And he’s talked to people, not just from Kent, where we both went, but to some other schools and people that he knows. And the thought process is in the past, if you made a donation, that donation might’ve contributed to a capital fund that allowed your school to build a new weight room or put, put up a new practice facility, or it helped pay for a specific amount.
And now, When you collect money for NIL, it feels like that money, like I said, is just kind of going to pay a player’s salary, so to speak. And we don’t even know, again, like, is that player going to be productive? Like they haven’t even played a game and we have to guarantee them an NIL deal. So I’m just curious, what, what did the NCAA talk about?
[00:24:26] Rob Brost: We heard a lot, and this was the opening of the NIL thing. Ever changing pending litigation. We heard that phrase a lot and we heard ever changing and even last month there was different rules than there is this month. And how there’s litigation ongoing. That’s going to change the landscape even more.
So the underlying thing that I gathered, knowing a little bit about all of these topics already being a high school coach. So I had a little I was privy, I’m privy to some of this ahead of time was that it’s ever, that landscape is ever changing. And I think it will continue to be, and I think there’s going to be pushback on both sides, meaning the NCAA trying to get more control over it.
And then the individuals, not necessarily the players, but ultimately the players, but the agents and the pushing back saying, no, you can’t do that to us. We are free to do what we would like to do. And so there was a couple of questions, even I can’t remember the specifics, but the lady from the NCAA said, I cannot answer that right now, pending litigation.
There was that phrase again. You know, it, it just seems like there’s just a push from either end of that thing, that that’s the idea I got, at least from the NCAA’s perspective, that they’re being pushed to try to put some parameters around this. But at the same time, they’re being pulled or pushed by people saying, you can’t, you can’t do that.
You can’t put parameters on it because we can do what we would like to do. And so you’re exactly right on the example that you gave when you used to give to Kent or any institution. It was probably to their general fund and it, maybe it upgraded facilities or maybe it upgraded facilities and you got two tickets to a game or whatever it was.
Now you don’t know where that’s going. And the rule that they had just passed right before I went to my life skills session was that anything over 600 needed to be like shared with everybody. And that literally had just gotten passed like a week or two before I did the life skills. So they covered that a little bit and how that’s a contractual thing and, Now it’s going to move towards the institutions can pay players, not just the collectives.
The collectives could only pay them before, but now, excuse me, the institutions can pay them directly. And so this thing I think is going and it’s got momentum, but I don’t know how it’s ever going to be stopped, to be honest.
[00:27:21] Mike Klinzing: It’s going to be stopped in the courts if it gets stopped. And I would guess that the courts are probably going to rule in favor of the freedom of players to pursue whatever deals that they want. I think that once the NCAA has let the proverbial cat out of the bag, I think it’s going to be tough to stuff that cat back in the bag through, through any means. Because I think once this thing winds its way through the court system, it’s hard to imagine that the NCAA is going to be on the winning side of any of those court cases. It’s very difficult to envision that. So…
[00:27:58] Rob Brost: I completely agree. But going back to the basketball piece of the academy, I think The NCAA did a really good job of having quality coaches there. It’s hard to kind of put together seven kids who you don’t know who are, I say a hodgepodge, but a talented hodgepodge of, of players, and then get, get to know them.
And then you got to play six games against another group of really talented players as well, and to, to coach them. So I, I think the NCAA is doing the best they can to make that. a really, really good event. And I, I’ve been doing this for on the high school side for 17 years. I have never seen so many coaches at one, at the same place.
I mean, everybody was there, but it’s the only place they could go because that’s the only place the NCAA allows them to go. So that made it completely unique as well. Which, which was good.
[00:29:01] Mike Klinzing: Where did that pool of coaches come from that were coaching the teams? Like who were the coaches? Where did they come from?
[00:29:05] Rob Brost: There were some high school coaches and then some junior college coaches as well. For example, Trey had a couple of high school coaches. And so, you know I just said hello to them. I didn’t get involved in any way, shape or form or try to influence or do anything like that, but it, it’s a tough atmosphere because it’s everybody’s kind of in it for themselves.
I guess you would say, I would say Trey’s group did a decent job of sharing and playing the right way as much as they could. They didn’t win a ton of games, but the, the way that they shared the bot, I was actually pleasantly surprised with, to be honest with you. And you know, they did a good job of splitting the teams and everybody had a seven footer or two. Some teams, depending on the numbers, had two big kids, but everybody had at least one. And so it was really good.
[00:30:02] Mike Klinzing: What was Trey’s favorite part of the event and how did he compare to slide us into our next topic, but how would he compare that to an AAU tournament with his team that he plays with all the time?
How did he feel about it?
[00:30:16] Rob Brost: I think he struggles in that environment in general, where you’re just getting kids together and you can kind of do your own thing. Just because I don’t want to say he plays right the whole time, but he’s used to sharing and not demanding shots. And this is a. Time and place where.
Maybe getting your own shot is okay every once in a while, if that makes sense because you don’t have really time. They put in a moniker of offense, of course, but like you don’t really have time to do a lot. And so I would say his favorite part was getting to play against and with some of the best players in the country.
I think that, that was really good for him. And he went from obviously he’s a little bit better than average high school player, obviously. To there, you could argue he’s average to below because he’s six feet tall and all of the things, you know most of the guys, he was one of the smaller kids there.
And you know, obviously he’s very skilled, but you know, everybody there is very skilled. And a lot of them were a lot of the guards were 6’3 to 6’7, and so that poses some unique challenges. So that part, I think, was his favorite part, was competing against kids of that caliber, and then over and over.
And obviously, he plays on a really good high school team, and he plays on a very good AU team as well. But doing it there against those players where that’s all that’s there. And that’s it. And so I think that was his, his favorite piece. And so it took him a little while. I’m just talking as a dad and a coach now for him to adjust.
to that. I mean, one of the games he had 16 points and another game he had 13, but on several of the first two or three games, you could tell he just didn’t want to make the wrong play and he didn’t hardly shoot and he wasn’t really comfortable. Once he got comfortable, then he was, he was fine. And played more towards his capability, I would say, but I could say that probably for any of the guys that were there.
[00:32:20] Mike Klinzing: Yeah, those kinds of environments are always tough to balance, right? And depending on what kind of team you get on, it’s funny because I was just before, before you and I talked, I had the coach on from Cornell, John Jakes, and he’s taking over this year and it’s going to be his first year. And he and I were talking a little bit about just the type of player that he likes to recruit.
And obviously there’s a certain profile that you have to fit in order to be able to even be considered to go play at Cornell. But he said, one of the things that he looks for is somebody who, somebody who passes the ball, somebody who’s a good passer and also somebody who’s a willing passer.
And I just said I can go back to my own experience, both as a coach and then thinking back a long time ago to when I was a player. And I think it speaks to an event like this, where you’re kind of just thrown in with guys and there’s dudes that. I can get on the court with them or have them on my team or watch them play when I walk in a gym and be out there playing with them or watching them for two minutes and know instantaneously, like, I never want to play with this dude again.
I never want this guy on my team because. Passing is only their last, last, last resort.
[00:33:27] Jason Sunkle: It happened recently too, right? Without naming names, that happened recently too.
[00:33:30] Mike Klinzing: Yeah, those guys, they’re just not fun. They’re just not fun to play with. They’re just not fun to play with. And you get an environment like, like the one that you’re describing with Trey there and all of a sudden you’re on a team and you got five dudes that are like that, it can seriously affect your, your experience in a negative way.
And conversely. You get a team of five or six guys who all share the ball and especially when you’re talking about players who are skilled and playing at a high level who are unselfish. I mean, that’s where winning basketball gets played. So it’s always interesting when you have an environment like that, which kind of supplants the pickup basketball that you and I and Jason might’ve played when we were younger, which kids just don’t do it to the same degree anymore. So it’s interesting, but
[00:34:12] Rob Brost: It is totally interesting. Kids don’t understand when. Every game has 25 Division I coaches there just because they have nowhere else to go. And people are thinking, well, this is my shot. Well, this is probably not your shot. If they if they’re not here to see you specifically, they can’t take 200 kids.
You know, playing the right way is really stands out in things like that. And doing the right things and, and making the right passes really stands out at things like that. So you know, you have to take all of those things into account as well. But overall, I’m, I’m glad that he got invited.
I’m glad that we went obviously, and it was a unique experience and for him to, to have it is, is really good.
[00:35:02] Mike Klinzing: All right. World tour stop number three, Atlanta, AAU event. Talk to me about that.
[00:35:10] Rob Brost: I mean, that was very good too. I mean, Trey obviously I know our experience because that’s what I experienced, but it was an Under Armour event that was down in Atlanta. And then obviously you got EYBL stuff going on. You got Adidas stuff going on and all close in that same area. So I think the. The people who put all these things together, having all of those things, at least within an hour of each other is really, really smart on all of their behalfs, because at least all the coaches that I talked to were going from our gym to another gym to see some EYBL stuff to the Adidas stuff and then back and vice versa.
And so it was really unique that, that that was all taking place in that area. Not unique in that way, but like smartly done and really done well. And so that too is a unique environment where you gotta pay 60 bucks to get in the door. And anybody that follows my Twitter knows that I sometimes have some feelings about those types of things, but this, I felt the exact opposite.
The facility was great. There was trainers there. There were scorekeepers. There was real referees. That’s the other thing about the NCAA Academy, I’ll say. The referees were top notch in every way, shape, or form and that helps the entire event as well. So back to Atlanta, I think for the most part, the officials were good and Under Armour did a really good job of You know, making sure the right teams were against the right teams, if that makes sense, because you don’t want to go there and have a bunch of blowouts.
Trey’s team played very well there. I would say Trey’s team is not a top 20 nationally national caliber team, but on the other hand, they’re above average, I would say. So they’re right, kind of, on the borderline of, are we an elite?
So they played very, very well there. And you know, a couple of their kids had really, really good experiences individually. And so that, that part was really good, but it’s fun again in that, that atmosphere. I did not, I don’t have to coach. I don’t have to do anything and I don’t, I’m not worried about anything.
And whether he plays well or doesn’t play well, I don’t really worry about that, to be honest. So it’s kind of like a mini vacation for us and our entire family.
[00:37:40] Jason Sunkle: I’m getting a lot of, I’m really enjoying this not coaching part of things. Yes, yes. Because it’s the first time I’ve,
[00:37:46] Rob Brost: I’ve really had been in that, been in those chairs where I didn’t have to worry about, are we winning?
How’s playing time going? How’s he playing? You know, because I’m a firm believer, all that stuff will take care of itself.
[00:38:01] Jason Sunkle: Can I ask you a question and maybe you already answered it, or in a different pod or whatever. So when you’re there and just observing, are you just sitting in a corner by yourself or are you usually…
[00:38:09] Rob Brost: I stand in the corner and I don’t say anything to anybody.
Okay. Like I might say, you’ve the mic. Come on. We need a re
[00:38:15] Jason Sunkle: the Mike Klinzing tactic where he sometimes sits on the opponents side of the court.
[00:38:20] Rob Brost: Yeah. I mean, similar to that. I’ll tell you what I don’t do anymore, but I used to just put headphones in. And hold my phone. So it looked like I was talking to someone.
So no one would come up and try to talk to me. Like I just want to watch that does that’s not as much of an issue now, just cause I just am to myself and all of those things, obviously I want our guys to play well, when I say our guys, I mean, Trey’s team and the people that are on Trey’s team.
And I would love us to win every game, but I’m not really worried about it. Concerned about it. I am not really concerned about how he plays individually. I’m more concerned about is he being a good teammate? Is he passing when he should pass? Is he shooting when he should shoot? Those types of things.
And the results of those things, I don’t really worry about. It’s funny how my thought process has completely changed from where it was when he was a little bit smaller, when he wasn’t as good.
[00:39:20] Mike Klinzing: Yeah, it is interesting. Like, I love to just, at AAU tournaments, I’m definitely a stander. So typically you have what, two or three rows of bleachers and you’ll usually find me standing behind those two or three rows of bleachers so I can make a quick escape and stay behind some of the craziness that, you And to your point, it’s like, you just, I appreciate more and more just the ability to just watch and, and enjoy and take in what it is that my kids are doing at wherever, wherever they are.
And so you don’t, to your point, you don’t always get a chance to do that, especially for you, who obviously you’re coaching at a high school team. You’re invested in that, invested in the results and invested in every one of those kids successes. Whereas typically, at least now I’ve been just a parent for a few years.
But then when I’m doing camp and it’s just, it’s nice to not have to be concerned with the whole entire picture of like, Hey, I’m running this tournament or I’m trying to coach this team or I’m doing all those things. It’s like, I’m just showing up and standing and getting an opportunity to watch.
And, and that’s really is, that really is a good feeling. I when you said about the officiating being good and that got me thinking about just some of the experiences that I’ve had over the years with AAU basketball, both locally here in Cleveland. And then when you start talking about my son’s team that went and traveled to some bigger tournaments. And I know we played my favorite tournament that we went to, and we did it with Cal. He actually played in it this year as a grad, just went and played with a team, one of his younger teammates and played in a tournament as a, as a post grad. But the Pitt Jam Fest which is always held at the convention center downtown in Pittsburgh, And they run in conjunction with the tournament.
The Hoop Group runs a referee, a refereeing clinic. So basically they have supervisors there. And then after each game, those supervisors are meeting with the officials who are officiating the games. And you think about what makes a tournament run smoothly. And obviously there’s, there’s lots of parts to it, but the officiating, if it’s good.
And you have officials who are controlling the game and, and to me, just, just running and getting in position and trying.
[00:41:37] Rob Brost: Yes. Just try.
[00:41:38] Mike Klinzing: That makes a huge difference. I think in the experience that you have as a player, as a coach. As a fan, when it comes to an AAU tournament, the quality of officiating is really, I think, critical, especially again, as you talk about higher level teams playing, obviously you need better officials to be able to control those situations.
[00:41:59] Rob Brost: Yeah, I think that’s critical. You know, just simple things like, are all the officials there on time? Are can we start the game on time and those types of things. And back to the NCAA Academy, I think the officiating was top notch. You could tell that those officials were being paid and they were being paid well because they were working and you could tell they were taking it serious.
Every single game, it didn’t matter if it was. Individual pathway game, a JUCO pathway game, or a team game. It was, they were working and they were taking it serious, what they were doing. So, I give the NCAA and USA Basketball a lot of credit for that. And then jumping back to Atlanta and the Under Armour event, I thought overall the officiating was pretty good there as well.
And so, it really kind of takes the top off of all, everything really, right? If the officials are just there and trying hard, right? And so that part was really good. And the other thing, I know I’m jumping back and forth, but back to the NCAA Academy. There were only, you, you had to have a credential to get in there.
And so it wasn’t like a bunch of crazy people in there trying to see highlight reels and a bunch of crazy cinematographers following the kids around. There was none of that. And so the whole atmosphere was more you know, just calm down. And like, everybody knew we’re here to just play ball and then have fun.
And then obviously there’s a competitive piece to it and everyone’s being competitive, but there was no craziness. There was no, like. Parents going nuts. There was, I mean, there was none of that. And so that was, that adds to the whole experience as well in a good way. And, and you know, that, that was refreshing as well.
[00:43:49] Mike Klinzing: More like real basketball as opposed to sometimes that circus atmosphere that you can get in certain AAU tournaments. I mean, ultimately, right. I mean, you, you hope that when you show up for an event that you want it to resemble real basketball. And that’s what I’ve loved about the AAU. situations that my kids have been in is the coaches that they’ve had, whether it was me early on when they were younger, or as they got older and I handed them off to somebody else, those teams were run like a real team, a real high school team, a real college team where practices were organized and planned and the kids were being taught things.
And then you go to the game and everybody’s sharing the ball. And it’s not just, Hey, one person comes down and they’re shaking and baking until they can’t score. And then they’re kicking it to the next guy and letting him do his thing. And you run into those teams, even at the highest levels, you see teams that are put together like that and play that way.
And to me, I always maintain that from a standpoint of the benefit of the player, Both just in the moment of making them a better player, but also for players who have aspirations of playing college basketball, I think it’s much, much better for the player and much easier for a college coach to evaluate a player when they’re playing on a team that resembles a real basketball team, as opposed to a team of five dudes who are all just taking turns playing one on one.
And it just, I, I wonder, and I question, and again, I probably shouldn’t because I know where it comes from. The fact that anybody would want to a themselves play on a team like that. Or B as a parent want to put your player or as a coach, a high school coach, wanting to have your player involved in.
Obviously you don’t obviously have complete control as a high school coach over what programs your players play in. But still to me I just, I don’t understand why anybody would want to play in those kinds of environments. Going back to what I said before about, it’s so much more fun to play with people who are willing to give up the ball.
And that’s what makes the game fun. It’s no fun to run up and down and just know, all right, man, I got to wait 15 seconds for this dude to dribble his self crazy. And then finally, if he can’t get a shot, then maybe he’ll pass it. We can start to play. And you know, you see so much of that in AAU, unfortunately.
[00:46:07] Rob Brost: There’s no question about that. And I think it’s just like anything you’ve had some really good coaches that do it the right way, some really good programs that do it the right way. And then you have some other ones that don’t, it’s just like high school coaches, some of them do it the right way.
And then you have a handful that don’t. And so it’s, it’s the same with anything, right? And so you know, our entire family went down to Atlanta, including my daughter, who’s like Trey’s biggest fan. She’s going to be a sophomore in college. And so she took off of her work and came with us. And so it was just a great Obviously my wife was there and you know, we kind of just like to be around basketball and be around it.
Cause that’s what we’re used to, I guess. From just growing up around it and then being around it, both my kids, even though my daughter was a dancer, she kind of grew up coming to games and going to games and she was. You know, two, three years old. And so she really loves to watch her brother play and loves to, to be involved in some of the parents started asking at the next weekend’s tournament, like, where, where’s she at?
Where’s Susie? Why, why isn’t she? Well, I mean, she has a real job. She can’t just so anyway, so that, that, that’s been fun too. So the Atlanta experience was good and they won a bunch of games and Trey played pretty well. So that. That all, that all helped the, the whole thing as well. But like I said before, I, I’m, I don’t really concern myself with how he plays.
Just that he’s being a good teammate and, and he’s carrying himself in a appropriate manner.
[00:47:39] Mike Klinzing: The Brost World Tour has returned home to Bolingbrook, Illinois.
[00:47:44] Rob Brost: I’m not going anywhere else. Not going anywhere else.
[00:47:46] Mike Klinzing: So the next time we jump on for back to
[00:47:48] Jason Sunkle: work, that’s where you’re going to work. Yes. When we jump on Monday,
[00:47:52] Mike Klinzing: I started yesterday. Although Jay, I didn’t have to go to school. I didn’t go to school today. Jay. Why is that? School’s closed. Cause there was a damage from the, from the, from the thunderstorm. So there was a part of the school was didn’t have power and whatever.
So I started yesterday and then I didn’t, then I didn’t go into that. I got to call it 4 30 AM. Hey, don’t come in. So that was, that was good. I had a. Instead of being at school all day for seven hours. I had a 30 minute staff meeting at eight 15, and then I was done for the rest of the day. So that’s the way to go to work, Rob.
[00:48:26] Rob Brost: You gonna go back? You have to go back tomorrow,
[00:48:26] Mike Klinzing: Mike. I gotta go back tomorrow. But it’s all right. Hey, I got a day and every other day plan,
[00:48:33] Jason Sunkle: It’s the other, there’s a lot of students going every other day by the end of this.
[00:48:37] Mike Klinzing: Just like your triple double podcasting every other one.
Wow, man. That’s what I’m looking for. So That’s true. Wow. It’s all, it’s all, it’s all good. So anyway. The next time we talk to Rob, we will not be talking about areas all over the country. We’ll be focused on…
[00:48:49] Jason Sunkle: I probably won’t be here based on my track record.
[00:48:50] Mike Klinzing: Yeah, based on your track record, it’ll just be Rob and I.
But anyway, Rob, again, thanks for jumping on. Really appreciate it. Triple Double number 12 is in the books. We’ll be back for lucky number 13. I don’t know, who knows, maybe we’ll still make it at the end of August. I don’t know. We kind of got delayed because Rob was out of the country and I was in Alaska and Jason was off in parts unknown.
So we’ll be ready whenever you’re ready.
[00:49:13] Rob Brost: I’m ready.
[00:49:14] Mike Klinzing: We’ll get the next one going probably sooner rather than later. So thanks to everyone for joining us tonight. Really appreciate it. And we will catch you on our next episode. Thanks.