Mike Neighbors

Mike Neighbors
LinkTree:  https://linktr.ee/NBNwithDA
 
Host: Debbie Antonelli
  
Today’s episode the Nothing But Net with Debbie Antonelli Podcast we call the hogs with a big “Woo Pig Sooie” and welcome University of Arkansas Women’s Basketball Head Coach, Mike Neighbors. 
 
Debbie talks to Coach Neighbors about his unique offensive coaching mindset, which he attributes to needing to be different and do things a certain way to compete in the Pac-12, when he was the head coach at the University of Washington and now as the leader of the Razorbacks. 
 
Coach Neighbors talks about how he got his start in coaching as a high school girls coach who taught Chemistry and Biology and went 1-24 his first year. He also talks meeting Coach Gary Blair during a round of golf and that meeting led to him eventually joining Blair’s Arkansas staff as Director of Operations and from there he became assistant coach to Susie Gardner with the Razorbacks, and then as assistant to Kevin McGuff at Xavier before becoming the head at Washington. Every move he made was done so with the hope of one day, becoming the head coach at Arkansas, in mind. 
 
He talks surrounding himself with greatness, where credits Coach Blair, Gardner and McGuff with helping him along his coaching journey. 
 
Debbie and Coach talk a little more about his system. One that is fun to play in and players/recruits are drawn to. He talks about the importance of having an identity and their system is built around an identity that players want to be a part of. 
 
This episode ends with a great discussion on education and growth. Understanding that in the game of basketball, ‘we are not playing chess, because there are no identical pieces.’ Coach Neighbors also gets into the importance of expanding your knowledge by reading, listening to podcasts, gaining a ‘rhythm to life.’
 
All of that and more on an awesome episode!

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