When I got the call over the summer from John Townsend, I thought it was part of our weekly touch base as we continue to work on our online development content and eventual book project for, “Knock It Down – An NBA Shooting Coaches Guide To Shooting Straight”.
As of last November, John and I started partnering on a venture that not only combined our almost 10 years of friendship thanks to our time in Portland, but also allowed JT to share his coaching philosophy that’s spanned his now 14 years working as a shooting coach — from a 19-year old working camps in Indiana, to the NBA Development League’s go-to guy, to NBA stints in Portland, Toronto and Memphis and extensive international work.
Our plan for the 2015-16 season in Memphis: talk by phone, swap text messages, jump on Skype calls throughout the season just like we do each season, but with a little more strategy and focus. After checking up on our families and what books we’ve been reading lately, it was all shooting everything. For anyone that knows or has spoken to JT, two points quickly come to mind: 1). He’s just a super good dude who trusts in faith to carry him through all times. 2). The man calmly and realistically breaks down shooting as easy as Vin Scully calling a Dodgers game.
Knowledge for days.
So, when I got that offseason call from Coach I was both caught off guard and hip to the game. The NBA and any professional sports for that matter is like that on the inside. You just never know when you will be on the go and this was one of those times JT was on the go. Again. Never easy for a man and his family. And while leaving Memphis behind meant closing another chapter where helping make guys and a team better is always the goal, I could also tell in his voice that making the jump to working with the Philadelphia 76ers was an adventure he couldn’t wait to start.
A revamped wise front office, talented group of kids and pros and a personable head coach…it’s a good time to be a Sixer and it’s great to hear that John and his loving family are already at home in Philly (Great cameo and insight here by JT in the recent piece by The Ringer – “Meet the NBA Shot Doctors”) .
No doubt it will be an interesting season filled with growth, something I personally can’t wait to watch unfold for the organization and JT. In the meantime…
You can revisit posts we worked on below and also know that we have some things in the works we are both exited for that allows this project to dig deeper into JT’s coaching techniques and application, regardless if you are a young, experienced or veteran shooter. And as always, your comments and feedback is always appreciated as we keep it moving forward.
Stay tuned.
INTRODUCING “KNOCK IT DOWN – AN NBA SHOOTING COACH’S GUIDE TO SHOOTING STRAIGHT”
KNOCK IT DOWN: 8 YEARS IN THE NBA AND THANKFUL EVERY STEP ALONG THE WAY
KNOCK IT DOWN: MY SHOOTING COACH VOCABULARY
KNOCK IT DOWN: 3 STEPS FOR A STRAIGHT SHOOTING ARM
KNOCK IT DOWN: ON THE ROAD IN THE NBA DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE
KNOCK IT DOWN: ANSWERING YOUR SHOOTING QUESTIONS
KNOCK IT DOWN: TRACKING A SEASON AND GAME WITH “THE LIST”
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