Developing a performance pathway for British basketball – with Warwick Cann – Ep. 102

For episode 102 of the Hoopsfix Podcast, we sit down with Warwick Cann, the former Performance Pathways Co-ordinator and National Teams Director for GB and Basketball England.

Warwick, an Australian, was hired in 2009, and had a number of different roles through to 2016 focused around performance pathways and the national teams, as he sat between both the BBF and BE.

In this little over an hour conversation, we look back on his time in the UK with basketball, what the issues were, and what we can learn from them.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro
02:48 Interview start
02:55 Warwick’s background before getting involved with British basketball
05:00 The original role he applied for within British basketball
07:19 What his plans and expectations were coming into the role
09:12 His early impressions of British basketball compared to his expectations
12:52 Why there was a gap in coaches’ knowledge about the game
15:40 The ease of which clubs can get set up in the UK compared to Australia
18:28 The first thing he needed to do in his role and getting buy in
23:45 The Regional Institute of Basketball model
28:44 Is basketball in the UK made more complicated by having clubs and educational institutions?
31:04 The difficulty of relying on a volunteer workforce
39:07 The Areas of Emphasis
44:37 The need for a focus on point guard play
46:49 Whether it is disappointing the Areas of Emphasis is not used anymore
49:04 Did he think the London 2012 Olympics was going to change everything
55:36 What he thinks the Olympic legacy was
58:16 The politics involved with British Performance Basketball being a separate entity
1:05:35 If he could go back, what ]he would change to ensure there was a London 2012 legacy

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