Start with a master plan
Mike Zeppel's framework: before the season, map everything you need to teach across four columns — offence, defence, special situations, and fundamentals — and list every specific teaching point under each. Tick them off as you cover them. Most coaches discover they're trying to cram in more than they have sessions for; the plan forces the useful decision — cut what matters least and do the rest well.
The one-minute explanation rule
Dr Bubba Spillane's research-backed finding: the attention window for a drill explanation is about one minute — shorter than most coaches think. The structure that works:
- ~1 minute to explain it, simply.
- ~3 minutes to watch them attempt it, without intervening.
- ~30 seconds for a single teaching point — the most important correction, not five.
- Repeat.
Talk less; let them do more. Every extra minute you spend explaining is a minute they're not playing.
Be comfortable with mess
The hardest discipline in coaching is doing nothing at the right moment.
"If you intervene on every mistake, athletes stop thinking. They start waiting for you to think for them." — Dr Bubba Spillane, Talking Split (Season 5)
Take the breath. Step back. Give the athlete the chance to recognise and fix the problem before you jump in. Productive struggle is where the learning actually happens — a tidy, error-free session often means everyone's just doing something they already know.
Stop saying "does that make sense?"
Athletes say "yes" regardless — the question is for the coach's comfort, not their understanding. Replace it with checks that actually reveal whether it landed:
- "Tell me back what we're doing."
- "Show me."
- Name a player and have them explain it to the group.
A few session-design habits
- Open with a short defensive-habits block (say 10 minutes) every session, so defence is never the afterthought it usually becomes.
- Introduce concepts in 2v2 before 5v5 — let athletes discover the reads in a smaller, simpler space first.
- Set yourself a three-minute no-intervention rule per drill to break the habit of over-coaching.
- Review the master plan at the end of each week and mark off what was actually covered.
The one idea above all
The session is where philosophy meets practice. A plan you genuinely work — explain briefly, watch, give one cue, repeat, and let the mess do its job — develops players faster than a busy session full of coach talk. Plan the work, then work the plan.
From the book · Chapter 5
Part of the Talking Split Unofficial Book
This guide distils Chapter 5 of The Unofficial Book — "Designing the Session." The full book covers it alongside ten other chapters on developing the athlete, the craft of coaching, and the game.
Read the book →Unofficial fan-created resource. Not affiliated with or endorsed by Basketball Victoria. All content based on the Talking Split Podcast. Full credit to Rob Calder, Mike Zeppel, Justin Shuler, Ash Arnott, Zoe Carr, Darren Best, Nathan Cooper-Brown, and all guests.