The Practice Players Podcast: Recent Episodes
David Cantor, Nick Walters, Daniel Allen
The Practice Players Podcast features three life-long friends who are now heavily involved in the college basketball world. Each episode will feature a guest-star from within the basketball world. They will discuss their path, experiences, knowledge, and answer various questions. Each episode will also feature current coverage on the latest news, rumors, trends, and hot-topics within college basketball.
The Practice Players: Daniel Allen, Oregon Men's Basketball Manager David Cantor, The Ohio State University Men's Basketball Manager Nick Walters, UNLV Men's Basketball Walk-On
Felix Okpara is currently the starting center for the University of Tennessee Men's Basketball team. Prior to Tennessee, Felix spent 2 years playing for The Ohio State Buckeyes, where he built a reputation as one of the nations premier shot blockers. Prior to Ohio State Felix attended Link Academy and Hamilton Heights Christian Academy, and was a consensus 4 star recruit in the 2022 class. A native of Lagos, Nigeria, Felix spent his early years playing soccer before moving to The United States to pursue basketball.
Career Timeline:
1987-89 Mt. San Antonio CC (Player)
1989-91 UNLV (Player)
As a Coach:
1991-92 UNLV (GA)
1993-94 Chaffey CC (assistant)
1994-2004 UNLV (assistant)
2004-05 Utah State (assistant)
2005-11 BYU (associate HC)
2011-16 UNLV (Head Coach)
2016-17 Nevada (assistant)
2017-2021 Washington (assistant)
2023-24 Cal Baptist (assistant)
2024-Present Salt Lake City Community College (Head Coach)
Career Timeline:
2019 High School:
Team Captain & 4.1 GPA
Recruited to NCAA D2 Regis University. Two year letter-winner, 2021 RMAC All-Academic, 4x Dean’s List
Transferred to Oregon as preferred walk-on in 2021:
Played in 12 games Senior season, season high 10 minutes vs National Champion UConn.
Oregon Student Athlete Advisory Committee, 3x Dean’s List, 2023 Dean’s Award for Service Recipient, 2023 PAC-12 Male Representative at Student Athlete Leadership Forum in Baltimore. Graduated Cum Laude in Business Administration concentrating in Sports Business with 3.8 GPA
June 2024: hired as UNLV Graduate Assistant
July 2024: On staff for USA Basketball Men’s Olympic team training camp
In this episode, Chintoo recaps the NBA offseason with The Practice Players. Topics covered include NBA Draft winners, offseason trades, free agency moves, the Olympics, way too early 2024-25 predictions, and much more!
Career Timeline:
2003-06: Arizona State (Player)
2006-07: UNLV (Player)
2007: NBA Draft (undrafted)
2007-2013: Playing career with 7+ teams across the globe
2014-16: Northern Arizona (Assistant Coach)
2016-19: Oklahoma (Assistant Coach)
2019-21: UNLV (Assistant Coach)
2021-Present: UNLV (Head Coach)
Career Timeline:
Freshman Season (2023-24):
- Averaged 13.6 points (led team), 5.1 assists (led team), and 2.7 rebounds per game.
- Shot 44.9% from the field and 36.2% from three
- Named Mountain West co-Freshman of the Year as well as Second Team All-Mountain West honors
High School:
- Number 34 prospect in his class, number 8 point guard, and number 1 player in Nevada according to 247 Sports
- Led Liberty High School (Henderson, NV) to a class 5A state title in 2022, dethroning powerhouse Bishop Gorman
- Father Dedan Thomas Sr. was a standout player at UNLV from 1991-94
2023-24 (Oregon):
Averaged 7.6 points and 3.6 rebounds per game, starting in 22 of 36 games played.
Helped lead Oregon to a Pac-12 Tournament Championship and the 2nd round of March Madness.
2022-23 (Florida SouthWestern):
Played in 29 of 31 games, averaging 14.4 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.
Named an Honorable Mention NJCAA All-American
2021-22:
Played two games for St. Joseph's before transferring to Florida SouthWestern
2020-21 (St. Joseph's):
Played in 20 games, averaging 4.1 points and 2.6 rebounds per game
In this episode, Drew shares some of his favorite moments being a manager with The Minnesota Golden Gophers Men's Basketball team. Drew is a symbol of what positivity and hard work truly is, sharing his story of battling leukemia all while being a college student and working as a student manager. His powerful journey is a must hear lesson on perseverance for all.
Drew Evenson is the head student manager for the Minnesota Men’s Basketball team. Drew is currently in his second year with the Golden Gophers and is responsible for a variety of day-to-day duties. In 2020 Drew underwent treatment for leukemia and completed his treatment on February 2nd 2024.
Ben Asher is in his third season as an assistant coach with the Youngstown State men's basketball program.
He helped lead the Penguins to a regular-season conference championship after guiding the Penguins to an overall record of 24-10 and a 15-5 league mark en route to the Horizon League Championship.
The 24 wins tied the program record for most wins in a season and the 15 Horizon League victories also set the record for most conference wins.
For the second straight season, Asher was named on the Most Impactful Mid-Major Assistant Coaches in Division I Basketball by Silver Waves Media.
He helped the Penguins to 19 wins in 2021-22, which were also the most since 2000-01 and set a school record for most wins as members of the Horizon League. The Penguins also set a school record for most conference wins with 12.
In 2021-22, Youngstown State also tied the Division I record for most home wins with 13 and secured the program’s second postseason berth in three years with an appearance in the inaugural The Basketball Classic. The Penguins also won its second postseason game with a 70-65 victory over Morgan State.
Asher was also named one of the Most Impactful Mid-Major Assistant Coaches in Division I Basketball by Silver Waves Media.
Asher spent the last five seasons at Rutgers, most recently serving as the Director of Basketball Operations and Recruiting for two years. He also served three seasons as Special Assistant to the Head Coach with the Scarlet Knights.
With Asher on staff, the Scarlet Knights program has achieved new heights and, in 2020-21, qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 30 years.
Among Asher’s many responsibilities were serving as liaison to the athletic department at large, including the areas of communications, RVision, marketing, creative, business operations and facilities management.
He played an integral role in the program’s social media outreach and recruiting initiatives. The Scarlet Knights welcomed a four-recruit signing class in 2018 that included multiple four-star players for the first time at Rutgers since 2008. RU has signed four-star recruits from New Jersey in three consecutive classes, with Ron Harper, Jr. (2018), Paul Mulcahy (2019) and Cliff Omoruyi (2020) all electing to stay home.
Asher was instrumental in supervising the program’s student managers, facilitating team travel, and the development and execution of team camps. During his tenure “On the Banks,” he has aided in the resurgence of the program by helping to cultivate an environment based upon relationships and results.
In 2020, Asher was named to the NABC 30-Under-30 Team.
As Special Assistant to the Head Coach, Asher provided executive level support to Steve Pikiell, while assisting in the overall management of administrative duties and daily functions of the men's basketball office.
Prior to Rutgers, Asher spent a season serving as Director of Operations at Siena under Jimmy Patsos. The Saints posted a 21-13 overall record and competed in the CBI postseason tournament. He was instrumental in the day-to-day activities of the team, including travel, practices, meals, facility use, team camps and recruiting.
An Oyster Bay, N.Y. native, Asher spent two seasons (2013-15) in the ACC as a graduate assistant at N.C. State under Mark Gottfried. The Wolfpack advanced to the Sweet 16 in 2015, after reaching the ACC quarterfinal and advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2014.
Prior to arriving in Raleigh, Asher worked as the head student manager at West Virginia, where he earned a Regents Bachelor of Arts degree in 2013. Under head coach Bob Huggins, the Mountaineers won the Big East Tournament Championship and advanced to the Final Four in 2010, while also earning NCAA berths in 2011 and 2012.
(Pulled from Youngstown State's Website)
Wearing 3 different numbers in high school? Never taking a single campus visit to Ohio State? Announcing his commitment because of a dare with a friend? All-American candidate Bruce Thornton shares some wild stories from his recruitment process, and breaks down what has lead to an immensely successful start to his sophomore campaign.
Sophomore Season (2023-24):
•Averaging 16.9 points, 4.1 assists, 2.9 rebounds, 1.5 steals, and 0.8 turnovers per game.
•Shooting 37.7% from 3 on over 5 attempts per game
•Led Ohio State to The Emerald Coast Classic Title while being named tournament MVP
(Stats and accolades as of 12/32/23)
Freshman Season (2022-23):
•Started all 35 games as a freshman at Ohio State, averaging 10.6 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game.
•Named to the 2023 B1G All-Tournament Team
High School:
•Consensus four-star recruit and Gatorade Player of the Year out of the state of Georgia.
Michael Visenberg covers over a wide array of topics including his role with Pro Insights, who is his GOAT, and the current role length + versatility plays in the modern basketball landscape. Him and The Practice Players breakdown the start to this NBA season, debating which teams will stay hot and which will fall off.
Michael Visenberg is the Basketball Database Manager of Prospective Insight, a company that specializes in providing grassroots scouting and media coverage. He has covered events including the Nike Hoop Summit, Adidas Global Nations, the Nike Global Challenge, the Les Schwab Invitational, Border League, and the Sports Academy National Cup among many others. Born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and a graduate of the University of Oregon, he has written and covered the NBA Draft extensively and has his eye on multiple levels of basketball.
Prior to Ohio State
- Played in 34 games as a true freshman at Penn State, averaging 2.8 points and 1.7 rebounds per game, while shooting 56.9 percent from the field in an average of 9.4 minutes per contest
- Scored a career-best 12 points on a perfect 4-for-4 effort from the field while adding three rebounds and an assist against Indiana on Jan. 11
- Appeared in both NCAA Tournament games for the Nittany Lions against Texas A&M and Texas
- Was a consensus three-star prospect coming out of Cincinnati’s Archbishop Moeller High School
- As a senior at Moeller, he was a finalist for 2022 Ohio Mr. Basketball, the GCL Conference Player of the Year, the Ohio Player of the Year by Cincinnati.com and a Division I first-team All-Ohio honoree
(from OSU's website)
Danny Cooper is a basketball trainer and content creator. He has clients including Mac McClung (76ers), Brendan Hausen (Villanova), and many more. He documents his journey, using basketball as a vehicle to travel the world and inspire.
2022 AP All-American and current New Orleans Pelican EJ Liddell reflects on his time at Ohio State with The Practice Players. EJ offers some powerful advice from his own experiences for players dealing with social media threats as well as major injuries. With his NBA debut right around the corner, EJ shares what life in the league has been like and what he is looking forward to.
Career Accolades:
High School:
•2x Illinois Mr. Basketball Award Winner
•2019 4 Star Recruit
College (Ohio State):
•2x 1st Team All-Big Ten (2021 & 2022)
•Big Ten All-Defensive Team (2022)
•2022 3rd Team AP All-American
NBA (New Orleans Pelicans):
•41st pick in the 2022 NBA Draft
•Signed a 3 year deal in July 2023 after missing all of the 2022 season with an ACL injury
2022-23 (Freshman):
•Three star recruit out of Princeton High School in Cincinnati, Ohio
•Appeared in seven games in a reserve role
•Scored first career points in a win over Maine (12/21/22)
Career Highlights:
2003-07: Cincinnati Student Assistant
2004-07: Walsh Assistant
2007-12: West Virginia Assistant
2012-17: Fairmont State Head Coach
2017-Present: Youngstown State Head Coach
NCAA Division 2 Runner Up (2017)
Horizon League Coach of the Year (2023)
Horizon League Regular Season Champions (2023)
Jalen Hill was a 4 star recruit in the 2019 class, who spent the last 4 seasons playing at the University of Oklahoma. In 2019-20, Hill started in just one game and played 10.9 minutes for the Sooners. He worked his way up the depth chart, and started every game he appeared in his Junior (2021-22) and Senior (2022-23) seasons. In 2022-23, Hill averaged career highs in minutes (32.7) and points per game (9.7). Hill scored a carrer high 26 points in an upset win versus #2 Alabama (1/28/23). During this game, Hill also held 2023 #2 overall pick Brandon Miller to 4/14 shooting and just 11 points as his primary defender. In the summer of 2023, Hill elected to use his 5th year of eligibility and transfer to UNLV for the 2023-24 season.
Zach Collins is a Las Vegas Native who played at national powerhouse Bishop Gorman High School. After a stellar 2017 March Madness performance with Gonzaga, including a trip to the national title game, Zach Collins went one and done. He was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers with the 10th overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. In his 4 years with Portland, Collins was an integral part of multiple playoff teams. Prior to the 2021 NBA season, Collins signed with the San Antonio Spurs. In 2022-23 (with the Spurs), he averaged career highs in points (11.6 per game), rebounds (6.4 per game), assists (2.9 per game), and 3-point percentage (37.4%).
Coaching Background:
2022-Present – Ohio State Associate Head Coach
2019-2022 – Ohio State Assistant Coach
2017-2019 – Vanderbilt Assistant Coach
2014-2016 – Ohio State Video Coordinator
2012-2013 – Valparaiso Assistant Coach
2011 – Valparaiso Director of Operations
2010 – Valparaiso Student Assistant
Played collegiately at Valparaiso from 2005-09. Ranked among the Horizon League Top 10 in multiple categories as a senior, finishing fourth in minutes played (33.8/game), sixth in 3-pointers made (1.8/game) and eighth in steals (1.3/game). He finished his Valparaiso career 10th all-time with 130 career steals and 16th all-time with 229 career assists.
Career Honors
• Julius Erving Top 20 Watch List (2023)
• All-Big Ten Honorable Mention (2022)
• All A-10 Third Team (2021)
• A-10 All-Rookie Team (2020)
• CSC Academic All-District (2023)
• Academic All-Big Ten (2023)
Prior to Ohio State:
Played two seasons at George Washington and two seasons at Minnesota. Started 45 of the 47 games he played at George Washington, averaging 13.5 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. As a freshman in 2020-21, set a George Washington single-season record for 3-pointers made (89) and led the A-10 in made 3-pointers (89), 3-point attempts (243) and 3-pointers per game (2.8). In 2020-21, was named All A-10 third team after averaging 17.3 points and 5.2 rebounds per game
Transferred to Minnesota for the 2021-22 season and earned All-Big Ten Honorable Mention honors after leading the team in scoring at 17.5 points per game. In 2022-23, missed the early part of the season with a foot injury but finished with an average of 12.4 points over 27 games.
(Bio from Ohio State's Website)
Sean Farnham joined ESPN in 2010 as a college basketball analyst. He works as both a game and studio analyst, and contributes to SportsCenter and other ESPN shows regularly.
In 2008, Farnham began working for CBS College Sports as a basketball analyst covering the Mountain West Conference, Atlantic-10 and Conference USA.
Farnham co-hosted the afternoon drive show with Chris Meyers on Fox Sports Radio. He originally began with the network in 2004 as their lead college basketball analyst and weekend host. Farnham started his radio career in 2003 with ESPN 710 Los Angeles, where he hosted postgame shows on the Lakers, UCLA and USC and also filled in on weekday programming.
Starting in the fall of 2001 Farnham worked at Fox Sports Net/West covering everything from the Pac-10, Big West and WCC basketball, as well as NBA, MLB and college football. During his ten year run at Fox Sports Net, he won two Los Angeles based Emmy’s.
After graduating from UCLA, Farnham was an assistant coach at Pepperdine University under the guidance of Jan van Breda Kolff. The Waves finished with a 22-9 record and advanced to the NIT second round.
Farnham was a student-athlete at UCLA where he was a freshman on the 1997 Pac-10 Championship team that advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight. He was named UCLA’s Freshman of the Year in 1997, Most Improved Player in 1999 and was the 1999-2000 co-captain with Earl Watson. In his final two seasons at UCLA, the Bruins were 16-2 in games Farnham started (14-0 in the regular season, both losses came in the NCAA Championship). Farnham was also the Chairman of the Bruins Athletic Council, and represented UCLA at the Pac-10 leadership forum both of his final two years on campus.
Farnham graduated from UCLA in 2000 with a bachelors degree in history. He played high school basketball at De La Salle, the same high school as ESPN’s NBA analyst Jon Barry, in Concord, Calif. Farnham was the first to lead the Spartans to the California State Championship.
During the summer of 2011 Farnham developed a non-profit charity, Hoops from Home, which provides basketball camps and academic scholarships to service member’s children.
(ESPN Press Room Bio)
The first player from the state of Utah to play at Michigan State. Head Coach Tom Izzo has referred to him as a post player in the mold of former Spartan standout Zach Randolph. Averaged 3.0 points and 2.9 rebounds per game in 10.8 mins as a freshman (2022-23). Recorded career highs in points (12), rebounds (11), and blocks (3) in a standout win versus #23 Rutgers on 1/19/23.
Ranked No. 62 nationally, No. 9 among forwards and No. 6 in Utah. Scored 53 points and grabbed 23 rebounds and was named the Most Valuable Player at the Pangos All-American Festival in August 2021. Named the Utah 6A Player of the Year as a junior at American Fork, helping to lead the team to a 17-7 record and a state semifinal appearance. Spent a year at Coronado in Las Vegas as a sophomore, playing with Dallas Mavericks Jaden Hardy. Played his freshman year at Wasatch Academy in Utah, with current MSU teammate Mady Sissoko. Was part of a team played in the GEICO Nationals.
Jay Bilas, known for his extensive knowledge of men’s basketball and insightful analysis about the sports industry, joined ESPN in 1995. Bilas, who is featured on ESPN’s game and studio coverage, calls the top men’s college basketball games involving the nation’s marquee teams and conferences every week throughout the season. He has also been an integral part of ESPN’s coverage of the NBA Draft since 2003, providing in-depth player scouting and analysis. He is a regular contributor on several ESPN shows and platforms, including SportsCenter, Get Up! and ESPN Radio.
Bilas is a six-time Emmy nominee: Outstanding Sports Personality – Studio Analyst (2007, 2008, 2020) and Outstanding Sports Personality – Event Analyst (2016, 2017, 2019). In 2016, Bilas was the recipient of the prestigious Curt Gowdy Award from the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. The New York Times Bestselling author of Toughness: Developing True Strength on and Off the Court, Bilas also writes for ESPN.com, and was awarded the Best Column of the Year in 2007 by The United States Basketball Writers Association.
A prep All-American from Los Angeles, California, the 6-7 Bilas was a four-year starter at Duke under Mike Krzyzewski from 1982-1986. As an undersized center, Bilas scored 1,062 points, grabbed 692 rebounds, and helped lead Duke to the the No. 1 ranking, the 1986 ACC Championship and the 1986 NCAA Championship Game. Bilas’ 1986 Duke team set the NCAA record for the most wins in a single season with 37.
Drafted by the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, Bilas played professional basketball overseas, ranking among the leagues’ top scorers in Italy during the 1987 and 1988 seasons, and then in Spain for part of the 1989 season before returning to Duke in 1990 to serve as an assistant coach on Krzyzewski’s staff, while also earning his law degree from Duke Law School. While Bilas was an assistant coach under Krzyzewski, the Blue Devils advanced to the NCAA Championship Gem three times, winning back-to-back National Championships in 1991 and 1992.
Since 1992, Bilas has been an attorney with the law firm of Moore & Van Allen, PLLC, where he has specialized in commercial litigation. Bilas serves on the Board of Advisors of the John R. Wooden Award, the Board of Advisors of the Chip Hilton Award, the National Board of the Coaches vs. Cancer Organization, the Board of Advisors of the Duke Brain Tumor Center, and the Board of Directors of The V Foundation for Cancer Research.
(Bio from ESPN Press Room)
Dylan Mihalke currently serves as the Director of Analytics & Assistant Video Coordinator for the University of Oklahoma Men's Basketball team. He contributes to the rest of the Oklahoma staff in a multitude of ways, such as using video and advanced analytics to best serve recruiting, scouting, practice, game-preps, and player development. Before gaining this position, he served as a Graduate Assistant at the University of Oklahoma. Prior to his time at Oklahoma, Dylan served as a Men's Basketball Manager at The University of Iowa.
Brunk spent the 2016-19 seasons at for Butler, playing in a total of 60 games over 3 seasons averaging 4.9 points and 4.6 rebounds. He transferred to Indiana in 2019 and spent two seasons with the Hoosiers. Played his final season of collegiate basketball at Ohio State (2021-22), where he shot a career best 63% from the field. Currently, Brunk plays for Twarde Pierniki Torun in Poland. During the 2022-23 season in Poland, he averaged 9.9 points, 6.7 Rebounds, and 1.1 Assists per game.
Jacob spent three years serving as student manager for the University of Oregon Men's Basketball team. He was the head manager for the 2022-23 season. Currently, Jacob works for Open Gym Premier in Los Angeles, serving as their head of tournaments and content.
Kyle Davis has been with the Ohio State program since 2010. He began his first season as the director of recruiting & branding in 2021-22.
Davis was an undergraduate manager for four years and a graduate manager for two more. He received his bachelor’s degree in sport industry in 2013 and a master’s in sports management in 2015. Davis spent six seasons as the program’s video coordinator and coordinator of recruiting.
Davis will oversee all aspects recruiting, including planning and coordinating all on-campus visits. He also leads all of the programs social media and branding efforts.
Source: Ohio State Athletics Website
Keeshawn played 26 minutes per game across 24 games for Oregon in 2022-23, starting in 8 of them. He averaged 9.3 points per game while shooting 41.1% from the field and 35.8% from three. Prior to playing for Oregon, Keeshawn spent two seasons at Colorado. In 2021-22, he averaged 11.1 points per game across 33 games for the Buffaloes. A native of Montreal, Keeshawn represented his home country of Canada in the 2018 FIBA U17 World Cup, where his team finished in 4th place.
Caleb played for Wake Technical CC from 2016-18 and went on to play at Urbana University from 2018-20. At the start of the 2021-22 season, he began his coaching career joining Sterling College’s nationally-ranked women's basketball squad. At Sterling College, Caleb was involved with recruiting, player development, scouting reports, film breakdown and practice plans. During the 2021-22 season, Sterling College owned a 32-3 record and earned a bid to the NAIA National Tournament after securing conference regular season and tournament championships. Caleb is currently serving as a Graduate Assistant with the Illinois Fighting Illini Women’s Basketball team, where he helps the rest of the staff with personelle, film, scout team duties, and much more.
Junior Season (2022-23):
- Became one of four Ohio State players since 2000 to start the season with 3 consecutive double-doubles
- Averaged 10.8 points and 7.5 rebounds per game while playing through a major shoulder injury for must of the season
- Shot 54.7 percent from the floor
- Scored his career high of 22 points, and had 14 rebounds vs Rutgers (12/8/22)
Sophomore Season (2021-22):
- Averaged 7.8 points and 5.6 rebounds per game
- Shot a team-best 56.2 percent from the floor
- Scored a then career-high 20 points in a win versus No. 1 Duke (11/30/21)
Freshman Season (2020-21):
- Averaged 5.2 points and 3.4 rebounds per game
- Scored a then career-high of 12 points with 10 rebounds vs Cleveland State (12/13/20)
- Versus a Final Four UCLA team, Key had 11 points and six rebounds (12/19/20)
- Shot 61.6 percent from the floor
- First career start came at Purdue (12/16/20)
High School:
- Played for No. 11 Long Island (N.Y.) Lutheran High School (22-3, 2019-20)
- Was the leading scorer and rebounder with 18 points and 8.7 rebounds per game his senior season.
- Scored 25 points and had 12 rebounds in a win versus No. 2 Sierra Canyon (California)
- Made First Team All-Long Island and was a MaxPreps 5th Team All-American. Key also made the all-tournament team in three events : The 2019 Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, The ‘Iolani Classic in Honolulu, Hawaii, and The Montverde Invitational in Florida.
The Practice Players Podcast features three life-long friends and former high school teammates who are now heavily involved in the college basketball world.
Each episode will feature a guest-star from within the basketball world. They will discuss their path, experiences, knowledge, and answer various questions.
Each episode will also feature current coverage on the latest news, rumors, trends, and hot-topics within college basketball.
The Practice Players (Instagram Handles Below):
Daniel Allen @daniel.allen22
Oregon Men's Basketball Manager
David Cantor @dave.diddy
The Ohio State Men's Basketball Manager
Nick Walters @n14k_
UNLV Men's Basketball Walk-On
A native of Boston, Massachusetts, Rivaldo is in his second season at Oregon. As a Junior in 2021-22, he played in all 35 games for the Ducks. Scored a season-high 13 points in his first start of the season in a NIT round one win over Utah State. Prior to Oregon, Rivaldo spent two seasons at South Plains College (NJCAA). As a freshman in 2019-20, he played in 30 games and averaged 15.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. Additionally, he shot 42.0 percent from the floor and 33.3 percent from three. As a sophomore at South Plains in 2020-21, he was named a NJCAA first-team all-American and the Western Junior College Athletic Conference (WJCAC) player of the year. He averaged 15.2 points and 6.8 rebounds per game, shot 45.5 percent from the floor and 34.5 percent from three-point range. Rivaldo lead South Plains to a share of the WJCAC title and helped the Texans to an appearance in the Elite Eight of the NJCAA Men's Basketball National Tournament.
Colby joined the Ohio State Men’s Basketball team as a preferred walk-on freshman for the 2022-23 season, after being recruited by assistant coach Mike Netti. He logged his first collegiate minutes on November 11th, 2022 versus Robert Morris University. Prior to Ohio State, Colby spent a post grad year at high school basketball powerhouse IMG Academy in Florida. A native of Houston, Texas, Colby is a die-hard Kobe Bryant fan.
In high school, Jordan was named Mr. Basketball by the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association in 2018 and was a unanimous selection to all-state first team. He finished his high school career as the state’s sixth all-time leading scorer with 2,442 points, averaging 26.7 points and 7.8 assists as a senior. He was a 4-star recruit and a top 90 player in his class. He spent 2018 to 2021 playing at West Virginia, where he played in 94 games and started in 49 of them. At West Virginia, Jordan was a 2x Academic All Big-12 First Team player, and lead WVU in assists as a freshman. He transferred to UNLV for the 2021-22 season, and led the team in assists at 4.8 per game (also led the Mountain West in assist/turnover ratio (3.4). For the 2022-23 season, Jordan is averaging 5.9 points per game at the time of this episode recording.
Aside from basketball Jordan has amassed a large social media following, with over 500,000 followers across all his platforms, making him one of the most popular collegiate basketball players.
Niles began his playing career at Oral Roberts University in 2009. With the Golden Eagles, he was a four-year starter and appeared in the most games in program history. Niles finished his career eighth on the program's all-time scoring list and third on the three-point field goals made list. As a freshman, earned All-America honors and set the freshman single-game scoring record with 39 points. In addition to his All-America nod, Niles earned NABC First Team All-District, First Team All-Southland, Honorable Mention All-Summit, Summit League All-Newcomer, and several Player of the Week accolades over his career. After wrapping up his collegiate career, Niles played professionally overseas for five years. He played for: Poiters and Boulonge in France, Massagno in Switzerland, OKC Blue in the NBA G-League, Yokohama in Japan, and Imola in Italy. Niles served as a graduate assistant for the Oregon Men's Basketball Team from 2020-22. While with the Ducks, Niles helped with the day-to-day operations, travel arrangements, and film. Niles joined the Omaha men's basketball staff as an assistant coach in April 2022.
Nate is a student-manager for the Youngstown State University Men’s Basketball team. He coached on the 3SSB circuit and will be coaching on the Nike EYBL circuit this year. He plans on being a graduate assistant after he graduates from Youngstown State and wants to pursue coaching collegiate basketball for his career.
Justin is entering his 4th season playing college basketball. He spent his first two seasons (2019-2021) playing for the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors. His freshman season at Hawaii (2019-2020) he played in 27 games with 9 starts, averaging 8.8 points per game. During his sophomore season at Hawaii (2020-21), he led the Rainbow Warriors in scoring at 12.3 points per game and earned All-Big West honorable mention honors. Additionally, he served as team co-captain and started every single game he appeared in. After his sophomore campaign, he transferred to UNLV for the 2021-22 season. Webster averaged 5.3 points per game and shot 21 of 22 from the free throw line (95.5%), while also earning academic All-Mountain West honors. Currently in his senior season, Webster is averaging 7.7 points per game, shooting 46.7% from three, and has been an integral part of UNLV having their best start in over 30 seasons. From Dallas, Texas, Justin enjoys sneakers, fashion, and being a positive voice in the locker-room.
Peter is entering his 7th season with the Valparaiso University Men’s Basketball program. He served as a student manager from 2016-2019. From 2019-2021, he served as a graduate assistant on Valpo’s staff and was one of only 22 individuals to be named to the TopConnect Graduate Assistant Leadership Academy in December 2020. Peter is currently serving as the Director of Basketball Operations for Valpo. He handles various tasks such as developing opponent scouting reports, organizing team travel, overseeing players academic development, organizing daily team scheduling, and much more.
Brennan is from De Beque, Colorado and played high school basketball at Wasatch Academy (Utah). At Wasatch, he become an internet sensation after a dunk of his went viral on the popular social media account BallIsLife. He spent the 2021-22 season playing for Northwest Florida State College (JUCO), where he led his team to a NJCAA national championship averaging 11.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.2 assists in 33 games. Currently, he is a sophomore on the Oregon Men's Basketball team. Through his 6 games played (4 starts) for the Ducks this season, Brennan is averaging 8.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 32.3 minutes per game.
Tyler has a vast amount of basketball experience at such a young age and has worked at every level from high school to the high major Division 1 level. He started writing for ButlerHoops.com at age 13, where he covered virtually anything related to Butler Men's Basketball. From 2016-2018, he was a student assistant at Roncalli High School in Indianapolis, Indiana. From 2018-2022 he was a student manager at The Ohio State University. His senior year at OSU he was head manager, responsible for a number of tasks including game reports, practice set up, live-coding, and overseeing a group of 15 student managers. Currently, Tyler is in his first season as a Graduate Assistant for the Illinois State Men's Basketball team.
The Practice Players start this pilot episode discussing the purpose of the podcast and why they felt the need to create a podcast.
David, Nick, and Daniel then cover how the three met each other and go roundtable sharing their personal stories of how they ended up with the programs they did. Furthermore, The Practice Players dive into their future ambitions within the basketball world.
To end this short introduction, The Practice Players lay out what future podcast formats will look like, what to expect from guest-stars on the podcast, and how to reach us on any socials.