I started playing basketball at age 6. Throughout my childhood I played on many traveling teams and at every school I went to. I played at Pasadena high school for 4 years. After I graduated I dove into the coaching world. I started with my brother who is a retired pro basketball player who played overseas for 10 years. We currently coach at play smarter basketball. A youth weekend program for ages 5 to 16. While doing that I ended up getting the head coach position at Arcadia Christian school. I also coach for another program called young kings based here in Pasadena. I have dedicated my life to coaching/ training and I always love to see the growth and development for the kids through basketball.

The best coach I have ever had was Marco chacon . He coached my traveling team when I was 11 to 14 years old. And it was the connection and impact he had on all of the kids. His personality and appreciation for the game is what made us strive to be better.

For all of the parents, I have a great gift to be able to communicate with the youth and have a great balance when it comes to coaching/training kids. Not all kids are the same so each approach is always different, so my ability to assess them to see where we start from is key. Some kids are shy but that’s ok. I understand how to create challenges through basketball to have them break through that shyness and be comfortable. Furthermore, I believe balance is the most important when it comes to coaching/training young athletes. I always like to find that middle ground when training. You never want to be to easy on them but also never too hard either.

I have been coaching for about 7 years now and I have coached many different kids from ages 5 all the way to adults. I had the opportunity to help train retired NBA player Glenn Robinson jr. Who retired but just recently made a comeback. We did 12 training high level training sessions and he is currently now in the g-league. Coaching is my passion especially the youth, I love to see development and growth when the kids work hard at what they do.

The way I can help someone improve there game is by finding what skill they need help with. For example if they are very skilled with dribbling with there right hand and not with the left, I would then implement only left handed drills according to their needs. Identifying weaknesses and creating games and challenges until improvement is shown.

A typical training session would consist of a quick evaluation of whoever I am working with. A few questions of how many years experience and their age. A session would be from 1 hour to an hour and 15 minutes long. 5 minutes warm up, 10 minutes ball handling, 15 minutes skill work utilizing cones and pads if necessary. Water breaks throughout the session. 20 minutes of shooting drills. Last 10 to 20 minutes will be identifying what area needs improvement then working on it.