Basketball Podcast with Auburn Head Coach Johnny Harris

Introduction

• Coach Johnny Harris' achievements at Auburn:
  • First season: Doubled win total, three victories over nationally ranked opponents
  • Second season: Finished with winning record, advanced to second round of Women's National Invitational Tournament
• Extensive background in coaching:
  • Former assistant coach positions at Texas, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi State
  • Numerous NCAA tournament appearances and one National Championship

Coaching Experience

• Worked with notable coaches:
  • Hall of Famers like Gary Blair, Vic Schaefer
  • Started career at junior college level
• Approach to becoming a head coach:
  • Waited for the right opportunity
  • Enjoyed being an assistant but was prepared by mentors

Auburn Program Development

• Recent successes:
  • First back-to-back SEC wins in four years
  • Importance of celebrating small accomplishments
• Challenges faced:
  • Injuries to top scorers
  • Young team with many freshmen contributing
• Philosophy: Marginal gains for continual improvement
  • Building culture and finding the right players

Coaching Style and Philosophy

• Focus on building a team culture:
  • Tough, physical, aggressive
  • No All-Americans, but fitting players to the system
• Emphasis on continual improvement:
  • "1% better every day"
  • "Doing one more"

Practice and Motivation

• Practice structure:
  • Everything is scored or timed
  • Running for mistakes as a consequence
• Self-regulating team:
  • Players take initiative to correct mistakes

Defensive Strategy

• Emphasis on denial defense:
  • Pressure on the ball, deny one pass away
  • Frontal defense against posts
• Inbound defense:
  • Disruptive tactics to prevent easy catches

Building Trust and Teamwork

• Trust and communication as key components
• Players with chips on their shoulders improving team dynamics

Recruiting and Building a Team

• Importance of fitting players to the coach’s system
• Challenges with NIL and transfer rules affecting roster stability

Personal Insights

• Importance of being prepared and having a voice as an assistant
• Transitioning to a head coach role:
  • Building a capable and cohesive coaching staff

Branding and Program Identity

• Publicly establishing a team identity
• Engaging and growing the fanbase at Auburn

Conclusion

• Excitement for the third year at Auburn
• Full buy-in from the team in terms of discipline and effort

Coach Johnny Harris is committed to building a competitive program at Auburn with a focus on disciplined, aggressive play and continual improvement.