Explore every episode of the podcast The Grounded Theory Podcast

Freeze Calipari aka Jarell Graham is currently the assistant coach at Confluence Prep Academy here in St. Louis. Freeze has coached some of the best talent St. Louis has had to offer throughout the years when they were kids and has coached multiple nationally ranked AAU teams. Being in the mix for so long, he's coached with and against lots of NBA guys like Cam Boozer, Darius Acuff Jr., Thompson twins, Cooper Flag and more. Freeze has been on the front lines in a way that gives him a really interesting perspective on basketball in St. Louis as well as nationally. We talk about the And 1 mixtape era, the differences between developing young talent vs trying to win right now, the differences in play styles from state to state, the importance of being able to effect the game by more than just scoring, AAU politics, the NIL generation of athletes and a lot more. Lots of St. Louis basketball name drops and a little peak behind the curtain of the music industry at the end. Very entertaining conversation.Go tap in with Freeze on IG: @freezycalipari

Dwayne Polk is currently the head coach at Lutheran North high school here in St. Louis. He played, then later on came back to coach at, Vashon high school. After being highly recruited and ranked top 30 in his class, he chose to play at St. Louis University in college. After playing professionally in the PBL (premier basketball league), he began his coaching journey as the head coach at McCluer North for the girls. A handful of state championships at Vashon later, he is going on year 3 at Lutheran North. We talked about the strong culture and tradition of Vashon basketball. Going undefeated his senior year, him playing against future pros like Lebron James, Chris Paul, Monta Ellis and Adam Morrison. Being coached by Rick Majerus at SLU and how that's developed his ability to create buy in from his players as a coach, and a bunch of St. Louis basketball pulls along the way. First pod to reach the 3 hour mark and rightfully so. Great convo with a great human. Go tap in with him: Instagram, Twitter and Facebook: @teampolkwinning Also on Instagram @lncrusadersbasketball to follow along with their season and get some Xs and Os breakdowns throughout the season

Greg Gentry is currently an assistant coach at Clayton high school (St. Louis, MO). Growing up in California he played his freshman year at Taft high school in Los Angeles along side Larry Drew II then finished high school at Durango high school in Spring Valley Nevada. After a cup of coffee at Cosumnes River Junior College in Sacramento, Greg went on to finish his playing career at Fontbonne University in St. Louis. After graduating and going back to California to coach at Calabasas high school, he came back to Fontbonne and joined the coaching staff as a graduate assistant. After 9 years with the Griffins, he joined the staff at Clayton high school where the team just made it to the final four in the 2024-2025 season which was the first time they've made it that far since 1975. In this conversation we talk about the California hoop scene, differences between there and St. Louis, mixtape culture and how that effects the on court product, the JUCO grind, mental health for athletes, a deep dive into his process for cooking up scouting reports as a college coach and a lot more. G is a former coach of mine and someone I've always had a lot of respect for so it was awesome to get to chop it up with him. Instagram: @youngcal_24And to follow along with the Grey Hounds next season: @chsgreyhoundbasketball on Instagram

Andrew Keck graduated from Vianney High School (St. Louis, MO) in 2018. From there he caught at SEMO for 4 years before getting drafted by the Atlanta Braves where he spent 3.5 years in their minor league system. He currently is the owner of AK12 Baseball Performance Lab where he helps current players with their catching, hitting, pitching and overall game including mindset. Tons of fun insight chopping it up with someone who played and coaches a different sport. As a catcher it was awesome to hear AK break down the game within the game of baseball as we got fairly deep in the weeds with things like sign stealing and what actually goes on during mound visits during a game as well as what to expect during the process of being recruited as a baseball player. We talked a lot about the similarities and differences between the sports when it comes to the mental game, how analytics effects teams' approaches, play styles within college conferences, travel ball/AAU, and a lot more. Crazy fun to get into my baseball bag, this easily could've been a 3 hour episode. Instagram: @keckacademy Website: ak12sportsgroup.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61557980674222

Aurelio Stucco hooped at Whitfield high school in St. Louis, Missouri as part of a team that was probably the best in their schools history that included then Mizzou commit Torrence Watson. After graduating in 2019, Stucco decided to forgo playing in college and began passing on his knowledge of the game to the next generation. He did private and group training as well as team coaching for Larry Hughes Basketball Academy for 6 years and is now a varsity assistant for Fort Zumwalt South girls team as well as head JV coach. An hour and a half turned into 2.5 real quick. This was a great conversation covering a wide array topics. We talked St. Louis hoops, the girls scene, his decision not to hoop in college, how he got into coaching and training, some torching NBA takes, and his journey to rediscovering his faith in God. Go tap in with my guy: Instagram : @stuccoooooFacebook: Aurelio Stucco Basketball Training: stuccosbasketballtraining.com

Danny Brown is the head coach at United Health Sciences Pharmacy, an NAIA in St. Louis, Missouri. A Houston Texas native, Danny played college basketball at St. Louis University before going on to play professionally in many countries including Venezuela, Cypress, Paris and Australia. After his playing career, he returned to SLU to join the coaching staff and helped the team to multiple conference championships and national tournament appearances. In this conversation we dive into his journey, crazy stories about getting cut from overseas teams, training future pro Jordair Jett, the art of creating buy in with players, the differences in play styles between different countries as well as different levels of college basketball, implementing faith based principles into a team setting, developing a culture and much more Instagram is @coachdaddybrown

Mac grew up in Chicago and played D3 basketball at Beloit College in Wisconsin. He was teammates with my guy Gulf who was on episode 9 of the podcast. Mac went on to play professionally in Japan for Kyoto BB. He also played Semi Pro basketball for Lacrosse Showtime. From there he returned to Beloit to coach Women's basketball and then Mens hoops at William Woods University. We talked about playing 3v3 Fiba and adjusting to the physical style of play in Japan, the benefits of hooping at the park, as well as lots of other insightful hoops talk about dissecting the game, earning coaches trust and a lot more.

Robert Kennedy grew up in Venice Illinois, played for the St. Louis Eagles, JUCO at Mineral Area, D1 at Murray State and then a brief stint overseas in China. From there he went on to coach for the St. Louis Eagles/Brad Beal Elite, Women's Semi Pro team the St. Louis Surge and is currently an assistant at University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy (UHSP) here in St. Louis. Great conversation with my guy Kennedy. A man who has lived a lot of life, been in the room with a lot of high level people, and is dedicated to giving back to the St. Louis basketball community. came on this episode with a lot of game. Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Snapchat: @ _iamkennedy

Born in Nagoya Japan, Bram traveled 6,000 miles to play college basketball at Missouri Baptist University here in St. Louis and is currently getting his masters in ES. Bram has served as a skills trainer at Larry Hughes Basketball Academy and is currently in charge of player development for Missouri Phenom girls 7-8th grade, assistant coach at Whitfield high school and Go Live guys 2031 and does photography, videography and content creation. A full plate to say the least Instagram: @ prospectsarena As well as @ prospect_bram

Max Datoli is a Certified Yoga Instructor and Certified Personal Trainer. Having played Division 1 soccer at Saint Louis University, Max has a cool perspective on yoga as he can relate to the mental and physical demands of being a high level athlete. Max has a very holistic approach to yoga and life and it was great chopping it up with him Go get at him for in person and virtual yoga classes, athletic spiritual advising and fire Instagram content: https://www.maximusyoga.com/aboutInstagram: @ maximusyoga_

Breven McMullen played high school basketball at Park Hills Centeral in Park Hills Missouri. From there he spent a semester at Link Year Prep then went on to play college basketball at Missouri Southern, Mineral Area and Missouri Baptist University. After his playing career, Brev decided to focus fully on helping the next generation of athletes through performance training. He has joined my guy Leon Moody, who was on here for episode #2, at Supernatural Performance to help get athletes more agile, explosive and dominant. This convo was jam packed with tons of info for hoopers on nutrition, best exercises to do to get explosive, lessons learned playing college basketball and lots more.Breven Instagram: @breven_mcmullen and @brev.training Supernatural Performance Instagram: @supernaturalperformance

Mike Sutherland hooped and Lutheran North and graduated in 1999. From there he played at South East Missouri State. After his playing career, Mike dipped his toes in strength and conditioning training for the next generation of hoopers before falling in love with skills training as the owner of A1 Fitness. It was awesome to chop it up with him and have him share his knowledge of the game as well as hearing him express his willingness to seek out mentorship to learn and keep on getting better as a trainer. Mike is cool people. Extremely humble and great vibes and it was awesome chopping it up with him. Instagram @_a1_fitness_

Matt Enright recently committed to Austin Peay University in Tennessee after 3 years at UMSL where he was part of very successful teams who made it to the Elite 8 and Sweet 16. Matt and I were teammates at Webster Groves High School where he would go on to win a state championship his senior year. He is also the owner of Endure Hoops where he does skills training for other players. We talked about the early skills training days at WITTS, going out to LA to train with Drew Hanlen and other NBA players, his journey to finding God and a lot more. Always great chopping it up with my guy

Chris Forrest is the Associate Head Men's Basketball Coach at Missouri Baptist University. Before that he was a head coach at the high school level at Tower Grove Christian Academy as well as Lutheran North on the girls side. He also has 10+ years experience as a skills trainer which makes for an extremely unique perspective on the game. Christ is also a former coach and trainer of mine and has had a major impact on who I am as a trainer and a person so it was awesome to get to sit down and chop it up

Justin Mathes is the head coach at Webster Groves High School where he is fresh off a 4th state title in 9 years. 2 as an assistant (2017 and 2018) and 2 as the head coach (2022 and 2025). This was an extremely insightful conversation about Xs and Os, coaching styles, analytics and lessons learned throughout the coaching journey. Including the time being the assistant under Hall of Fame coaches Jay Blossom and Scott Stallcup and the importance of continuing the culture after taking over the helm. I also played for Mathes during my time at Webster so it was very cool to sit down and chop it up. Instagram and Twitter is @Statesmenhoops

In high school Courtland played for McCluer North, Tower Grove Christian Academy and St. Louis Christian. In college he played at Rend Lake Community College, Illinois Central and Missouri Baptist UniversityNow he is a basketball trainer at Larry Hughes Basketball Academy, in the process of getting his NASM certification to be a personal trainer in the weight room, and the owner of Nxt Level Apparel, a Christian themed clothing brand. Follow @nxtlevelapparel_ on Instagram to stay tuned for a drop that's coming soonMy guy Courtland has a strong set of values, is a follower of Christ and the best is yet to come for him so go follow my brother on IG to keep up with everything he's doing @courtland.soll

Miles Nettles aka Jet is an assistant coach at St. Louis Community College and plays in the TBL with the St. Louis GriffinsJet has moved the game forward as a player and continues to leave his mark as a coachGo follow my guy on IG @notjet5ive

Keyyaun Batchman went to Chaminade high school, played for Brad Beal Elite and graduated in 2019. He went on to play in college at Mineral Area Junior College, Lindenwood University, Missouri Baptist University and Maryville University. We talk about the mental pressures of being an athlete. The role social media plays in it. The journey to trying to make it pro and the importance of getting outside our comfort zone. Key is the epitome of no Ls just lessons. Turning experiences into learning situations and becoming a better person because of it. Tons of life motivation bars in these 2 hours. Key is the owner of Funk Apparel, a motivational speaker and an awesome human Go tap in with my guy : IG: @ keyyaunbIG: @ thefunkapparel_ Twitter: @BatchmanKeyyaun

My guy Adyn is a freshman guard at Neosho Community College in Chanute, Kansas. We talk about his journey to finding God, how it has helped his life and performance on the court, as well as the life of a JUCO hooper and how he got to throwing down east bays

DeMarco Barnett has coached at U-City, North point, and with STL Phenom AAU team

Go follow his training page on Instagram: @thepakbasketballAnd his personal: @coach_k.i

Lamarr Howard is a basketball referee at the high school and college level. He also mentors the next generation of referees with Big Game Officials. On top of this he is a Webster Groves alumni so you know he's good peopleGo follow his IG: @game_official_howardhttps://www.biggameofficials.com

Alex King is the 1st Assistant Coach at Jefferson College in Hillsboro Missouri Go get at him on IG: @alexking32

Great convo with a man of many experiences. We talked about studying for the bar exam, personal training at the Y, boxing, playing rugby watching the UFC in the Sphere, going to watch the olympics in France, learning the piano, buying art

College coach, trainer, video editor/made mixtapes for hoopers, served in the Army and Military. He's done it all. Tons of insight and life lessons from my guy Spencer Instagram- ‪@Righteouslifestyle314‬

My guy Britt Booker. Chicago born. Colorado State Defensive Player of the Year. Owner of Hoopville Basketball AAU Team. Instagram is @hoopvillebasketball24

YouTube: ‪@OFFICIALMOTTOBANDZ‬ ‪@BeTheMottoPodcast‬ Instagram: ‪@OFFICIALMOTTOBANDZ‬ @bethemotto‪@BeTheMottoPodcast‬

Go follow my guy Cyrus on Instagram @cy_juice He sells sea moss, pressed juices and herbs straight from the Caribbean

A masterclass on business and life with my brother Cole. Life philosophy/motivation and also a Patreon worthy breakdown of trading stock options, sales training, rental arbitrage, favorite entrepreneur and self improvement books

RJ is currently the head manager for men's basketball at Eastern Illinois University (4/18/2026)

Instagram @maxreed123_

Weren't able to use the microphones tonight but you know we gotta get this work in regardless

Instagram @marcusthompson10

Gulve is currently the assistant baseball coach at Washington University, a D3 here in St. Louis, Missouri (4/18/2026)

Instagram @coachgriffintraining

Coach Ingram most recently was the head coach at Maryville University, a D2 here in St. Louis, Missouri (4/18/2026)

Tons of bars in this one about providing value on and off the court

Go get at my guy Dre on Instagram @_andrewebb

Jahmouri Robinson is currently the head coach for the Parkway North varsity girls team here in St. Louis, Missouri (4/18/2026)

Sam Briscoe is currently an assistant coach at Drury University, a D2 in Springfield, Missouri (4/18/2026)

Leon Moody of Super Natural Performance. Speed, strength and agility training. Instagram @supernaturalmook

Javier Duren played at Oakville High School in St. Louis, Missouri. He would go on to play at Yale University and then overseas professionally as well as a handful of stints in the NBA G League. In this conversation we talked about that journey, balancing academics and athletics, life lessons learned, the importance of his Faith and much more