Brian Keefe Explains His Approach to Wizards Rebuild

Brian Keefe Explains His Approach to Wizards Rebuild

[Music] it’s Offman show we’re on the team 980 we’re always live as well on the free Odyssey app and of course on YouTube at the team980 and this is the new head coach of the Washington Wizards Bryant Keefe are you used to that introduction yet how long will it take uh yeah that’s you know it’ll take a couple days but yeah a little humbling but like I think I said uh really grateful for this opportunity yeah I I think that for a guy like you there’s so many interesting ways to take a conversation about what it means to become a head coach you’ve been an assistant for so long but we I I’ve just heard from too many guys that that 6 in between the the the lead assistant job and the head job is the biggest 6 Ines you’ll find in basketball so for you when you think about that challenge like what are some of the things that you go oh I know I can do this I know I can do this as an assistant but you’re you’re curious to test things out as a head coach yeah I obviously got a little bit of opportunity to do that this year um I always took it very seriously as assistant so I still felt that but I think as a head coach you feel responsible now for everything and everybody that’s something I don’t take lightly but also super excited for the challenge of that um the one thing I really believe in is the collaboration that we’re all doing this together we started those steps building those when I was coaching and I think we’re going to continue to that I just look forward to that throughout the summer building our our uh processes and how we’re going to build this thing going forward was there a thing that that stuck out to you as like oh this is a bigger bigger part of this head job than than maybe you thought uh in as you went through those 30 games I think you just you know I think you just I go back to the responsibility part you want to see you know when you’re entrusted by uh your bosses and the powers to be in the organization that you’re going to be in a leadership role you want to make sure that things are operating on a high level uh I probably can’t say that there’s one thing specifically out that was different I think you just those things you take into account um you you want and you want it to go well and you want to be a person who can help lead this organization to our next stage um um that word collaboration is comes up a lot when you’re talking to people uh in your building and I’m so curious for you as a guy that like will is always talked about we’re going to let our coaches coach the team but he clearly has strong thoughts on style of play Etc uh in terms of pace and all the different shot diets whatever you want to talk about yeah how does that relationship work of making sure that you’re coaching the team but also executing the vision that they set forth I I think that’s the part that excites me so much cuz there’s so much uh shared values in this stuff not just as people but also in how to build and values and what we look for in players and style of play um you know that’s the benefit of I’ve worked with Michael and will for very long time so I think we’re all we’re all about finding the best solution and that’s true collaboration is that when you can have I think well set it you know these honest conversations to find the best way going forward we’re just trying to find the right way not our way uh Story Time Will mentioned you guys met in 2008 yeah what do you remember about that encounter you know will came to work for us in Oklahoma City um you could tell very quickly that he was going to have a very bright career uh someone who was very curious uh hardworking and then you know the level of person he was you know he was going to be someone who’s going to have a job that he has today so no surprised by me cuz we could all of us who were around him at that age were we knew that this guy has a bright future are you like that’s a guy I’m going to work with or are you immediately like no that’s a guy I’m going to work for I think we probably thought this is a guy we could all maybe work for someday for sure Brian Keef the head coach of the Washington Wizards with us here on the Hoffman show um to get into the basketball a little bit what are some things that you like playing fast obviously you want to shoot threes in the modern NBA like there’s a lot of basic things that I think every basketball fan understands but how do you go about ensuring that those things happen or what are some maybe some things that you’re looking to really enforce in year two year one and a half whatever you want to call this upcoming season from a basketball tactical standpoint I think you want to build something that’s going to be sustainable that works in the playoffs and obviously we’re in the acquisition part of some of our players and learning some of our players so I always think that we’re going to be in a part where philosophically we want to play fast we want to do want to shoot threes we want to share the ball but I think we’re going to be also looking to how we best use our guys how can we best use the strengths of our roster how can we bring out the best them as a group so I think that there was definitely some experimental phrases to that like what’s going to really work for us that’s something is going to when we are ready to be sustainable winner in the playoffs what’s that going to translate to so we’re going to be pushing the limits on that stuff um and that’s what me and my staff will be excited about doing can ask you a philosophical coaching question here um so there’s a a phrase that I really love when it comes to coaching um methods are many principles are few methods don’t always last principles always do differentiating between things that are high overarching and the ways that you accomplish those things so as you kind of think about your tactics and bend things to fit your personnel how do you draw the lines between what is a principle what is like we want to play X way versus a method of we want to whether it’s run a certain set or you know make sure that when we get the rebound we’re looking for a certain Outlet pass or what whatever those those very more minute tactical things are where are those lines drawn I think principles are the ones that probably going to carry the day um those are the things that are going to push your organization forward those are the things that you can layer sleep you lay your that’s the word I guess uh lay your head on lay your head down night yeah those are things the Staples are hang your hat I think maybe hang your hat that’s the word looking for it yeah hang your hat on I’m not just the sayings guy now no you got them all so yeah those are the things that I think that are the things that’s sustainable how you get to some of those things the tweaks you make that’s as we explore our roster as our players develop those are the things that you fit in and weave in but the core beliefs in how we’re going to operate and how we’re going to do stuff on a day-to-day basis those are things things are really going to push us forward obviously a big turning point for you last year and kind of the way people saw you and maybe even your head coaching candidacy I don’t know I’d have to ask will this question is the change in Jordan pool’s year um the first the conversation that you guys had much much famed at this point of hey man sorry we’re going to the bench he wasn’t thrilled about it but his performance took off and then the way he was able to finish the season where how do you see Jordan as a basketball player for this team first of all Jordan and I’ve said this many times Jordan is a great example for the type of player we want this is a guy who truly loves the game who is very diligent about working on his Craft um he’s just a great example for all of our players on the amount of time it is to be a good player uh I’ve said this many times we wanted to put the ball in Jordan’s hands more um to be able to attack not just for himself but his teammates and I think we saw that when we allowed him to get more to that he had more success um this is a guy I believe in totally because of his character and who he is and what he cares about the game so I couldn’t be more excited to coach Jordan how do you tap into that cuz one conversation I remember having in the middle of the year with someone I think it was Michael or will was basically if Jordan watched Jordan play defense with the amount that I know Jordan cares about the game there’s no way he’s watching going like yeah I’m crushing it there’s there’s some plays where allows easy straight line drives all the things that I’m sure you talked to him about and the rest of your staff talked to him about how did you tap into that to to get the performance to match the mentality I told joined from the gecko and I tell to all of our players that we have a shared standard it’s not just mine um we’re going to have expectations how we’re going to operate and when I told Jordan I want him to be more aggressive onely offensively that also means that there’s responsibilities on the other end he’s still not there yet and he would be the first to admit that but that’s where we’re in the process of doing is improving and I believe in Jordan’s character that he’s going to get there because this is a guy who truly cares about the game Brian Keefe with us for another minute or two here on the Hoffman show it was funny because most so many of the stories that came out once you took over is like basically as his hard ass Massachusetts guy like he’s really hard and uncompromising but then you hear more stories and it’s it’s about the character that you’re talking about and connection you have with players which so much Echo so much of what we’ve heard in the last year since Michael and will got here yeah how do you think about balancing those things in terms of I am both uncompromising but I am human uh to me it’s I talked about it I think you heard me say this in the press conference the relationship part is such a huge part to me uh that allows you to coach guys that you care but we can have honest conversations and they can have honest conversations with me this goes two ways I think that’s huge yeah um it’s not just me um cuz at the end of the day we’re about getting better and the only way I think we believe about getting better as an organization is if you can have that um so to me when you can tell the truth um players might not always like it right away um but they can respect it and I think that’s how we have always looked at it do you have a story of a guy coming to you that two-way street I can but I probably can’t repeat him on the TV on this show right now off the Record maybe said okay we’ll uh we’ll get that and and uh we’ll just uh meekly reference it at some point six months from now people forgot that you may perhaps have uh told been the one to tell me that um Ava to ask you this last question just like you think of that first team meeting you think of that first thing of coming together like you walk back into that room and now it’s not hey I’m here I’m Not The Substitute Teacher I’m the teacher now like what do you imagine for that first team meeting what and how long have you been thinking about preparing for that moment you know I I don’t know if it’s going to be much different when I had the opportunity to take over and I found out that very quickly my whole goal was to pour myself into the players um nothing’s changing with that yeah uh obviously yes I’m the fulltime now that is different but it’s not going to change how I act I acted like I’m going to act now and I’m gonna continue to do that and that’s who I am it’s a model of consistency Brian Keefe everybody uh the 26th head coach in the history of the Washington Wizards Brian thank you thank you this is the Hoffman show on the team 980 in The Odyssey app

New Wizards coach Brian Keefe has been around NBA greats like Kevin Durant, but he’s perhaps most excited to build the Wizards “brick by brick” over the coming years. He explains his excitement, as well as his philosophy in this exclusive 1-on-1 interview.

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