#12 Alyn Thomsen – Call Me Flip! Remembering My Coach and Friend, Flip Saunders

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Why You Should Listen?

The death of Flip Saunders clearly hit the Minnesota Timberwolves very hard.  Losing Flip who made such a huge impact on the franchise and was the main decision maker has been a difficult challenge.  The loss of Flip has been hard for anyone that was fortunate to know him.  Former players have expressed their gratitude for the positive influence he had on their lives.

Kevin Garnett “Forever in My Heart”

John Wall “Coach Saunders guided me into this league. He believed in me and taught me what it takes to be a good player and a better man. RIP Coach”

Kevin Love “Flip you were one of a kind.  He was a great basketball mind and even better human being.  You had a great impact on my life personally and professionally.  RIP my friend.”

Thaddeus Young “Honored to have played for a brief time for Coach Flip. I learned a lot in a short period of time.  He had so much passion for his players.”

Fred Hoiberg “He’ll be missed.  There’s not one person you could talk to who would say one bad thing about Flip Saunders.”

Alyn Thomsen, was blessed to have the opportunity to play for Coach Flip Saunders at the University of Tulsa and La Crosse Catbirds.  In 1993, Alyn experienced one of the best years of his life winning a CBA Championship with Flip as the head coach.  Flip was able to help transform Big Al a 7 footer with potential into a person who had a successful professional career playing in the CBA and overseas.

Listen to this episode of the Jim Huber Show to hear how Flip was able to connect with Alyn and other players getting them to love him and give their best.  Alyn shares what Flip did to make him an offensive genius, ways Flip connected with his PG, lessons learned that he uses to impact his players in a positive way and much more…

There is so much beneficial information for coaches, parents and players that Alyn discusses throughout the show!

Enjoy this episode of The Jim Huber Show!

What You will Hear In This Podcast

• 0:24- A tribute to Flip Saunders
• 0:42- Introduction of Alyn Thomsen
• 1:55- What Flip Saunders did to connect with his players
• 3:48- It’s all about the Jimmy’s and Joe’s, not the X’s and O’s
• 4:22- Big Al getting cut by Flip in the CBA but not giving up on his dreams
• 6:22- Did Flip struggle with challenging players and confrontations?
• 8:11- What were the keys to Flip’s Offensive Genius?
• 9:14- Ways high school and youth coaches can implement Flip’s offensive philosophies
• 10:33- The connection of Flip and his point guard to be on the same page and thinking three plays ahead
• 11:10- Alyn’s transition from the CBA to playing in Portugal
• 13:43- Flip didn’t hold grudges, was extremely laid back, but was very competitive
• 15:31- Flip’s Harlem Globetrotters warmup to turn around a difficult season
• 16:41- Flip’s quote that Alyn still remembers today
• 17:38- What Al learned from Flip that he has successfully used coaching youth and high school kids
• 18:46- Remembering celebrating with Flip after the CBA Championship
• 19:23- The reasons you win championships
• 20:10- Quizzing Big Al on the 7 footers around the world
• 23:56- The questions not to ask tall people
• 24:44- Don’t have any regrets, give your best and have fun
• 25:15- Big Al’s every day commitment to make teammates better at practice
• 26:29- Ways that a 10^th person on a basketball team can help the team succeed

Follow Big Al Thomsen on Twitter @Bigal_tuhoops

I’d love to know your thoughts after you check out the interview. What resonated? What did you learn?

Hit me up on Twitter @jimhubershow or email at thejimhubershow@gmail.com

Remember: “Let’s Make The World Better Through Sports”