In this series from Gregg Rosenberg, we'll take a look at how some of the state's prep basketball coaches philosophies around building a program.
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The fourteenth coach in the 'Building a Program' series: Pinnacle's Charles Wilde.
When did you start in the game of basketball?
"I have played basketball all my life from youth leagues to high school. Even in college I was a scholarship baseball player, but always played open gyms with the basketball team."
Who started you on this path of becoming a coach?
"I was always a person who loved all sports. I believe having great youth and high school coaches growing up pushed me to want to give back and coach."
Have you taken some principles or guidelines from some former coaches that you use today?
"I believe I have taken something from every coach I played or coached with. I think you can learn something from any coach and stealing ideas is one of the best ways to keep reinventing yourself."
Is there a phrase or statement that you consistently repeat over and over again to your players during the season?
"If you ask them they say I have a book of phrases I constantly say. But the two that come to mind are, 'know your job do your job,' and, 'everyone put their egos in their back pocket and play for each other.'"
What is your coaching style?
"I try to be a cooperative coach who lets players have a say in things. The one area where I might be an old school coach is effort. Just believe any player can give their best effort."
Is there that one assistant coach on your staff, or an outsider that you ever reach out to when the going gets tough?
"I always talk to all my assistants present and past about things. Each coach has a specialty and I try to use this to help me in certain situations."
Is there that one player or group of players that you are proud of how incredible he/they developed from their freshmen year to senior year?
"We have had many players who developed tremendously and we are proud of them all. The two that stick in my mind are Cody Mcdavis who made himself into a Division I player and Robert Hurst who worked extremely hard and overcame many obstacles to earn playing time his senior year."
Favorite memory in your career so far?
"State championships are special, but each year I have coached I have a great memory from.
"Our first year we were in the 3A North East Conference and I think we traveled over 3500 miles on a bus!"
There are many new young head coaches starting out their careers. Is there one piece of advice you can share with them on how to build a program?
"I am a big believer that you build a program on character, respect and work ethic. A coach has to have a great philosophy and each player and coach has to live that philosophy."
Do you have a feeder middle-school program that you are trying to push players to the Pioneers?
"We do clinics at our two middle schools and we have started the peak academy to train kids year round. We have always done five weeks of camps in the summer."
Do you have an off-season program that you utilize?
"Yes we lift weights three days a week in the off-season and run open gyms throughout the off-season on top of the training in our academy. We do the usual June summer season and participate in fall leagues."
How many wins have you earned so far in your career?
"392."
If we do end up having a high school season, how do the Pioneers look for the upcoming season in 6A?
"We have a lot of young talented players and a solid group of upperclassmen. We also have a goal to win our region and get into the state tournament."
Rosenberg's take
Like coach Wilde said, they have a lot of young talented players and solid vets. They have a chance to win their region this year and make the playoffs.
One thing I know for sure is more high-level players will come through the ranks from the community, like Trent Brown, Spencer Rattler and Nico Mannion all did in the past.
They have huge community support where it's a real destination for players with all their local clinics. They will be back in the mix of things in the next few years with their usual local talent and the high character and respect of coach Wilde and staff.
