Episode 293: Andy Kennedy, Best Version of Self, Changing Defenses and Habit

Guest: Andy Kennedy, University of Alabama at Birmingham Head Coach

University of Alabama at Birmingham head coach Andy Kennedy joins the Basketball Podcast to share insights on best helping players be the best version of themselves, changing defenses and habits.

Andy Kennedy began his coaching career as an assistant for South Alabama during the 1994–95 season. Since then, he has also served as an assistant coach at UAB from 1996 to 2001 and Cincinnati from 2001 to 2005. He was named interim head coach for Cincinnati during the 2005–06 season after Bob Huggins resigned. He served as head men’s basketball coach at Ole Miss from 2006 to 2018, where he was a two-time SEC Coach of the Year and winningest coach in Ole Miss history.

After working with ESPN for two years, Kennedy was hired as the head coach at UAB on March 20, 2020. In his first year with UAB, Kennedy led the Blazers to a program-record of most wins by a first-year head coach in NCAA and most wins for UAB since 2016. In his third season at UAB, Kennedy led the Blazers to a program-record of most wins marking their third-straight season of 20+ wins.

Andy Kennedy played college basketball at UAB, where he was a two-time all-conference performer that led the Sun Belt Conference in scoring at 21.8 points per game in 1991. After graduation, he played briefly for Charlotte Hornets before beginning his three-year professional career abroad.

Breakdown

1:00 - Introduction

3:00 - Transient Nature of the Game

6:30 - Secret Opponent

9:00 - Becoming The Best Version

12:30 - Be Consistent

14:00 - Be Grateful

15:30 - Defensible

18:00 - Adaptions on Defense

21:00 - Best Players

24:00 - Counter Move

25:41 - Empower Other Player