Today we’d like to introduce you to Rob Pierson
Hi Rob, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Shine Basketball started in 2000, unofficially, as I began volunteering to coach basketball at the Adams County YMCA. I had just moved to Colorado and I was just looking for a way to get involved in the local community, I had played basketball growing up and thought this would be a fun thing to do. I discovered very quickly that I enjoyed the process of inspiring and working with the young athletes – my first groups were elementary age kids. Something about my personality, humor, and ability to teach skill concepts caught on, and soon I was one of the most sought-after coaches in the system. While rosters were limited to 10 players, there were families signing up for waitlists in the hopes of being assigned to one my teams. I completed 12 years with the YMCA, coaching elementary and middle school age teams – 36 seasons in all!
It was during my second year at the YMCA that a family from Arvada approached me about doing some individual training for their two kids – one was a Varsity player at Ralston Valley HS, and her younger brother (who was playing on one of my YMCA teams). I agreed, and began my individual training “career” at a driveway in Arvada with a broken basketball hoop. Word spread about my training, and soon I had more clients requesting time. Based on demand, I started Shine Basketball, initially as a “club” team focused on competitive teams. Response was immediate, with over 100 athletes signing up for multiple teams. I continued this model for 1.5 years, but became discouraged by the “win first” mentality of my coaching staff, and and frankly, the same mindset that was permeating the entire organization. I believed that the program could be so much more than a typical “club” program, so I closed my program for about 6 months and shifted my perspective to creating a comprehensive player development academy – today’s Shine Basketball Academy. After interviewing HS Coaches, College Recruiters, studying the basketball market in CO and asking advice from other basketball trainers around the country, Shine Basketball was re-launched in 2003 under it’s present design.
Today, Shine is Colorado’s longest running and original basketball academy. Modeled after the European player development model (and now USA Basketball’s progressive youth basketball curriculum), Shine works with players from grade 3-12 in a year-round, membership-based structure that teaches progressive basketball development, leadership, and life skills to our members. We have served over 5000 athletes in our history and growing. The average member stays in the academy for over 3 years, with many more continuing their development throughout their fill HS careers. We even support collegiate athletes who are playing next level basketball who come back to train and share their knowledge with the next generation of athletes.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Building Shine Basketball has had it’s share of challenges, for sure. There are so many things that an entrepreneur needs to learn to run a successful program, and becoming a great trainer and coach takes a lifetime of dedication, so I’d say I’m still on my way in many respects. At the beginning, the hardest parts were logistical – marketing, advertising, website design, enrollment and membership models, branding, etc. Additionally, developing an efficient and effective, and age-specific, training program has taken a lot of research and, frankly, trial and error. Then there is my own personal development – learning how to communicate in all forms (written, verbal, in front of parents and large groups of athletes), managing training environments, conflict resolution, time management – so many areas that I continue to work on today. Of course, I’ve improved a lot since the start, and learned many ways that work well – and many that don’t. But like we tell our athletes, growth comes through the process of trial and error. I know there is still so much more to learn, and I embrace that process every day.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Shine Basketball (www.shinebasketball.com) is Colorado’s original and longest-running Basketball Training Academy. To date we have served over 5000 athletes from CO and surrounding states, and continue to work with motivated athletes year-round. We offer individual and small group training for athletes grades 3-12, as well as nationally competitive travel teams at the High School level.
Our “3 C’s” Culture is our largest differentiator as a program.
CULTURE. CONNECTION. COACHING. ™
CULTURE
The Shine Culture is one of inclusion, encouragement, patience, acceptance and unity. We respect the unique differences in personality and skill of each of our fellow Shine members, and we support each other’s journey of growth and capability through highly energized teammate behaviors and celebrations. Our only competition is ourselves, to be a better today than yesterday and to enthusiastically work towards the person we are becoming tomorrow.
CONNECTION
Connection at Shine Basketball is the process of building meaningful, honest relationships between teammates, coaches and families. With grace as our guide, we challenge each other towards our goals, confront breakdowns with love and honesty, show courage to form new friendships, and through it all demonstrate love, loyalty and respect.
COACHING
When the Culture is established, and Connections are made to build trust, then the most effective Coaching can occur. Coaching is about the details of being able to produce a desired result in the most effective and consistent way possible. This applies to both the skills of basketball, but also to the skills of relating to others and being a leader.
As a brand, I am especially proud of the community that we have been able to create – supported by hundreds of families over the years. Shine’s culture is about encouragement, inspiration, detailed work and accountability. By taking a “player-first” approach to training, we have avoided the typical harshness that comes from highly-demanding programs that lead by intimidation, demeaning language, and criticism. Many players have come to our gym emotionally and mentally scarred from other coaches and programs, yet have found a welcoming, challenging environment that accepts them for who and where they are, and encourages them to face their fears and insecurities – on and off the court – to become the best individual contributor possible.
At the same time, our progressive and competitive training curriculum builds strong athletes mentally and and physically. As we say in the gym, “we train for two levels – HS Varsity and College play”, starting with our youngest athletes. The results speak for themselves, as over 90% of HS freshmen who have trained at Shine earn Varsity minutes as a Freshman in High School. This is a testament to not only the detailed skill sets that we teach, but also the mindset and confidence that we instill throughout our training process.
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
Navigating the Covid-19 period was challenging due to the constantly changing and inconsistent standards and guidelines coming from multiple sources. In the end, we took a common sense approach to the entire event. We communicated clearly and often with our community, emphasizing healthy practices and patience as we navigated the shutdown period. Honestly, there was not much we had to change as a brand – we have always maintained the highest level of cleanliness and order in our gyms and continue to do so. From injury prevention programs, to critical incident and accident protocols, we have always prepared to take care of our community.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.shinebasketball.com
- Instagram: @shinebasketball
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shinebasketball
- Twitter: @shinebasketball
- Youtube: ShineBasketball
