Creating a National Powerhouse, Starting Findlay Prep + Coaching Rick Pitino's son feat. Danny Haney

Dec 13 2021 • 1 hr 6 mins

On this episode we welcome Coach Danny Haney to the podcast. Danny is PREP Athletics Founder Cory Heitz’s high school coach. Danny coached at Lexington Catholic High School and during his time won a state title and got up to #3 in the USA Today National High School Rankings. He beat Oak Hill and Whitney Young that year and talks about how he built the program into a national powerhouse. Danny also talks about coaching Tubby Smith and Rick Pitino’s sons, turning down a 2-time NBA All Star from joining his team, the beauty of Kentucky high school basketball, and helping to create the first basketball academy in the US: Findlay Prep. Did you know Findlay Prep never sent a player from its roster to a non D1 school in its existence? This was a very informative podcast with lots of great stories.

What you will learn:
[2:27] What was his drive to become a good player?
[3:10] Why did Danny choose to play at Eastern Kentucky?
[4:48] Why did Danny get into high school coaching?
[8:02] How did being on the road recruiting for a D1 program, help you as a high school coach?
[10:40] What makes Kentucky high school basketball so special?
[17:38] Kentucky’s high school basketball tournaments.
[23:45] Pros/Cons of coaching Rick Pitino and Tubby Smith’s kids.
[31:08] Building a high school program which eventually became nationally ranked.
[34:35] What characteristics did all the great players Danny coached possess?
[37:00] Why did Danny turn down a 2-time NBA All Star from transferring to his team?
[48:25] Thoughts on playing time vs. better competition.
[52:14] Findlay Prep’s formation + how Danny helped create the first basketball academy
[1:03:18] Best player played against?
[1:03:29] Best player Danny ever coached against?
[1:04:12] Biggest win of his basketball career?
[1:04:50] Favorite Movie

Connect w/ Danny
Linkedin | https://www.linkedin.com/in/danny-haney-3536a730/
Twitter | https://twitter.com/DannyHaney1