Bryon Geddes
Attention pickleball enthusiasts! We are excited to announce that Bryon Geddes the principal founder of Coaches Corner, was recently interviewed about his background in sports statistics, coaching, and work with professional pickleball athletes. In the interview, Bryon shares his unique love of learning and perfect practice and several "Bryon'ism" quotes that reflect his deep commitment to helping players improve their skills and performance on the court.
Bryon has a unique passion for statistical analysis. As a result, his story is quite impressive.
In the 1980s, Bryon's father and two brothers developed and refined a method of accumulating key statistics that could be used to predict the outcome of a basketball game by the end of halftime. The algorithms behind selective stats proved accurate over 85% of the time. The product evolution over several years went from manually accumulating stats under the critical eye of these family members to beginning stage automation. In the beginning, player and team stats were manually calculated using proprietary algorithms at halftime. These stats would reveal player performance above, equal to, or below an overall team average. By the start of the 3rd quarter, the Geddes team would predict the outcome score with a margin of error. Bryon states that over time, they become 85+% accurate.
Through the years of refining their product, Bryon was instrumental in automating the input process. He incorporated various technologies, including voice recognition, a face cone for noise reduction, automation of a hardwired proprietary keyboard, and more. The keyboard design was impressive. His new design reflected a stenotype machine (also called the stenograph) used by court reporters and transcriptionists.
In 1992 Bryon and his father, Lynn Geddes, showed the proprietary device to Jerry Colangelo, owner of the Phoenix Suns. In that meeting, Bryon states that Mr. Colagelo became passionate about their development. He said, "Jerry said that while I own the Phoenix Suns, we just signed on Paul Westphal as the head coach, and I don't get in his way. I own the team. I don't coach the team!" He then stated, "I can get you a meeting with Paul, but using Sideline Coach would be his decision ... and know this, professional coaches typically have ego's the size of the Grand Canyon."
The meeting with Paul Westphal could have gone better. After the pitch, Bryon said that Paul said, "I'll be darned if I am going to let a computer tell me how to coach." Then, with a hint of humility, he had them watch half of a game using a VHS recorder to prove the merits of their predictability. Sharing the results netted the comment, "You must have seen the game," followed by, "I'll tell you what I am willing to do. We just signed on Danny Ainge and Charles Barkley. Let's see how this season goes, and if things get desperate, I'll reach out to you.
The Phoenix Suns 1992 Season: The team sold out the capacity 19,023 arena every game of the season. Unfortunately, this was the last time the Suns would make the NBA Finals until the 2020–21 season.
While the rest of the story is equally entertaining. As expressed briefly, the Geddes' invention was earmarked for baseball in the second sport release. According to Bryon, their algorithms, the heart and soul of the proper application of performance stats fit hand-in-glove (pun intended) for baseball. In addition, their unique visual acuity to see statistically significant player performance actions, automated for coaching decisions, predated by over a decade the remarkable similar story of using such stats in professional sports to alter outcomes (see the motion picture "Moneyball").
Rolling the tape forward to 2019, Bryon Geddes and Brandon Janis became addicted to playing and studying the game of pickleball! Shortly after that, both business partners, financially stalemated by Governors of each of the 50 states deeming their vertical medical market as "not medically necessary," stalled the sales of their software product. However, they predicted that current sales would not fluctuate, so they could somewhat ride the storm while putting some of their motive energies into pickleball.
They did not predict that "post-pandemic" would not see them back into rapid software sales growth. As a result, the 18-month hold continued to take its toll financially. As a result, the partners decided to further grow their exposure in pickleball but monetize specific aspects of their learning in this round (post-personal skill development through study and practice).
Brandon continued his energies into being physically courtside at PPA, APP, and MLP tournaments to coach their growing base of professional athletes. They secured a sponsorship with ProXR, a growing paddle company, to help offset some of Brandon's travel expenses. In addition, Brandon studied ways of automating some of their assessment and training tools along with looking deeply at owner and player movement within the sport at large. Lastly, he exposed aspects of their sideline coaching tools and constantly refined their analysis of player performance in real-time.
On the other hand, Bryon stayed in the local market to build out their amateur and professional training programs. Using his academic expertise (see bio), he created a teaching approach aimed at rapid skill development. Their program refines each skill with the added mental acuity demanded on the 5.0 and professional side. When asked about his process, Bryon stated, "on the professional side of things, pickleball is 95% mental and 5% skill development and refinement." We work with professionals, supporting their drilling sequences (skill development), coming exclusively from their latest match performance at tournaments. Therefore, we spend more time defining their mental game at this stage in our focus professionally.
He stated that amateur athletes tend to plateau their improvements at the 4.0 to 4.5 skill rating levels. Therefore, their teaching approach is focused on removing that plateau with the proper mix of required skill development combined with the mental acuity demands of Professionals. He states, "Every individual has a unique learning style, and professors [coaches] need to consider individuality to develop within the student a love of learning. Learning improves dramatically when the student loves what they do. This love starts with the student knowing, without question, the consequence of poor performance, the outcome of each added skill, and the purpose of each drill (the theory)."
His goal is to define a clear path to "unconscious competence" through "perfect practice." He uses an analogy of a child learning an instrument on their own versus the child having a teacher that teaches theory (what he calls the "why" of learning). His focus is not limited to skill development only, but skill development through what he calls "perfect practice and AMC" (Acute Mental Cognition).
To say his approach is unique is an understatement. One only needs to look at his bio, academic writings, higher education course development, and understanding of "experiential learning" to buy into his approach. He is quoted frequently as saying, "simple practice does not make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect." His students adhere to this Mantra in every session. I know. I've been in on several of his session! I've been one of his students! The energy is as high as I have ever seen a student of the game in a coaching or training environment. Bryon drives his "perfect practice" mantra into every game level. Each "perfect" motion comes from statistical evidence through the game analysis by him and his partner at the top ranks.
Interviewing Coach Geddes was fascinating! We came out of these interviews with the following condensed "Geddes'ism" quotes (see below). These quotes will trigger him into stories revealing his teaching background and streamlining a "perfect" approach to learning. We have learned rather quickly several trigger discussions guaranteed to inspire and add value to the pickleball life of any enthusiast, addict, or professional. Here are just a few of the "Coach Geddes'isms" leading to an even deeper love of the great sport of pickleball:- A Golf Story: "Practicing does not make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect!" -
- A Unique Metaphor to Learning: "I'd rather see a sermon than hear one any day."
- Assessment Requirements: "There is a big difference between self-rating and actual rating. I need the 'balance sheet' of exactly where they are at that moment."
- How to Get Good, Fast: "If you want to get good at something, don't simply go and ask somebody good; instead, gain a relationship with great people!"
- A Personal Mantra: "Learn to love to learn!"
- A Seeming Emotional Blow: "Oh, the joy of 'unconscious competence.'
- A Piano Student Comparison: "Learn theory, and your scholarship to your game, and 'pickleball IQ' soars!"
My Conclusion: Combining Coach Geddes and Brandon Janis' learning of the mental game with their own skill development in a relatively short period sets them uniquely aside from other training programs. They immediately introduced skill development requirements to athletes under a powerful teaching model. As a student, each two-hour session equates to more personal touches achieved over 3-weeks of typical recreational pickleball, playing two hours a day, 5-days a week. It's a stat! Could you take it to the bank for accuracy? Yes! Remember, Geddes and Janis back up nearly every aspect of their approach with statistical evidence. From drilling sequences to step-by-step skill development (what Coach Geddes refers to as the "theory"), you're bound to learn the "margins of error" based on statistical evidence. Indeed, their approach leads to rapid improvement. I know. I plateaued (past tense!).