In this week's basketball coaching conversation, Coordinator of Integrated Performance for the Los Angeles Dodgers Clayton Thompson joins the Basketball Podcast to share insights on integrating science, skill, and human connection

Clayton Thompson serves as the Coordinator of Integrated Performance for the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he sits at the cutting edge of professional sports science and player development. With a background as an R&D Engineer and a Master’s in Business Administration, Thompson is a vocal advocate for dismantling the traditional silos between "strength and conditioning" and "on-field skill." His philosophy is built on the belief that human movement should be treated as a unified system, rejecting the narrow label of "Strength Coach" in favor of a model that integrates biomechanical data, force-plate analytics, and technical skill acquisition.

Before joining the Dodgers, Thompson refined his data-driven approach at Driveline Baseball, the industry leader in data-informed performance training. His career also includes pivotal roles at TCU (Texas Christian University) and Sanford Health, where he bridged the gap between collegiate athletics and clinical sports science. By applying engineering principles to the kinetic chain, Thompson has become an expert in optimizing rotational power and deceleration—concepts that are as vital for a pitcher's delivery as they are for a basketball player’s jump shot or step-back.

In this week's basketball coaching conversation, Vietnam Men’s National Team head coach Matt Van Pelt joins the Basketball Podcast to share his defensive shift from packline to forcing left.

Matt Van Pelt is currently the Head Coach of the Vietnam Men’s National Team, as well as the Hanoi Buffaloes, the reigning champions of the Vietnam Basketball Association. He now has basketball experience in 28 countries, having ran camps and clinics all over the world, and is also the owner of Van Pelt Sports Management and the co-owner of Pro Coaches Academy and The Performance Lab, in addition to being a FIBA Certified Head Coach in Vietnam.

Matt has been in Vietnam on and off since 2017, where he is the winningest coach in the nation’s history with a record of 81 wins and 16 losses between 2 leagues and with 2 organizations. Matt won 3 straight VBA championships & 3 straight Supporter’s Cup Championships with the Saigon Heat, the country’s oldest professional team. Matt also led the Saigon Heat to the 1-seed and a finals appearance in the Asean Basketball League, which formerly hosted 10 teams from 9 countries in Asia, for the first time in the organization’s history in 2023.

In addition to 5v5 ventures, Matt was also the Head Coach of the Vietnam 3x3 Men’s National Team from 2022-24, where he won a VBA 3x3 championship, a silver medal in the 2022 Southeast Asian games, and pushed Vietnam to its best ever finish in the 2025 FIBA Asia.

Matt is a former professional basketball player overseas, where he played as a point guard in 13 countries in 7 years. Before going overseas, Matt was a 4-year starter as a player at Spring Arbor University in Michigan, where he also won the nation’s Pete Maravich Award.

In this week's basketball coaching conversation, By Any Means Basketball founder Coleman Ayers joins the Basketball Podcast to share insights on reengineering player development.

Coleman Ayers is the founder of By Any Means Basketball, a global training and media organization dedicated to player development. Launching the brand as a high schooler in Washington, D.C., Coleman turned his passion for skill acquisition and research-backed training into a worldwide movement. After finishing his playing career at St. John’s College High School, he chose to forgo college basketball opportunities and moved to Miami, studied exercise physiology, and began working with players of all levels while building a reputation for blending science, creativity, and culture into modern basketball development.

Coleman’s approach emphasizes holistic development—integrating psychology, movement science, and global basketball philosophies to create adaptable, high-IQ players. His DETAIL Miami facility serves as a hub for elite training, while his educational platforms, including the Attention to Detail podcast, share insights with coaches and players worldwide. Having worked with athletes in over 35 countries and collaborated with NBA talent, Coleman continues to push boundaries in player development. He is also the co-founder of ADAPT Academy.

Both of his books, Deep Skill and the Modern Basketball Blueprint, reached number one in Amazon’s basketball category.