Dr. Dish Q&A Series: Justin Scanson of FastModel Sports

by Nick Bartlett, on Jun 27, 2016 8:53:00 AM

At Dr. Dish Basketball, we firmly believe our partnership with FastModel Sports has been fantastic. Our vision and shared goal of providing basketball coaches with the best resources to help them succeed has made it very easy to work togther.

We were able to chat with Justin Scanson of FastModel about his background in basketball, how FastModel products are essential, and valuable advice for basketball coaches.

Q: What’s your background in basketball?

A: I fell in love with basketball as a kid watching the local high school team and out of that grew a passion for the game that has always been with me. I didn’t play college basketball but that didn’t keep me away from the game. I started coaching when I was a sophomore at University of Montana. I got a job coaching 8th grade boys and knew I had found what I wanted to do. I was fortunate that (at the time) girls basketball in Montana was in the fall. I was able to coach sophomore girls in the fall, boys basketball in the winter and legion baseball in the summer for the rest of my college years. I always talk about reps being one of the most important things in whatever you are doing and I graduated college with 11 seasons worth of coaching ‘reps’.

Out of college I had a few different coaching jobs before being able to return to Montana as an assistant coach at Montana State and the Women’s Basketball program. After 5 seasons at MSU, I was extremely fortunate to find a home at FastModel Sports where I could be involved with basketball and avoid the travel of coaching so I can spend more time with my family.

Q: You have a pretty awesome title of Dean of Advanced Studies at @FastModel, Senior Product Specialist for #TeamFastModel WorkflowWizard, ScoutNinja, & Social Manager at @FastModel? So what would you say you do?

A: I’ve worn a lot of hats during my time here at FastModel. I’ve done sales, support, account management, marketing and social media, but my current role is the one I’ve completely fell in love with and have received the most fulfillment from. I am the community manager for FastModel Sports. This means that I (along with our Marketing Manager Katie Mitchell) get to form the voice of the company to the outside world. I manage our social media, our Playbank and our blog and get to work with coaches all over the world to help provide amazing basketball coaching content.

I do feel grateful and fortunate to be able to be in the position of giving back to the game of basketball.

Q: What makes FastModel’s products must haves for basketball coaches?

A: If you don’t have FastDraw, you are doing it wrong! Haha… FastDraw is our play diagramming software and it is for basketball coaches at every level of the game. FastDrawallows you to take that napkin that you drew that baseline out of bounds play on, diagram it in the software and never lose it. It allows you to take that same diagram and share it with your players and staff to help teach it. It allows you to find that same diagram 3 seasons from now when you have the player that can help you run it exactly how you envisioned it.

Q: Through your experiences, what advice do you have for basketball coaches trying to get to the next level and how can FastModel help?

A: Not being a “tech person” is no longer an excuse. Regardless of what job you want, you must be able to take advantage of the available tools and technology to be productive.

More specific to being a basketball coach, be a student of the game. This used to mean go to a coaching clinic once a year, take a bunch of notes, put them in a notebook, put the notebook on the shelf and never look at it again. The coaches that are getting better are always learning, always looking for a new play, drill, concept, terminology, or idea. Where are you going to find those?

I also firmly believe in getting as many coaching ‘reps’ as you can. This means if you don’t have a coaching job, volunteer someplace and get whatever reps you can. Coach a middle school team or a youth league and don't limit yourself to basketball. Some of the best coaching strategies I have picked up over the years are from other sports.

Q: Is it just us, or is the FastModel Sports-Dr. Dish Basketball partnership a perfect fit?

Like peanut butter and jelly! (Grape jelly of course…) Seriously though, it is a fantastic partnership founded in common goals of giving coaches and players the tools to improve their craft and make the most out of the time they put into the game of basketball.