Basketball Super League One on One: Glass City Wranglers Head Coach, Freddie Zamora
With the start of training camp right around the corner in a new pro league, Coach Zamora keeps playing it cool with the Wranglers leveling up to the BSL.
So fresh and so clean, Freddie Zamora cooly leaned against the brick wall in the basketball gym at The Scoring Factory on the outskirts of Indianapolis as close to 300 aspiring pros scrimmaged and showed-out on three full length courts in hopes of drawing the eye of a coach, scout, or team official at the annual Draft Combine presented by The Basketball League.
It was February, 2023 and the excitement about the league tipping off their upcoming sixth season was palpable.
Coaches proudly wearing their TBL team gear scribbled down notes on players. Team owners grouped together discussed swapping draft selections. Players worked the room when they weren’t busy working their asses off on the court. Through it all, Freddie kept cool draped in a fine full length tan coat, pressed khakis, crispy shirt, and shoes polished to perfection. Smooth. He calmly watched the action on the court while contemplating his own hoop dreams as a head coach and what the future might hold. So much experience. So much knowledge. So much passion to keep going further and becoming more as a basketball head coach and in this game. That’s simply who he is at heart.
“We’ll see how everything shakes out with this new league,” Freddie said when asked about the formation of the newly announced Basketball Super League (BSL) with teams based in Canada and the United States.
“Maybe our team will be one of the TBL teams to be selected. That would be great, but it's still a ways off so we’ll see what happens.”
Since then, a lot has happened and for the greater good. After an impressive inaugural season in 2023-24 that saw the London Lightning crowned champions, the Basketball Super League is now poised for a promising year two with three TBL teams making the jump to BSL (Pontiac, Jamestown, and Toledo, Ohio’s own Glass City Wranglers) which grows the league from 6 teams to 9 teams (Montreal, London, Windsor, Newfoundland, Sudbury, Kitchener-Waterloo).
As for Freddie Zamora, he’s still happily playing it cool with BSL training camp now just weeks away and his feet planted firmly on Glass City’s sideline.
What does it mean to you to see Glass City compete in BSL this coming season?
It means a lot. I had to really pray on what I was wanting to do next in my coaching career. I’ve been happy doing what I do but after speaking with my wife on what would make sense, we both agreed this would be an interesting opportunity. Right now it means a lot to stay near home and to be able to return to the wranglers. It’s special because this organization is going on year 5 while making a jump to the BSL. I love a challenge and when I got the phone call I was ready to get to work.
Why was this the right time and fit to re-join?
It was the right time because the organization wants to compete against the best of the best. It’s a challenge I am ready to take on. For anyone that knows me, I love international basketball. I help players find jobs all over the world so I am always tuning in and giving them advice in their journeys. I have been offered many jobs to coach in different countries but having a family and not wanting to take that risk at this point in my life hasn't made sense up to this point. In international play if your team is losing you can be sent home in 2, 3 or 4 games as the head coach. It’s just the reality of how it goes. With this opportunity I am able to stay home, provide for my family and compete internationally in Canada. A lot of pieces made sense for this move at this time in my life that aligned with what my family wants.
The BSL is growing, now with 3 TBL teams, Jamestown being announced today. Did you watch the league last year and what do you think of Pontiac and Jamestown joining?
I think it’s exciting seeing teams joining the BSL from the TBL. The TBL has some very tough teams that are always ready for battle. Seeing Pontiac and Jamestown join is exciting too because we’ve always had great battles against them both. Both teams are also very well coached and by coaches that care.
Fans are eagerly anticipating the start of the season. How are you planning for the upcoming season and can you share about potential tryouts and/or combines that you’ll hold?
I have been studying and making sure we will be prepared on the court this off-season. As far as tryouts and combines we are still working those out. All I know is that this year we plan on having guys who put the team first. Guys that want to compete. Guys that are mature and will only add positivity to our culture. Joining a league like the BSL we don’t have time for any bad apples and sometimes that means everyone can’t come with you. Me and our TMO have been working diligently on every roster spot to make sure we are looking at everything with every player into consideration.
When does training camp start for you guys? How are you approaching this season compared to past years?
Training camp will start the first week of November. Having experience at this level now and how it has been the past couple of seasons has helped prepare me for what is necessary this season.
We are really locked in on building a strong culture from top to bottom. Obviously we want talent but we are looking at everything within every player we are choosing. How is his character? What’s his work ethic like? Would he be a good teammate? Is he a proven winner? True competitor? Can he take constructive criticism and apply it? What are his goals and where is he trying to go with this opportunity?
All questions we are looking at when filling this roster are important to us. The beautiful thing about the coaching industry is everyone knows everyone. It takes a quick phone call to run reference checks from other coaches to see if this guy is really who we want to bring on. We understand everyone needs to have the right mentality going into this season from ownership, to staff and ultimately the athletes. The mentality of we all have jobs to do and let’s do them to the best of our ability. If you don’t want to put the team first, turn back around. This isn’t the place for you.
You’ve also made additions to the coaching staff with Terry Awls being named an assistant coach. Can you share some thoughts on his hiring and what he brings to the staff to help make your job easier?
I’m excited to have Coach Awls join our staff this year, as he brings 20+ years of coaching experience to the organization. I’ve known Coach Awls for a few years now and we’ve always stayed in touch. Admiring his passion for the game, helping others, and being involved heavily in the community is what made me think of him when putting together the staff for this season. He’s a great coach but even better person and that’s the kind of people we want around. I think he will be a major asset to the organization as a whole and we’re happy to have him.
The hope is to make this coaching Q&A a recurring series, where you can share your insight on coaching, the game and bring people along for the ride this BSL season. Why is this concept interesting to you?
This concept is very interesting to me because I’ll be able to give real life insight into what a season looks like and a transition of this magnitude. Be able to provide fans with stuff they want to hear and bring them along for the journey. It will also be nice to look back on how the season went and reflect on everything. It’s a great concept that is only available because you came up with it. You’re always thinking of ways to reel a reader in and keep it engaging. So I have to tip my hat to you!
Time to give people their flowers…who would you like to shout out and recognize a person who deserves the spotlight?
There’s so many people that I would love to spotlight. First and foremost is always God! Without him none of this is possible for myself or my family. I’d like to shout out my wife Frances and my kids Mīla, Ziya, and Rico. They are my driving force and keep me going everyday in life. I want my kids to understand hard work at a young age and to always strive for something even if it seems crazy to others.
Last shout out goes out to anyone that has supported me or continued to support me in the coaching journey. It never goes unnoticed and I just know I’m rooting for you too.
Wendell Maxey is the author of Around The Basketball League and has written about professional basketball and sports for 20 years. He’s been featured on NBA.com, ESPN.com, USA Today, FOX Sports, and SLAM Magazine among other publications and media outlets. You can connect with him on Twitter and LinkedIn or read through his archive on Linktree.