Dime Sessions: Behind the Bench — CTA West

In the first instalment of our Dime Sessions coaches series, CTA West Head Coach Lee Reckmann discusses the culture behind a program that has won the last two Dime Sessions championships, the challenge of bringing new players together, and the work of helping them reach the next level.

CTA West has won the last two Dime Sessions championships, with Reckmann serving as head coach of both championship-winning squads. This season, he coaches CTA West Black at competitions and works with the full CTA West group in practice. The players train together before splitting into Black, White and Red for events.

That structure helps address a challenge Reckmann says comes with the program’s postgrad focus: players arrive from different places, often without knowing one another or having played together.

“We sort of start behind the eight ball,” Reckmann said. “The guys we do get in don’t really know each other, barely know each other’s names.”

The geography of CTA West Black’s Session 1 roster reflected that mix. Players included Ezra Lado from Brooks, Alberta; Malakai Hills from Sooke, B.C.; Finn Pritchard from London, Ontario; and Jailyn Bear from Halifax, Nova Scotia. They come together for the season, practise as one group and then compete on separate rosters.

Reckmann said having the full group in the gym helps players get familiar faster and build the culture CTA wants. He also said the three teams aren’t simply arranged as a top team and two supporting groups. Instead, each roster takes on its own character.

“Each team will sort of pick up their own persona,” he said, based on the players on that roster. This year, Reckmann described one team as more athletic, another as grittier and another as stronger in decision-making, movement and shooting.

For CTA West Black, Reckmann sees a team with strong defensive and rebounding potential. In my Session 2 notes from Black’s game against One Prep, I saw the pressure and work that created extra possessions and fit that identity. Black won 94–64, with contributions across the roster. The game also reflected the next step Reckmann identified: sharing the ball and learning to play as a unit.

Many CTA players arrive after being leading scorers for their high school teams. At the postgrad level and beyond, Reckmann said, athleticism alone is less likely to separate a player.

“Everybody’s going to be athletic,” he said. “The IQ part of it is huge.”

His approach is to help players use what they do well and put them in roles that can prepare them for the next level.

“I give them a lot of confidence,” he said. Reckmann wants players to play to their strengths and be placed in situations where their skills can show.

Preparation is demanding. Reckmann described hard practices, film, scouting reports and a team shooting session after practice that he calls “non-negotiable.” He estimates players can get up to around 250 three-point attempts a day during that extra work. He wants his teams to play at a high pace, move the ball and create good three-point opportunities.

That development is connected to a track record of players moving on from CTA West. The Dime Sessions preview has highlighted Brayden Savage at Lincoln Memorial, Spencer Tatlock at Seton Hill, Temi Adeyinka at Roberts Wesleyan and Owen Gateretse at Midland College. Those destinations show the range of opportunities CTA players have reached. For Reckmann, the work starts with helping players understand their strengths, compete at a high level and prepare for what comes after the program.

Communication is another part of that preparation. Asked what he wants from his teams regardless of who is on the floor, Reckmann answered: “Talk would be number one.” He said this year’s groups have been quieter than usual and that he wants them to become more vocal.

Ezra Lado has been one of Black’s more vocal players, according to Reckmann. He praised Lado’s defensive versatility, communication and coachability—qualities that help the group and reflect what Reckmann values across the program. Lado’s individual development will be explored in a separate feature.

For Reckmann, championships come from more than assembling talent. They come from helping unfamiliar players build trust, understand their roles and learn to compete together. At CTA West, that work begins with one group in the gym and continues when the players split into three teams.