The Head Coach Of Westtown Basketball And The Founder Of And1: Seth Berger

Seth Berger is the founder of the brand And1 and is the current head basketball coach at Westtown High School, in Pennsylvania. Berger is also the Managing Director at the 76ers Innovation Lab. During his time so far at Westtown, Berger has won multiple championships, and has coached multiple NBA players such as Cam Reddish and Mo Bamba.

What do you think made the brand And1 so attractive and appealing to not just basketball players, but to anyone, and what made it such a successful brand?

We actually wanted to create a brand for people who identify as basketball players, no matter what level. Basketball has its own culture, we only cared about supporting basketball players and repping that culture. Certainly, there was a lot of great teammates, hard work and elements of luck in any success we had, just like any winning teams.

In an interview with Bleacher Report, you mentioned that Mo Bamba was a ¨diamond in the rough¨, do you think you have any of those types of players on your team right now?

Yes. I think while Jalen Warley is very well known, Dereck Lively is still under the radar. He just got a UNC offer and has a chance to be the best player I will ever coach. Tall, athletic, fantastic hands, plays super hard, high iq, great teammate. Has everything you need to be an NBA All Star.

The 2017 Westtown team was described as one of the best high school basketball teams ever, and certainly one of, if not the best high school basketball team in the history of the state of Pennsylvania, what do you think was the key to the team’s success? 

Most great teams start with great players. We have had so many at Westtown, going all the way back to our first recruit, Luisito Jimenez, and our first future pro and eventual NCAA Champion, Daniel Ochefu. What those guys started in the early years led to the success of the 2017 team, which started 2 NBA players, one guy currently in the G League and 2 other D1 guys. That team was tall (shortest starter was 6’6”), super talented, and played to win. We lost 2 games that year with 2 and 3 starters out in those games, and went 32-2. That level of success will be hard to repeat.

You have built a winning program and a well known powerhouse at Westtown, how are you able to have so much success every season, and in a way, reload with more and more talent each year?

Our focus has always been and always will be on player development, even at the expense of winning games. We spend most of our practice time on skill development, spend lots of time on films, and play in even teams in almost every practice. Iron sharpens iron, and our job is to help players reach their highest level, whatever that may be. My players will not hear me say “bad shot” almost ever, because I want them to be always stretching and expanding what they can do, not to “play within themselves.” I think this commitment to our kids becoming their best is our #1 principle, and that makes it easy for kids to want to come to Westtown and compete against great players in practice every day.

You have coached so many great players such as Cam Reddish, Mo Bamba, Franck Kepnang, Brandon Randolph, Jalen Gaffney, and so many others, how are you able to get great players to play for one another, instead of playing for themselves?

In the application and admission process, you can usually tell if a kid is a team first player or a me first player. They usually come from team first families. We don’t want anyone in the program that isn’t a team first kid or a team first family. 

In 2016 and 2017, you guys won back to back titles, what do you think was the key to repeating, and in a way not having what some teams may call a ¨championship hangover¨?

Honestly, our team in those 2 years was just so much better than our competition in states. There wasn’t much coaching required. They were a group of future pros playing against teams of future college players. 

What experiences lead to your approach to your stance of racial injustice?

My parents marched on Washington with Dr. King, my mom worked in Civil Rights and I grew up in NYC, the most diverse city in the world. I think I have been very lucky to a) have a good sense of awareness of my surroundings, and b) be willing to speak up when I see something wrong. I think it’s impossible if you are a kid growing up in NYC in the 70s and 80s to not know that our country has a long way to go to meet the ideal that everyone will be treated equally under the law. Before there was George Floyd, there was Amadou Diallo, before him there was Emitt Till and thousands and thousands of black men murdered by “law enforcement officers”. I am hopeful that America has finally crossed a line in the sand where we understand that while implicit bias is part of the human condition, intentional discrimination in any area of society is unacceptable and must end. So, like John Lewis said, if I see something, I say something. Simple as that.

How did you fall in love with the game of basketball, and discover coaching was your passion?

I can remember the red white and blue net at the camp in Massachusetts I went to as a 13 year old kid. I fell in love with the game late, and had a role model in my counselor Gary Weiss. He could really play and taught me so much about the game in just a couple summers. I can’t tell you what it is, but since I was an 8th grader, I have always felt at home and happiest on a basketball court, wherever that court may be. Regarding the move into coaching, I want to do 2 things with my life: Have fun and make a difference. Coaching basketball is the most fun way for me to make a difference. Every day I get to coach kids is a blessing and I hope I get to do it for years to come. 

When you watch college and the NBA, are there any things that you take away from the games, and add to your arsenal?

Every game at any level is a learning opportunity for me. I started coaching late, at 37 years old, so I’m playing catch up every day. Most of the coaches on tv have forgotten more than I will ever know, so I will watch, record, play back and copy lots of stuff I see on tv. 

What is your favorite memory of your coaching career?

Winning the 2020 State Title. It was Westtown Boys Basketball third state chip and came after losing in the title game in OT the year before. We “needed” to win last year and I’m so thankful our players came through when it mattered most.