Coach's Corner: Meet Glenview's dynamic duo of basketball

He is now the shooting coach for the NBA powerhouse Milwaukee Bucks. She is a Division 1 basketball player competing for the Dukes of James Madison College.

Together, they make beautiful basketball music, with a passion for the game that goes far beyond the ordinary.

Meet Glenview dad and basketball coach Josh Oppenheimer, also known as "The Shot Doctor," and his daughter Nikki, who if anyone ever kept score, I would bet spent more time in the gym and practiced more basketball shots than any Glenview hoops player ever - guy or girl.

I can speak to this first hand. Over the years I would run into them at various times and at all hours. Always, always in the gym. If I was going for a workout at the Park Center fitness room, there was Nikki and dad getting up shots in the gym.

Going for a walk on the upstairs track early in the morning? The peaceful quiet was interrupted by the sound of a bouncing ball. Yep, Nikki and dad. Sneak in later in the evening for a jog? Same twosome, drilling away on pullups, layups, three-pointers and just about any other shot you can imagine.

I even spent time coaching at the Joy of The Game Center in Deerfield. I would be in with my sons' team or one of their club teams, and who would be behind the curtain on another court all by their lonesome? Glenview's dynamic hoops duo shooting the evening away.

"I worked her pretty hard," admits longtime coach Josh. "Nikki took a liking to the game as early as second grade, and spent so much time watching me coach that she kind of fell in love with the game. We stayed with it over the years, and Nikki was so dedicated and sacrificed so much, but all the hard work and dedication paid off with a chance to play college ball, and do so with a full scholarship. I am really proud of her."

The admiration works both ways.

"He really helped me," said Nikki. "He's the reason I am where I am. I learned the game and learned shooting from him and all the time he spent with me. I really can't thank my dad enough."

Josh has had a long and storied basketball career. A road map and good sense of direction are needed to follow his trail, but let's give it a shot.

After playing and starring at Northern Arizona University, he spent 10 years playing professionally in Israel. Then - hold on to your seats, this ride could get bumpy - he coached at Duquesne, Delaware, DePaul, Kent State, Milwaukee Bucks, Houston Rockets, Long Island Nets, James Madison, and then back to the Bucks again. Whew!

Since his days at DePaul, though, Glenview has always been home base.

"When I got the DePaul job, me and my wife Adrienne (a volleyball star at Northern Arizona) knew nothing about Chicago. We were looking for a great school district, and Glenview was what we found. It has been a wonderful community to raise our kids."

So how did the whole "Shot Doctor" thing come about?

"Really, it began when I was working with Bulls guard Ben Gordon," says Josh. "He needed a workout coach and I was recommended. He ended up hiring me full time, and I actually traveled with the Bulls team. From that experience, I ended up working with Kirk Hinrich, Luol Deng and others. But it was with the Milwaukee Bucks when one of their beat writers nicknamed me 'The Shot Doctor' that the name really took hold."

Nikki's route is not quite as long and traveled, thank goodness, but her basketball journey is circuitous as well.

In her early years, she played on some of the area's top travel teams, as well as starring for the Springman Jr. High basketball team. In high school, she went to Montini Catholic, a girls basketball powerhouse in Lombard, and starred there before injuring her knee and missing most of her senior season.

She then played for the Puerto Rico national under 18 team (mom is from Puerto Rico) in the FIBA games before heading to Syracuse to play in the Big East. After freshman year, she transferred to James Madison and now proudly wears the Dukes jersey.

"I really enjoy it here," says Nikki. "The girls on the team are amazing, and so are the coaches. I have made some truly great friends."

She is only a junior, but has the option of playing two more years at the school because of NCAA COVID-19 allowances.

I made the mistake of asking her if any other coaches are allowed to make suggestions on her shooting.

"No," said Nikki rather defiantly, and then laughing. "My dad is my shooting coach, and if I go into a slump, he is the one I call for any suggestions. All the other stuff basketball related, absolutely. I listen to my coaches, and they have helped me a ton, but when it comes to shooting? No one touches my shot besides my dad."

OK, message received. And why not when dad is "The Shot Doctor" and one of the most highly regarded shooting coaches in the country.

Right now, with the Bucks, he is working directly with Giannis Antetokounmpo, the reigning NBA MVP and maybe the best player in the world this side of LeBron James.

"We just got into Orlando yesterday," Josh tells me, "and me and Giannis found a high school gym and worked out for an hour, just one-on-one."

In case you're wondering how great players become great.

But then he gave his daughter Nikki the ultimate compliment.

"Nikki works as hard as any player I have come across, including WNBA and NBA players. She is totally locked in, and she has made me a better coach and a better person. She's just an unreal kid. She is my favorite player I have ever coached."

High praise, indeed, from the basketball twosome whose hoop seeds began right here in Glenview.

• Jon Cohn of Glenview is a coach, retired PE teacher, sports official and prep sports fan.