Filmroom Friday and How to edit a Highlight Tape

This article has the usual catch up with prospects via recent highlights. This edition also includes a "how to" section on the way to make a highlight tape most effective. No, I'm not doing a breakdown on using Adboe Premier, iMovie, Final Cut or other editing software. There's plenty of youtube videos that help with the technical side of editing. I want to give feedback on which clips to use, how to order them, and more.   Along with the writing for PrepHoopsOklahoma, I also film, edit and post highlights for my own video service, OKHoopsVideo. You can find it on Twitter and Instagram. While the Instagram videos are more of the "hype" variety, the Twitter/X videos are formatted and targeted with the idea of promoting prospects to college coaches. I have 15 years of experience in creating highlights, and along the way my work has helped quite a few prospects.   Here's three key things to keep in mind when putting together a prospect highlight tape.   Best Foot Forward   Think of it from the point of view of a college coach, they're likely seeing dozens of highlights on the timeline, in emails, etc. If the tape opens with a basic layup, or wide open three, does it stand out and make the coach want to continue watching? Open with a tough And 1 finish. A big time slam or block. Maybe a picket pocket steal and score. Or a deep off the dribble three. It's even possible that it could be a great assist if the prospect is a point guard. The goal is to grab a coach's attention with a key aspect of a prospect's game. First impressions matter. Don't rely on a college coach making it 97 seconds into the video to see the clutch "And 1" finish that tied up the game in the final minute.   Have Themes   Group similar plays together. Known for shooting abilities? Make sure to have stretches of the highlights that have back to back to back threes made. Point guards should have stretches of highlight tapes making great passes/assists. I'm not talking about simple ball reversals. Use on the money transition passes. Pocket passes on drives. Tough kick outs to open shooters. Reinforce the aspect of a prospect's playing style that will appeal to college coaches. The same grouping of plays concept can also apply to defensive plays. Drives to the rims. Putbacks for a forward. Etc.   Keep it Clean   The clean aspect can be used to describe multiple aspects of the video. There's the obvious one, use clean lyrics if picking out music for the highlight tape. But also don't let the tape be filled with filler. What's filler? Simple layups or open buckets at the rim. Don't use them, or at the least not at the start of a tape. Even free throws can slow down the flow of a tape. If including them at least 2x speed the clips. Or leave them out, because an interested coach can always pull up FT stats. The final keep it clean aspect is the length of the clips. Don't start a clip too early, or let it linger on too late after a play has ended. Again this is a timing aspect, most coaches aren't likely to spend more a couple minutes watching a tape. So there doesn't need to be a bunch of downtime, or they could get bored and move onto to the next highlight tape in the inbox.    <a href="https://x.com/OKHoopsReport/status/1991976026784845972?s=20">Social Media Highlights</a>   Here's a highlight tape example from my recent work, that follows the concepts outlined above.   Opens with a dunk. Then gets into three point shooting, which are two of Matulis' best traits. Those are attention grabber type clips. Which lead into the little things he does well. Taking charges, helping out as an offensive rebounder. The goal of this tape was to drive home that while a shooter, Matulis has the size and athleticism to positively impact games even when he's not hitting from deep.     <a href="https://x.com/Smedley__3/status/1990988775040655515?s=20">Social Media Highlights</a>   One of the biggest eye catchers of the spring and summer, Smedley looks ready to hit the ground running as the go to man for Guthrie. Showed off the springs with multiple dunks, even a reverse slam in transition. Liked his operating out of the high post, drilling jumpers and even a great feed to a cutting teammate. Add in perimeter shooting, and he has the ability to hurt teams from all over the court.     <a href="https://x.com/owen_w32/status/1990799843246420082?s=46">Social Media Highlights</a>   Big man with perimeter range. Does good work on the low block, and also out to 8-10 feet with cleanly catching and quickly getting his shot up. But possibly his best trait is how smooth he looked as a spot up threat. The quicker he develops this winter, the more dangerous the Racers become as a floor spacer who still gives them a major height advantage over 5A teams.     <a href="https://x.com/treysummers0/status/1990245102195765278?s=46">Social Media Highlights</a>   Summers is becoming quite the flame thrower from distance. It looks like last weekend in Tulsa that he was draining threes like they were layups. Good off the ball movement and footwork to come off screens, drift to his spots and always be ready to shoot. Still has hints of his iso game off the dribble, with good mid-range attacks. Becoming clear he could continue to develop into one of the better shooters in Oklahoma's Class of 2027     <a href="https://x.com/graysonada1/status/1990999800200737056">Social Media Highlights</a>   A new name to track out of southern Oklahoma. Good size, tracking and motor when it comes to rebounding. Even was able to push it off a defensive board. Soft touch and solid form on a baseline jumper. With Morris' development, the Cougars could sneakily be one of the bigger teams in 4A. And his ability to rebound could really punish foes on the glass this winter.

This article has the usual catch up with prospects via recent highlights. This edition also includes a "how to" section on the way to make a highlight tape most effective. No, I'm not doing a breakdown on using Adboe Premier, iMovie, Final Cut or other editing software. There's plenty of youtube videos that help with the technical side of editing. I want to give feedback on which clips to use, how to order them, and more.