Coach profile
PrimeTime Pickleball
The channel that bridges pro and rec coaching. Nicole Havlicek and Jordan Briones host, but the differentiator is the pro guests: Dave Weinbach, Riley Newman, and other top-tier players come on to teach rec-applicable concepts. PrimeTime is where you go when you want pro-grade insight delivered in language a 3.5 player can use on Saturday morning.
- Subscribers
- 173K
- Videos
- 286
- Total views
- 21.4M
- Channel since
- 2017
Stats verified 2026-05-02 via the YouTube Data API. The channel link is @primetimepickleball.
By Valentin · 6 min read · Last reviewed 2026-05-02
Why we cite PrimeTime
Three reasons:
- The pro-guest format. When Dave Weinbach (US Open national champion) explains the third-shot drop, he lands every cue with confidence Nicole and Jordan amplify. Most rec channels can\'t book that talent.
- Highest views per video in our citation set. 21.4M total views across only 286 videos means 75K average per video. PrimeTime publishes deliberately and the engagement signals tell you which mechanics rec players actually try.
- Diverse host voices. Nicole\'s teaching style is checklist-driven and pace-aware. Jordan\'s is progression-based. Pro guests add their own tactical layers. The same concept gets three angles in three videos, which is closer to how rec players actually learn.
The frameworks PrimeTime teaches
Four named frameworks come up across the videos we cite or embed.
Pro guests on rec topics
PrimeTime's structural strength is bringing pro players (Dave Weinbach, Riley Newman, others) onto the channel to teach rec-applicable concepts. Most pro-tier coaching is too high-level for 3.0-3.5 viewers; PrimeTime is the bridge.
The sniper / target-selection model
Riley Newman's framing for kitchen-line attacks: at the net, you are constantly hunting for the ball that bounces above the net so you can speed it up at a target. Right shoulder, body, feet, open court. Pro-level mindset rec players can adopt.
The 7-tool keep-the-ball-low kit
Nicole Havlicek's seven-item checklist for staying off the attack: avoid hard low-to-high, target their feet, hit the ball early, paddle face angle, conscious grip pressure, no wrist flick, add spin once the foundation is reliable.
Don't chase the garbage
Dave Weinbach's recovery rule for blown drops: if you cough up a bad third shot, stay back at the baseline and hit a good fifth-shot drop. Don't come halfway to no-man's land. The discipline that distinguishes 3.5 from 3.0.
Featured videos
The PrimeTime videos we cite or embed across this site.
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5:093rd Shot Success with Dave Weinbach
US Open national champion teaches three keys plus the "don't chase the garbage" recovery rule. The cleanest pro-on-rec-coach video in our citation set.
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4:59Attacking From Below Net Height with Riley Newman
Riley Newman walks the "sniper" game and the right-shoulder body-shot pattern. The pro-level kitchen-line attacking we cite.
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4:23Paddle Position At The Net | Defending Body Shots
Jordan Briones on the ready position when all four players are at the kitchen. The body-shot chicken-wing and the 14-feet-between-paddles reality.
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6:225 Keys to Successful Dinking
The cleanest single-frame walkthrough of dink fundamentals. Continental grip, contact in front, knee bend, margin over the net, land in the kitchen.
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12:557 Key Ways to Keep the Ball Low
Nicole Havlicek's seven-tool kit for kitchen-line pressure. Target selection, grip pressure, paddle face angle, spin choice. Graduate-level checklist.
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8:15#1 Shot To Beat Bangers Once And For All
Nicole Havlicek breaks down what makes bangers predictable plus the positional weakness to exploit. Paired with the existing handle-bangers guide.
Best for which player
PrimeTime fits a 3.5+ player who wants pro patterns translated into rec language. The Dave Weinbach third-shot tutorial is rec-friendly, but the value compounds at higher levels: the sniper target-selection model needs a foundation of consistent dinks before it pays off, and the keep-the-ball-low kit assumes you can already keep a rally going.
For a 3.0 starting player, follow Briones\'s solo channel or CJ Johnson\'s foundational videos first. PrimeTime is the next stop, not the first one.
How we cite PrimeTime
Across this site, PrimeTime Pickleball is cited or embedded in:
- Third-shot drop coach take (Dave Weinbach)
- Hands-battle coach take (Riley Newman + Jordan Briones)
- Dink-rally coach take (two videos)
- Handle bangers guide (Nicole Havlicek)
- Hands battle guide
- Doubles strategy by skill level guide
Subscribe
The channel link is @primetimepickleball on YouTube. PrimeTime publishes less frequently than Briones or CJ Johnson but each video tends to be longer and more carefully produced. We refresh the featured-video list on this page about once a quarter.
Other coaches we cite
Briones Pickleball Academy and Better Pickleball with CJ Johnson have their own deep-dives. The full coaches index lists every channel we learn from.
