ITW Maxime Nelaton, coach without a club but still at work: « It’s a year of consolidation and expansion »

Former SCABB coach, Maxime Nelaton has been living since last summer in a rare situation for a professional coach’s career: a season without a club. A period that could have been experienced as an imposed break, but which the Loire technician has, on the contrary, chosen to structure as a key stage in his journey. Between taking a step back, immersions in France and abroad, and deep reflection on his coaching identity, this 2025-2026 season is fully part of a logic of continuity and evolution.

A career forged very early by the orange ball

Born in Clermont-Ferrand, now 39 years old and settled in La Talaudière, Maxime Nelaton grew up in an environment where basketball was omnipresent. « I became loyal, as an obvious choice, coming from an orange ball family, » he explained, recalling the decisive influence of his parents and grandparents, as well as his father’s professional career.

Having gone through the Vichy training center at 14, then through the Clermont training center (U18 France then Espoirs), he quickly discovered the professional world with Aix-Maurienne in Pro B. Lacking playing time, he then continued his career between NM2 and NM1, in Prissé-Mâcon, Épinal, La Charité-sur-Loire, Clermont-Ferrand, Montbrison and Beaujolais Basket. A point guard by training, he accumulated experiences while already developing a clear vocation for coaching.

From the court to the bench: rising responsibilities in Saint-Chamond

Graduating as a coach at 22, Maxime Nelaton never stopped coaching alongside his playing career. Training centers, youth teams, then quickly access to the highest level with Saint-Chamond Basket Vallée du Gier.

Arriving as an assistant, particularly in charge of video analysis, he worked for several seasons alongside Alain Thinet, an emblematic figure of the Loire club. A foundational relationship. « Alain is a true mentor. You don’t spend 35 years in this profession without human quality and competence, » he confides today.

He evokes a particularly formative context, where responsibilities were gradually entrusted to him: individual development of young players, video management, tactical preparation, then taking charge of the first team in summer 2023. « The fact that Alain was coming to the end of his career, naturally, he left me quite a lot of responsibilities. All the planets aligned for these years to be very rich. »

A brutal separation, but an assumed perspective

The adventure nevertheless ended abruptly at the end of the 2024-2025 season, against a backdrop of governance change. A situation he now analyzes with perspective. « In these six years, I experienced two clubs. Five years with one way of operating, then one year with completely different balances, » he explains.

Without avoiding the difficulties, Maxime Nelaton also accepts what this experience brought him. « With hindsight, it makes you grow. Today, I wouldn’t manage the situation the same way as last year, » he acknowledges, emphasizing the importance of permanent adaptation in the profession.

A year without a bench, but not without a project

Released from his contract on the eve of his departure for the Las Vegas Summer League, Maxime Nelaton refuses the idea of a blank year. « I never experienced it as a year of rupture. For me, it’s a year of consolidation and expansion, » he affirms.

Without a team to direct, he imposes a strict rhythm on himself, close to that of an active staff. « I impose office hours on myself. I work every day, I watch, I analyze, I read. » This period allows him to overhaul his overall project: offensive and defensive principles, management, individual development, but also analytics and data.

Multiple inspirations and international openings

During these months, Maxime Nelaton multiplies exchanges and observations. In France, he visits several clubs, including ASVEL, and closely follows the work of technicians he respects. « Guillaume Vizade, with whom I have strong ties since Clermont, is also someone with whom I exchange a lot. » He thus went to see and follow his work in Le Mans.

Abroad, he is also inspired by prominent figures in European basketball. « I was quite inspired by Tuomas Iisalo and what he did in Paris. This year, Pedro Martinez is doing almost the same thing with Valencia. There are many similarities. And before them, Steve Kerr, in movement and off-ball play, remains an important reference for me. »

He took advantage of his period without a club to also make NBA immersions, with visits to Phoenix and Minnesota in November. « The idea is not to copy-paste, but to confront your vision with other environments. As I always say, one plus one equals three, » he summarizes. Trips he hopes to extend soon to Spain and Germany.

A collective DNA inherited from Thinet, but evolving

On the court, Maxime Nelaton remains faithful to a collective, highly efficient offensive basketball, largely inspired by that implemented in Saint-Chamond by Alain Thinet. « I kept this DNA because it’s basketball as I see it. Playing fast, sharing the ball, sharing responsibilities, it was a way to make the collective strong against the individual, » he explains.

But this philosophy has been refined. « To share, there’s sharing that creates an advantage and sharing that maintains an advantage. Today, I think more about creating the first imbalance, sometimes through a bit more physicality or athletic quality. » An evolution that doesn’t erase the legacy: in 2024-2025, nearly 79% of his team’s baskets came from an assist, with one of the best attacks in Pro B in efficiency (115.2 offensive rating, second in the division behind Blois).

Still watching players and the market

Even without a club, Maxime Nelaton continues to work on recruitment. A regular at the Las Vegas Summer League since 2017, he attends the camps organized by agencies every year. « Seeing players in person is essential. And especially, creating connections with agents and foreign coaches. » Last summer, he actually took a step forward in July by coaching a team during a EuroBasket camp on the sidelines of the Summer League.

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He maintains a detailed database, follows foreign championships, the G-League, and regularly exchanges with contacts in Germany, Spain, Poland or Finland. « What’s important is not only the player, it’s the person. Putting the right person in the locker room means avoiding many mistakes, » he insists.

And now, building the future

Today still based in the Saint-Étienne region, Maxime Nelaton projects himself towards a new project. Not just any project. « No environment is standard. The challenge is to make your identity correspond with the club’s context, » he explains.

More than just a return to a bench, he is looking for a project in which he can build, adapt his philosophy without denying it, and continue to develop a collective. An ambition nourished by a season without games… but rich in meaning.