Skills and drills.....

Along these lines. My suggestion would be don't worry about the big named AAU orgs just make sure whatever team you put him on either rec or AAU you get a good coach that knows how to teach fundamentals and doesn't spend all practice time teaching some crazy flex offense at 8 and 9 yrs old. I've talked to several high school coaches and they all tell me they wish the kids they get coming in knew how to play fundamentally sound basketball. They have to teach how to play solid defense and in some cases a simple layup or set a proper screen. Just me worthless 2 cents.

Along these lines. My suggestion would be don't worry about the big named AAU orgs just make sure whatever team you put him on either rec or AAU you get a good coach that knows how to teach fundamentals and doesn't spend all practice time teaching some crazy flex offense at 8 and 9 yrs old. I've talked to several high school coaches and they all tell me they wish the kids they get coming in knew how to play fundamentally sound basketball. They have to teach how to play solid defense and in some cases a simple layup or set a proper screen. Just me worthless 2 cents.

 

I agree. I see so many kids playing defense with their hands just hanging there. My son plays good defense is physical and always has his hands up.

The mistake many parents make is expecting the rec/AAU coach to teach the fundamentals. In their defense, they only have so much time per week and they have 8 to 12 players. Games should be where you see how your skills are working that YOU have worked on ON YOUR OWN.

The mistake many parents make is expecting the rec/AAU coach to teach the fundamentals. In their defense, they only have so much time per week and they have 8 to 12 players. Games should be where you see how your skills are working that YOU have worked on ON YOUR OWN.

 

My sons coach mostly teaches fundamentals then the last 10 to 15 mins they scrimmage.

Turners was the best to learn fundamentals back in the day, is ti still?

The mistake many parents make is expecting the rec/AAU coach to teach the fundamentals. In their defense, they only have so much time per week and they have 8 to 12 players. Games should be where you see how your skills are working that YOU have worked on ON YOUR OWN.

 

I agree to a point. Each is his own. If you want your kid at the age of 8 or 9 do nothing but learn plays than you are correct time is an issue but if your goal is to teach basketball fundamentals then time isn't a issue because that is what you spend you most of your practice time on. My point was to the parent you need to decide to go to a team that cares about winning or learning at this age. There is no one answer that fits all. By no means am I knocking the AAU orgs just some have different goals.

When I coached we spent the first hour doing nothing but drills to help those fundamentals become natural to where you did them without thinking. The kids new when they came to practice they new what we were doing every day and didn't waste time. It took a few practice to get into it but I feel it worked great.

Turners was the best to learn fundamentals back in the day, is ti still?

 

Yes it is still on of the best places.

There were valid points made by every poster so far. Is that a BGP first? When deciding what is best for your 9 year old son each case will be different. At that age there are so many levels of development. I have seen kids at that age who couldn't dribble turn out to be great high school players and some of the best lose interest. If you are just comparing SOAS and nothing else then you are likely fine just playing in the rec league. Either way and with aau if you want your son to improve you will need to reinforce fundamentals at home. If your son is an above average player who is driven to compete then an actual aau team may be for him. Go out and seek top competition. AAU players at that age generally have an above average skill set, are driven to compete and typically have better basketball knowledge.

If you find a good rec league coach, the only difference is that you're saving a ton of money.

If you find a good rec league coach, the only difference is that you're saving a ton of money.

This is the truth. My son started playing rec soccer and played with school friends and it just happens his friends mom was I think a "C" licensed soccer coach. He was getting great training for $65 i think at the time rec fee. She was great. Unfortunately she was so busy she moved her son to club which left us with another parent that really didn't know soccer. After that we decided to move our son to club which has been good and I can't complain.

This is the truth. My son started playing rec soccer and played with school friends and it just happens his friends mom was I think a "C" licensed soccer coach. He was getting great training for $65 i think at the time rec fee. She was great. Unfortunately she was so busy she moved her son to club which left us with another parent that really didn't know soccer. After that we decided to move our son to club which has been good and I can't complain.

 

I am also an experienced, trained youth soccer coach. I feel like I give my kids the same kind of instruction, if not better, than many club teams. Most of my team also plays in state level events such as the Commonwealth Cup and Kohl's Cup. We are playing a 15-game schedule this Spring season.

 

I think it just all depends on the ability and vision of the coaches. If you can find a trained (and organized) rec league coach, you can save a lot of money and still get great training and skill work. Of course, on the other hand, I've encountered some rec league coaches who literally know nothing about soccer. So I guess it's a gamble unless you know the coaches.

I am also an experienced, trained youth soccer coach. I feel like I give my kids the same kind of instruction, if not better, than many club teams. Most of my team also plays in state level events such as the Commonwealth Cup and Kohl's Cup. We are playing a 15-game schedule this Spring season.

 

Are these two events, end of season Recreational Competitions that are set up like State Cup, President's Cup, and Soccer Village Cup?

Are these two events, end of season Recreational Competitions that are set up like State Cup, President's Cup, and Soccer Village Cup?

 

They are state rec league tournament...aka state championships. Kohl's Cup is after spring rec season. Commonwealth Cup is after fall season. My team finished runner up in the silver division last fall.

Good to hear, I did not realize they also had state championships for rec leagues. :thumb:

 

I hope they run them as well as they do the other state tourneys.