I've heard that the AAU circuit was going to be more orientated toward the actual school teams and were getting away from the all star teams that are sponsored by the various shoe companies. Has anyone else heard anything like this???:confused:

I've heard that the AAU circuit was going to be more orientated toward the actual school teams and were getting away from the all star teams that are sponsored by the various shoe companies. Has anyone else heard anything like this???:confused:

 

 

I believe a big problem with the all star teams is a lot of the coaches simply do not appear to know what they are doing. Players are having to get on these teams to be seen more by college coaches. But in the mean time they are putting up with poor coaching most of the time. There is some good AAU coaches out there, but not a whole lot. Then a lot of these AAU coaches end up being these players advisors and basically recruitng handlers. And (not everyone) there seems to be a lot of shady stuff going on with that.

I've heard that the AAU circuit was going to be more orientated toward the actual school teams and were getting away from the all star teams that are sponsored by the various shoe companies. Has anyone else heard anything like this???:confused:

 

There is some good people involved in it, but IMO there atleast needs to be some sort of reform.

I agree and a lot of the games I watch seems like everyone is for themselves with very little guidance from the sidelines. It's a very expensive form of street ball. A boy playing on 2-3 different teams each summer is a joke. There should be a rule that a boy signs at the beginning of a season on a team and that they have to remain on that team that whole season. I saw all the final games at KBA for the Ky State Tournament and to the crowd there was not excitement because it doesn't have much meaning. What's the big deal about getting a talented select group from all over the state and winning a tournament. If you get in the big tournaments it does create some exposure to college coaches and that's a plus to AAU. It needs more rules and organization and coaches who are not affraid to tell players when they're doing something wrong, but as Log Mt Boy said , they need to know the game in order to be able to teach it.:dancingpa

The one problem that AAU teams have, as well as other non school teams is that if a player or parent isn't happy, they just go to another team, a few may even cause a scene right there on the court. Just as with HS coaches, you have to deal with a lot of stuff, but in HS they sorta are stuck with that coach/team, and usually won't go anywhere and it's a little easier to work things out. AAU teams have to be more pampering if they wish to keep certain players, as the player knows that he might be able to quit one team and be on another team just a few hours later. A lot of times you have no idea which players are actually going to show up, as they have other things going on and then some don't know the meaning of the word commitment.

 

I have no problem with people switching teams at times, but it does make it difficult to organize a team that way. BTW, this past year there were a lot of Kentucky high school players that just quit their team, seems to be a trend. But as far as AAU ball, not all teams continue past their states tourney, and players are jockeying themselves to get on those traveling teams.

 

As Shooter and I have said on here, the state AAU is for fun, (plus pride), the real games are in July, during the open period which college coaches are able to attend. Unlike HS ball, it's not the winning that people are looking at, it's getting as many games in as possible in front of college coaches, which at times does take something away from it, where some player(s) may be only focusing on one, and not both.

I've heard that the AAU circuit was going to be more orientated toward the actual school teams and were getting away from the all star teams that are sponsored by the various shoe companies. Has anyone else heard anything like this???:confused:

 

I think that would be a bad thing for many kids. The best thing about AAU is the opportunity to get AWAY from their high school teams, play in different styles, different coaches, with different players, in different locations....

The one problem that AAU teams have, as well as other non school teams is that if a player or parent isn't happy, they just go to another team, a few may even cause a scene right there on the court. Just as with HS coaches, you have to deal with a lot of stuff, but in HS they sorta are stuck with that coach/team, and usually won't go anywhere and it's a little easier to work things out. AAU teams have to be more pampering if they wish to keep certain players, as the player knows that he might be able to quit one team and be on another team just a few hours later. A lot of times you have no idea which players are actually going to show up, as they have other things going on and then some don't know the meaning of the word commitment.

 

I have no problem with people switching teams at times, but it does make it difficult to organize a team that way. BTW, this past year there were a lot of Kentucky high school players that just quit their team, seems to be a trend. But as far as AAU ball, not all teams continue past their states tourney, and players are jockeying themselves to get on those traveling teams.

 

As Shooter and I have said on here, the state AAU is for fun, (plus pride), the real games are in July, during the open period which college coaches are able to attend. Unlike HS ball, it's not the winning that people are looking at, it's getting as many games in as possible in front of college coaches, which at times does take something away from it, where some player(s) may be only focusing on one, and not both.

 

I am guessing you meant to say "one of the problems" rather than "the one problem." I think a lot kids choose to play for the wrong team and get to the point where they are wasting their time with that particular team.

 

I wish they would revamp the whole AAU process. A lot of teams are going every weekend and playing games and not doing any fundamental work. I talked to a high school kid I know on a team and said he had AAU practice one weekend. I asked him if they did any fundamental work. He said all they did was scrimmage and go over their plays.

I am guessing you meant to say "one of the problems" rather than "the one problem." I think a lot kids choose to play for the wrong team and get to the point where they are wasting their time with that particular team.

 

I wish they would revamp the whole AAU process. A lot of teams are going every weekend and playing games and not doing any fundamental work. I talked to a high school kid I know on a team and said he had AAU practice one weekend. I asked him if they did any fundamental work. He said all they did was scrimmage and go over their plays.

 

Sorry, Yes, I did mean One OF, not THE. :thumb:

 

One of the problems with AAU teams practicing is where to practice? More than likely you will have to pay a fee to the facility (if you can find one), then time in limited, most look to hurry up and put in plays, as they have no choice. Most will have to practice during the week, then transportation is a problem, some parents won't let their kids drive so it's up to the working parents to get them to practice, and if they don't live nearby that's an issue too. It's hard enough at times to get some parents to get their kids to the games (and on time).

 

High school coaches usually have all of October and November to practice, usually a few hours a day every school day, some on Saturday, they also have time to work on anything they see fit. Then during the season they tend to have practice on days they do not have games. But, MOST (Not all) players in HS should have a good grasp of the fundamentals, but again, if not the HS coaches would have more time to work on them.

 

Give me, or any coach, unlimited access to a gym for two weeks, and 10 players who can make any and all practices during that time, then there will be more work than just going over the plays, and would have a better chance at having a better team. :thumb:

I've wondered for a while why high school coaches don't get more involved with their players over the summer. Sure they have summer work outs and there's a summer league, but IMO it prepares a team better when they are playing against not only in state players but also top players from around the country.

 

I think the biggest reason high school coaches don't get involved is because there are so many multiple sport athletes these days it would be too hard to have everyone show up all the time. Highlands is a prime example. The football players there who play basketball are doing football 9 months of the year.

Sorry, Yes, I did mean One OF, not THE. :thumb:

 

One of the problems with AAU teams practicing is where to practice? More than likely you will have to pay a fee to the facility (if you can find one), then time in limited, most look to hurry up and put in plays, as they have no choice. Most will have to practice during the week, then transportation is a problem, some parents won't let their kids drive so it's up to the working parents to get them to practice, and if they don't live nearby that's an issue too. It's hard enough at times to get some parents to get their kids to the games (and on time).

 

High school coaches usually have all of October and November to practice, usually a few hours a day every school day, some on Saturday, they also have time to work on anything they see fit. Then during the season they tend to have practice on days they do not have games. But, MOST (Not all) players in HS should have a good grasp of the fundamentals, but again, if not the HS coaches would have more time to work on them.

 

Give me, or any coach, unlimited access to a gym for two weeks, and 10 players who can make any and all practices during that time, then there will be more work than just going over the plays, and would have a better chance at having a better team. :thumb:

 

When I played AAU back in my day we practiced 2 nights a week at one of the local elementary schools then played games on the week ends. After our first year together we became one of the top teams in our age division simply because we were fundamentally sound and had been playing together not only in games but also practices where we'd work on fundamentals, plays, and scrimmaging.

 

It's not that hard to find a facility or local school to practice at that will let you use their gym for free. I know Holmes lets AAU teams use their gym for practices and games all the time over the summer for free. If you put in an effort you'll find somewhere to work on the little things.

It's great you all had the gym time and were able to practice so much, and it seems it helped you all.

 

Now days it seems harder to find a place for free, plus there is only so much gym time available. Plus it depends on what school a person is associated with as well. I know of some younger teams that can't find a place to practice as much as they want, and it's the younger kids who need to most time to practice and to go over the fundamentals.

 

 

When I played AAU back in my day we practiced 2 nights a week at one of the local elementary schools then played games on the week ends. After our first year together we became one of the top teams in our age division simply because we were fundamentally sound and had been playing together not only in games but also practices where we'd work on fundamentals, plays, and scrimmaging.

 

It's not that hard to find a facility or local school to practice at that will let you use their gym for free. I know Holmes lets AAU teams use their gym for practices and games all the time over the summer for free. If you put in an effort you'll find somewhere to work on the little things.

It's great you all had the gym time and were able to practice so much, and it seems it helped you all.

 

Now days it seems harder to find a place for free, plus there is only so much gym time available. I know of some younger teams that can't find a place to practice as much as they want, and it's the younger kids who need to most time to practice and to go over the fundamentals.

 

I'm sure any local elementary, middle, or high school would be willing to let you use their gym at night if you contact an admin about it or a coach/athletic director. Most High schools are done practing by 7-730 at the very latest. Also a lot of the time schools have more than one gym available so the girls will use one and the boys the other so teams are out even earlier than 7.

 

Holmes has 3 gyms and I believe Highlands has 2. Janitors usually don't get out of the building until around 10 anyways so practicing from 7-830 shouldnt be a problem at most places.

AAU is definitely changing the game, and especially the recruiting. I think the NCAA is already making some changes to try and de-emphasize AAU. I think they may limit (further) when college coaches can actually watch AAU.

 

Yes, most AAU teams are just just a bunch of talented players thrown together. I think the Shining Star squads play together pretty well as a team. Also, the Lexington ICE are a good example of a group that plays excellent team ball. (why they are state champs I guess)

Edited May 22, 200818 yr by HSBallFan78
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AAU is definitely changing the game, and especially the recruiting. I think the NCAA is already making some changes to try and de-emphasize AAU. I think they may limit (further) when college coaches can actually watch AAU.

 

Yes, most AAU teams are just just a bunch of talented players thrown together. I think the Shining Star squads play together pretty well as a team. Also, the Lexington ICE are a good example of a group that plays excellent team ball. (why they are state champs I guess)

 

I saw them play several times and again they just had more talent but did play together well.:dancingpa

I've heard that the AAU circuit was going to be more orientated toward the actual school teams and were getting away from the all star teams that are sponsored by the various shoe companies. Has anyone else heard anything like this???:confused:

 

D-Dawg, I just quoted you because you started the thread and I'd like to weigh in, nothing personal. I think your information is largely mistaken though simply because of the amount of money involved. Too many people make too much money for the shoe company camps and tourny's to go away. Is that good for the game, no. Does that matter, no, too much money involved.

 

I agree with most of the posts in the thread, but I don't see many changes coming because of the money involved. The NCAA has taken a closer look at who actually coaches at events their coaches attend in recent years, and it is a good first step. But, it's only a baby step.