Well let me clear this up real quick. Your wrong! how is that? and furthermore you wouldnt know a basketball player from a base fiddle.Your going on hype. There are 4 kids that made made that team that are not in the same area code as Taylor Martin. I saw 5 of them play several times this year.Taylor Martin is one of the best if not the best high school player Catholic has put out in 20 yrs. Dont start with the names I know they are comming. I said High school basketball player. You saw what happened in the state when he didnt have a great game. This kid can do it all and makes players around him better. You guys are enamoured by the dunk shot and a guys skill set and all that other Tom Leach venacular.He controlled games and was the most dominating player on the floor 99% of the time. Go to his stat line against the high calibur competion and you will understand.Look at what he did in the 4th quarter against top notch competition. If im not mistaken he led Catholic in PPG,rebounding,assist,steals, freethrow %.Furthermore he took a beating all year. This was all done with him creating everything because he had nobody to get him the ball or wouldnt get him the ball.

Frankly, Hammerman, you have no idea what I'm thinking or what I know ... and let's leave it at that.

 

Martin is a fine player, and no one in their right mind disputes that. But this is a year where there is more talent than usual in Kentucky, and the voting for the Herald-Leader is done by the coaches, I think ... that being the case, why don't you challenge their knowledge of the game?

I am challenging their knowledge of the game. I have watched ball for 40 yrs and played for just as long. I would say that there may be 5 coaches that I have seen and im sure im missing a few that I would say are qualified to coach H.S. basketbal on an X and O level. Look at the amount of D-1 players the state is putting out now compared to the numbers of 25 yrs ago no comparison. I will say that one problem is the coaching these kids are getting in the youth leagues which in most cases are none. It has gone from experianced ex players to dads who are fans of the game. When you have middle school coaches setting an offense up to get 3 point shots you have serious problems. There are no fundementals taught ,heck I saw varsity teams that didnt have ball skills to get it up the floor this year.I have a question about your comment "talent" explain to me what talent is?

I am challenging their knowledge of the game. I have watched ball for 40 yrs and played for just as long. I would say that there may be 5 coaches that I have seen and im sure im missing a few that I would say are qualified to coach H.S. basketbal on an X and O level. Look at the amount of D-1 players the state is putting out now compared to the numbers of 25 yrs ago no comparison. I will say that one problem is the coaching these kids are getting in the youth leagues which in most cases are none. It has gone from experianced ex players to dads who are fans of the game. When you have middle school coaches setting an offense up to get 3 point shots you have serious problems. There are no fundementals taught ,heck I saw varsity teams that didnt have ball skills to get it up the floor this year.I have a question about your comment "talent" explain to me what talent is?

 

You're right, I don't think kids are taught fundamentals at any level. It seems as though everything is a one on one. I think when they put in the 3 point shot it took a lot of thinking and fundamentals away from the game. I've seen patterns ran with 3-4 passes just to get open for the three point shot. To a youngster that 3 point shot is luring and some never learn how to play just because all they want to do is shoot a three. I just don't think coaching is what it used to be. Athletes are there but the fundamentals aren't.

Correct sir. I watched a 5th grade game and 25 three point shots were taken by 1 team and they hit 3. The three point shot is to far for young kids to shoot I would use the line as a restriction if you shoot past it you go to the bench.The number one thing and most important thing to learn is ball handling which has become a lost art. I dont mean standing still going between your legs. I mean learning how to get a shoulder by a man and being able to control the ball with your head up and getting yourself in position to get a shot or pass. Good shooting can be learned in a summer or two, ball handling takes years. The old summer camps used to work on fudamentals all day and you hardly ever used to take a shot if it wasnt a layup. The camps now scrimmage all the time and the kids spend 3/4 of the time running up and down the court. I would like to see more 3 on 3 work at practices learning to pick and roll and play off screens. I Also see to much jump shooting. No great scorer at any level ever relied on a jump shot, the jump shot is a safety valve when you cant get to the basket. The Martin kid can do all this ,he creates length by going off 1 foot and he understands angles as good as any kid I have seen in high school ever.He can rebound in space(tip the ball in traffic where he has the timing and go get it) another fundamental in rebounding.This is not old fashion basketbal its good basketball. There was not a team in the 11th region this year that could have beaten a lexington city team in 1975 it wouldnt be close.Watch a ky game and look at the mistakes made that you wouldnt see made in middle school 20 years ago,throwing the ball back in bounds under the opponents basket no clock awareness, not many smart plays anymore. These kids need to spend time by themselves instead of AAU, develope skills on their own,and put them to test in pickup games. You get 15 to 20 shots a day in AAU if you work on your own you can get 500. That makes a ball player.

Hammer, i also agree with you about fundamentals they definitely need to be stressed more. I would not go as far and say that AAU is not needed, i think it has a place. I think the problem starts with parents local youth programs, and middle school programs. Those programs appear to place to much emphasis on winning and less on fundamentals. Parents want to win worse than the kids and the problem snowballs. Youth league programs teach are structured in a manner that does not allow real basketball to be taught. They try and play too many games in a short period of time. These programs should focus on teaching youth coaches how to teach fundamentals and the game to the age they are coaching. I agree completely that the 3 point shoot has had a negative effect on our youth learning how to play. I know some middle school coaches that want to teach the game and develop youth, but they get alot of grief from there parents because they are not always playing what the parents believe are the best players. I think you bring up some valid points in regards to that aspect of your post today.

Hammer, i also agree with you about fundamentals they definitely need to be stressed more. I would not go as far and say that AAU is not needed, i think it has a place. I think the problem starts with parents local youth programs, and middle school programs. Those programs appear to place to much emphasis on winning and less on fundamentals. Parents want to win worse than the kids and the problem snowballs. Youth league programs teach are structured in a manner that does not allow real basketball to be taught. They try and play too many games in a short period of time. These programs should focus on teaching youth coaches how to teach fundamentals and the game to the age they are coaching. I agree completely that the 3 point shoot has had a negative effect on our youth learning how to play. I know some middle school coaches that want to teach the game and develop youth, but they get alot of grief from there parents because they are not always playing what the parents believe are the best players. I think you bring up some valid points in regards to that aspect of your post today.

 

 

This. Great post.

Well AAU is a different story in itself. In the old days 70's and 80's before AAU you had 2 main summer camps B/C in Millidgeville Ga. which was an invitation camp that was limited to 250 players over 2 different week long sessions and Five Star in Pa. You would be assigned to a team and play with that team all week long. The highest profile players attended the B/C camp from Ralph Sampson to Dominique Wilkins and in between. Every college coach in the country was in the stands to see the best players compete against each other. Now that the NCAA wont allow coaches watching (I think i am correct on that) it has opened the door for the AAU. This allows the AAU coaching pimps influence to be bought to steer players in a certain direction. I for one think this will be the next major scandle in college athletics. Im just not a fan of AAU or the NCAA.

With everyone wanting to point at AAU for players lack of individual development lets remember that AAU is just a brand. Nothing more than a sanctioning body that provides tournament operators some structure if they want to affiliate with that brand. Very little of what goes on in the summer has to do with AAU. If you want to place blame on the system you need to look at Sonny Vaccaro, Nike and adidas. The NCAA has also contributed to the situation by structuring the current recruiting calendars. Whole system needs an overhaul and books have been written as to how we got to his point but there are some very big corporate players with a whole lot of money tied into the current camp and tournament structure.

I agree AAU is just a brand that actually sanctions over 30 ametuer sports. Because of their size they can offer benefits that afford many teams the opportunity to participate in structured b-ball in the spring and summer. This is a benefit to alot of people involved in youth sports. Most of the tournaments for High School age kids during the month of July are not necessarily AAU sanctioned tournaments. They are NCAA certified tournaments that allow the college coaches an opportunity to watch the athletes. Having a AAU membership offers certain protections to the coaches and the facilities that host the tournament. This actually offers opportunities to alot of kids that otherwise would not have the opportunity to participate. I do think there are some bad coaches out there who does this for their own ego's and not for the good of the individual athlete. I think if there was a way to spread the sponsorship money around to the various programs it may end some of that. I will say that in the 80's there were more than one Five Star Camp being ran, but again it was expensive and alot of kids who had talent was not afforded the opportunity to get the exposure. The current system allow more young athletes a chance at exposure.

 

Back to the fundamentals. I still think we have to start at the grassroot level to develop fundamentals and skills. Thats starts with parents understanding why little johnny is participting in what ever sport he or she chooses. Winning cannot be the primary objective at that level, although i do think we need to keep score, kids need a reason to compete. Play less games and practice more. Youth programs should offer clinics to there coaches to ensure they have an ideal of the skill they are trying to teach. I also think that fundamentals should be taught and emphasised at every level.

My son plays on an AAU team. They practice 2-3 times a week(since the last week of March) and will play in 5 tournaments this year with the first one being mid May. If it weren't for his AAU team he'd be sitting in his room playing xbox. I can't be mad at AAU.

This is a pretty decent ranking (IMO). You could make good cases to switch some from 1st Team to 2nd Team, but they pretty much nailed Honorable Mention.

Very good choices in my opinion.

I thought so too.

Hammer, i also agree with you about fundamentals they definitely need to be stressed more. I would not go as far and say that AAU is not needed, i think it has a place. I think the problem starts with parents local youth programs, and middle school programs. Those programs appear to place to much emphasis on winning and less on fundamentals. Parents want to win worse than the kids and the problem snowballs. Youth league programs teach are structured in a manner that does not allow real basketball to be taught[/b]. They try and play too many games in a short period of time. These programs should focus on teaching youth coaches how to teach fundamentals and the game to the age they are coaching. I agree completely that the 3 point shoot has had a negative effect on our youth learning how to play. I know some middle school coaches that want to teach the game and develop youth, but they get alot of grief from there parents because they are not always playing what the parents believe are the best players. I think you bring up some valid points in regards to that aspect of your post today.

 

I agree totally.

 

My son started at point this year as a freshman in a DIII program but never was a great scorer as a young player but he learned how to handle the ball, see the floor and understand the game. I wouldn't let him shoot the three until he was strong enough to get it there without altering his form and it payed off for him. Too many parents want little Johnny to be the leading scorer on the 3rd grade team at the expense of teaching their kids the necessary skills to compete when they are older. If the kid is a freak on an athelete then he'll be fine at the high school and college level but the rest of them need to learn to play the game correctly!

 

And I totally agree that AAU has it's place in their development as it allows the kids to see and play against the best; thereby understanding what they need to do to compete.