Players caught between AAU, school coaches

 Article by Sam Kahn, Houston Chronicle, 8-3-10

Third of five articles in a series. 

Some blog reactions to the article are found at the bottom of the article.

During a basketball game, most coaches constantly move along the sideline, pointing at their players while shouting instructions.

There's a lot of finger-pointing off the court as well, but not of the instructional variety.

When it comes to a player's best interests and development, there is a constant tug of war between Amateur Athletic Union coaches and high school coaches. And fragmented relationships have resulted from the power struggle between the two groups.

Their styles of play often are different — and the circumstances make it almost impossible for them not to be. High school programs often run structured offensive systems and put emphasis on preparation and knowing one's opponent. Teams will play two games a week (more if they play in a tournament) and often have at least two days of practice between games, with the exception of the three tournaments each high school is allowed to play during the non-district season.

In AAU basketball, the volume of games is much greater. Showcase tournaments are frequent, and in a five-month span from March through July, a team might play anywhere from 50-80 games, with practice time significantly limited. In an equal span from November though March, a high school team might play 40 games - and only if it reaches the state tournament.

The differences have led to finger-pointing between coaches as to who is properly developing a player's basketball skills.

"Eighty percent of them (AAU coaches) don't know what they're doing," said Jones coach Quincy Shelton, who referees AAU tournaments in the summer. "They've got them playing out of position and doing things they're not going to do when they get back to school."

Present versus future

AAU coaches acknowledge that conflicts can originate from position changes.

"Take a kid that's 6-6 or 6-7," said Houston Hoops 17-and-under coach Marland Lowe. "He may be the tallest kid in his high school. On that high school team, he may be expected to play center. On the travel circuit, he might play small forward or (shooting) guard and may have to play on the wing in college. A high school coach will play him at center because that's what's best for his team, but we might move him out to the wing, where he projects in college, to help him be successful in the future."

But Lowe said he stresses to his players the importance of listening to their high school coaches.

"At the end of the summer, we have expanded their skills, but if a high school coach asks you to play a different position, we tell them, 'Do what is asked of you from your coach,'?" Lowe said. "A lot of times that's not done, though, and the kid may think the high school coach is not fully utilizing his skills, when in fact, he's trying to do what's best to help that team win."

In some cases, there is little or no relationship between a player's high school coach and AAU coach.

"I don't see as many (high school) coaches in the summer supporting some of their players," said Houston Hoopstars coach Keith White. "I do see some. Some of my players' coaches have come and supported their guys. Knowing a little bit more about what we do kind of helps."

The relationships aren't bad everywhere. Many high school coaches have positive relationships with AAU coaches who tutor their players in the summertime.

"I try to make sure my players are with people that are upstanding and that you can trust," said Clear Lake coach Tommy Penders. "I try to watch practices and go to games, and that's why my summer is so busy. It's a totally different brand of ball. You just have to be around, and I try to communicate with their coaches, and I think that's a necessary part of the business. Your kids need to know that you care about what they're doing in the summer."

Bad apples fuel perception

Most seem to agree that both AAU and high school basketball are necessary components in a player's development. High school basketball provides structure similar to what is experienced in college basketball, while AAU provides the greater exposure to coaches and scouts, especially during the July NCAA evaluation period.

"There's so much more structure involved going to class all day in the high school season," University of Houston assistant coach Alvin Brooks said. "It's more of a true evaluation to gauge how they're going to perform at our level."

And though there's a stigma associated with AAU coaches that many say they can't shake, some believe the negative generalization doesn't apply to all of them.

"I think in the grass-roots scene, there's so many good grass-roots coaches," Memphis coach Josh Pastner said.

"There are bad apples in every walk of life - you have a bad apple in the police department and in politics and in the agent business, but that doesn't mean that everyone's doing it the wrong way.

"The negativity gets so blown out of proportion, and I think 98 percent of them are doing it the right way and giving kids opportunities to do good things. I'd rather these student-athletes be going to summer basketball tournaments than being involved in drugs and violence and alcohol and getting in trouble with the law."

Blog reactions:

 huskerbacker wrote:

larrys0 wrote:

For better or worse, AAU offers exposure

Basketball in summer draws college coaches to where action is

By JEFFREY MARTIN,  Houston Chronicle, Sunday August 1, 2010

(Some blog reactions to article appear at bottom of article)

The directives are clear, yet repeated anyway. Parents, no matter the situation, will always be parents.

"Get back! Get back!"

On a Thursday in early July, a few minutes after noon, a handful of moms and dads have already claimed seats at one of four basketball courts at the Legends Sports Complex. More than 60 teams, mostly local and from within Texas, have gathered for the H-Town Summer Slam, one of the notable Amateur Athletic Union events the city stages.

So what's with all the fuss about AAU? Just a prime opportunity to catch the eye of a college coach in the hopes of securing a coveted scholarship?

On the surface, perhaps, but dig deeper — is it something more seedy? The NCAA is trying to get a better grip on the situation, like eliminating the practice of being able to offer scholarships to seventh-graders. Elite prospects with ties to "runners" - friends or associates of influence who then deliver said elite prospects to agents for future financial gain - can be a common aspect of AAU.

Whether a college coach is willing to support or tolerate such activity is speculative. Some suspect their peers of cheating, but most recognize this is part of the hustle of college basketball.

"Anybody involved in all of this does this because they love working with kids," said Hal Pastner, the founder of the Kingwood Classic and Houston Hoops, a program that has produced pro players such as Rashard Lewis, Emeka Okafor, T.J. Ford and Kendrick Perkins .

Regardless of the viewpoint, AAU provides exposure. College coaches used to be allowed to watch non-high school basketball in April, but the NCAA put a stop to that. July is the only month they can do so, and there are two viewing sessions - the first spanning from July 6-15 and the second from July 22 to today.

During that time, head coaches such as Marquette's Buzz Williams, SMU's Matt Doherty, Nebraska's Doc Sadler and Wichita State's Gregg Marshall as well as top assistants from every Big 12 school have passed through the city.

A hoops hotbed

On this afternoon, they've shifted from court to court to keep an eye on Cameron Ridley, a 6-11, 260-pound rising senior center from Fort Bend Bush who stars for the Houston Hoopstars.

"He has a chance to be the best big man in the country," said Evan Daniels, a national recruiting analyst for Scout.com. "He's a monster."

These days, the Bayou City is regarded as a hoops hotbed.

"Coming up, these are the best two years for talent in that city I've seen since I started covering recruiting," Daniels said.

For every Ridley, though, there are the kids at the end of the bench, impatiently waiting for their chance. In AAU basketball, the challenge is getting noticed.

At Legends, metal bleachers are positioned in the corners. The coaches are hard to miss, especially since their shirts - mostly untucked with the college name prominently displayed across the front - make their sections look like an opened box of crayons because of the various school colors.

And the louder the color, the better, it seems. Again, the point is to get noticed, a goal that college coaches and high school players share.

The motivation, however, is different.

For the players, their shirts are also telling. D-Gib Hoops and Bosh Foundation, the respective AAU teams of Cleveland Cavaliers and former Texas guard Daniel Gibson and Miami Heat forward and Dallas product Chris Bosh, express the dreams of the players to follow their sponsors' footsteps into the NBA.

As for the coaches, sometimes maintaining interest is a chore.

"AAU basketball is a joke," an assistant coach from a BCS conference said, sighing.

An inexact science

Sloppy action is a constant refrain from those forced to sit through the uneven play. College officials question the credentials of the men leading these teams, but more times than not, those men have more voice and clout in a prospect's decision on which school to attend than his high school coach - another source of controversy.

But it's unavoidable, as is the constant travel during July. With April out of the picture, coaches have a tougher time making proper evaluations. And because AAU rosters are so fluid with defections and other commitments, it's impossible to know for certain who will be where.

Alas, it's a necessity. A coach won't remain a coach for long without talent, and this city has an abundance at the moment.

 

Blog reactions to article:

bballcoach wrote:

I've seen this madness from both the perspective of a college assistant trying to recruit top prospects and the high school coach trying to guide prospects through the recruiting process. It has gotten so bad that many players feel the summer circuit is more important than prep play. The real tragedy is seeing those not so hot prospects who are on travel teams paying big money to fill a roster with no chance of landing a scholarship. Just because you play next to a highly touted prospect does not guarantee you will be noticed. But year after year parents fork over big money to AAU coaches to keep the dream of playing college ball alive. Many don't even know what their child's core grade point average means. Most college coaches already know who they are going to evaluate before they even get to an event. They have to. There are too many games to approach a tournament without a plan. Most AAU programs do not teach sound fundamental basketball. They are simply a meat market to display the hottest talent in meaningless games. There are, however, a few examples of programs doing it the right way.The Houston Hoopstars is an example of how it should be done but they are the exception! They conduct a program of practice, training, and personal development that could serve as a model for the entire industry. They posted a 70-11 record this summer. Many of the "so-called" top prospects never face the realities of REAL COACHING until they get to college and many can't take the criticism or hard work. Neither of which they get in July. Everyone tells them how great they are just to get them to sign.Many AAU coaches aspire to get to the college level and will use a big time recruit to get a college assistant job. Until the NCAA puts real, enforceable regulations in place and puts the emphasis back on prep play where high school coaches actions are closely governed by state associations like the UIL, this thing will continue to get more out of control. Parents have to really take care to be actively involved in the recruiting process. There are a lot of pitfalls and bad information out there if you are being influenced by the wrong people.

 

westsidebill wrote:

AAU is geared towards poorer, educationally-challenged athletes as a way to get "exposed" to colleges for a one-year commitment before going pro. There are SO many more leeches and other shady characters and dealings going on with AAU "sponsors" than there are positive things from AAU basketball playing.
From not receiving proper fundamental coaching (from "coaches" who sometimes even have criminal records, were HS dropouts or didn't even attend college) to a complete lack of mentorship and accountability for those involved, AAU basketball is NOT a way to make these "stars" productive members of society. For the money that it costs some players/teams to travel, it should.

August 3, 2010

I have been following AAU off season basketball for well over a dozen years as it has evolved to it present state. These very beneficial articles provided by the Houston Chronicle are timely, if not overdue, and should be repeated every season.

Presented without much of the bias that parents or involved observers like me tend to have, these five articles on AAU basketball can help serve as a basic tutorial and are duplicated here to help provide a centralized, easy to find access which will remain available over time as opposed to searching throught the Chronicle's archives.

As an involved supporter (not a parent of a player) of a large 5A high school basketball program for over two decades, I have watched, and assisted,  parents as they progress through the various stages of awareness of what AAU basketball is all about and what it means to their family - from realizing that AAU existed to facing the decision making required to make the significant time and financial commitments necessary for their player to participate on an "unsponsored" team. I have also tried to help some parents deal with the realities of their son's participation on a sponsored team and the challenges and perceived inequities that can and do occur.

Without question parents often need help as they face the decisions they must make as they realize the role AAU often plays in the evolution of their young players. These articles should serve as an invaluable aid to parents attempting to navigate the swirling, murky waters of AAU basketball in its current state.

 Second Annual 3 on 3 Summer Classic Tournament will be August 7 at Clear Lake High School. 

 Boys and Girls Divisions for Grades 3-12 plus an Open Division.

$25 per player or $75 per team, 4 player maximum per team

There will be a 3 game guarantee.

Deadline for registration is August 2 but walk-ups are welcome. 

Registration forms can be downloaded by clicking on  "Handouts" on the menu above. 

All proceeds will be donated to the Clear Lake High School Boys Basketball Program.

Volunteer parents will be needed to serve as referees in each division. 

For more information:

     Call 832-526-6906 (Tony) or 713-875-7589 (Terry).

     Email tonylapia@gmail.com or tlkrenek@gmail.com