In Columbus, over the last few weeks AAU basketball has started up with tryouts and then practices.  This coincides with the end of high school basketball season so kids can roll right into the AAU circuit.

One of the topics that I talked with a few parents about, was basically how much basketball is just right and how much basketball is actually needed.

Some of these athletes were trying out for 3 or 4 teams.  Trying to determine what would be the best fit for them.

What should you look for in a travel team?

Was it important to be part of a strong AAU program that travelled the country?  Or was playing time more important?  What about the coaching?  Do you want your AAU experience to teach the fundamentals or do you just need a coach to be a figurehead to kind of coach you during the games?

I don’t know if we will necessarily have the answers to those questions in this post, but you should be aware of them.  That isn’t all though.

Can you play a second sport if you are doing a travel sport?

What do you do if you want to play a spring sport?  So now you have your athlete playing baseball and then AAU basketball at the same time?  What about the philosophy of many athletic trainers that your body needs to have down time from one sport?

Meaning, you did basketball for four months and your body is used to those movements.  Now, you still stay active, but stop basketball at the end of the season and go to playing your spring sport.  A whole new movement and skill set for your body.  This keeps your body fresh and allows it to not breakdown as fast.

What would I do?

I don’t know yet.  My oldest is getting to the age where I might have to start looking into these travel teams because everybody tells me that’s what you have to do to improve as an athlete.

Of course, I want an athlete to play as many sports as he/she wants to, but at what point do you have to make a decision to narrow those sports down?  I don’t have aspirations that my kid will play in college, but if I don’t do something soon, will that affect whether or not my kid even makes a high school team to enjoy that experience?

I certainly don’t want my kid to play on a travel team just to play on a travel team.  I’ve watched some of these practices and coaches and I don’t think it is time well spent.  My kid is still young enough that what is important to me is developing a skill set.  They don’t need to know how to run a 1-3-1 trap if they can’t even dribble without looking at the ball.

Would I be better served to spend the money I would use for a travel team and put it towards a private coach to develop that skill set?  That is a debate I have back and forth.

Once again, I don’t think I have the answers, but these are the questions that are causing a lot of angst for many parents.  I know fourth graders that have played 38 games over the winter basketball season.  High school teams play 20 games in the regular season and as many as 26 if they make it to the state championships.

That doesn’t make sense to me.  Why are fourth graders (younger developing bodies) playing almost double the games of kids who are on the latter years of their maturity development?

This is the new landscape for youth sports.  It is a business and sometimes the concept of “developing youth” isn’t necessarily at the top of mind.  Hopefully, these questions will get you thinking as well.  I would love to hear what your thoughts are in the comment’s box below.