I love AAU basketball

Author: al1woods
The landscape of high school basketball is changing. The up and coming power is AAU basketball. Why do I say this? Because it's true. High school basketball is not the same anymore. It use to be a big deal to play on your high school team but that time is over. AAU basketball offers more to the student athlete than just being on the high school basketball team. AAU basketball programs run like small corporations. These programs have presidents, treasurers, trainers, and many coaches. They raise money for their programs and do a great job with recruiting.

All of these programs are non-profit and bring in many donations. The part of AAU basketball that I can see that's fun for the players is the traveling. Many of the programs are going to tournaments all over the country and players are staying at hotels, eating at good restaurants all the time and are doing things kids like to do. AAU basketball is fun and there's more parental involvement.

The AAU players have greater advantages that high school teams don't. During your high school season you play 20 or so games with teams in your community which means you get on the school bus and travel to another school to play. There are no hotels or places to eat after the game like you would get during the AAU season and there is no travel.

During the AAU season you have a different coach and sometimes and entirely different group of coaches. Other major advantages I see are recruiting good players to the AAU program whereas in high school, you're stuck with the players who go to that school.
Recruiting is a big deal these days. College coaches want to see as many players in one place, at one time and you can't really do that during the high school basketball season.

At some of the AAU events there are hundreds of teams with thousands of players. It would make sense for college recruiters to attend because it's much easier to see all of the good players in one place. College coaches can see these players play many games during the length of a tournament and it is a great advantage to the players of these AAU basketball programs.

AAU basketball players can play 40 to 50 games and there are many other perks that go along with that such as, players receiving free shoes and new uniforms. In high school, you are stuck with same old outdated jersey that's been worn a million times by many other players.

AAU programs also have power. When it comes to recruiting they have the most talented teams and players and college recruiters want to get to know these AAU coaches. College coaches can only get to these players by going through the AAU coaches. I've heard that some AAU coaches will say things like, “if you make a donation of $10,000 you can have access to my players”. Now keep in mind, this is not illegal. AAU programs are non-profit and have to raise money somehow. College programs do make these types of donations and it's all good for everyone.

Back in the day and not that long ago, some high school coaches would try to ruin a high student athlete's chances of getting recruited for college but with the power of AAU basketball, you can't get over on players any more. The players now have more options and there's nothing wrong with options.

The things that I'm hearing and seeing with AAU basketball is that some major college recruits are bypassing the high school basketball season altogether. If it's about recruiting and being seen then all you would have to do is only play AAU basketball. By only playing AAU basketball, you can still been seen by a greater number of college coaches and I think it would be a better advantage to play AAU basketball. The only downside I can really see is if you are an average basketball player and are not on a good AAU basketball program. Then, you would need the high school basketball season.

To be recruited in high school it would help if your team played in the state tournament every year. College programs would come and see the players playing--all in one place. That still goes on but the value is not so important any more. Not every team makes it to the state tournament and good players sometimes get overlooked. But if you are lucky enough to be on a good AAU team, then you will be seen by a large number of coaches.

Think about this: some smaller college programs who don't have the big recruiting budgets have to pick which events to attend each year. These smaller college programs must spend their money wisely so, to attend a large AAU basketball tournament would be in that college's best interest. College programs don't need to attend the high school basketball games anymore because they're only going to see one good player--maybe. College coaches are funny about how they recruit players and they're not coming just to see one player anymore. AAU basketball offers more. It's like one-stop shopping--get it all and see it all in one place.

I don't know if the coaching is any diffident or better with AAU basketball versus high school coaching. It may be about the same because a lot of high school coaches are AAU basketball coaches. What I do see is the AAU coaches having more time to put into their own programs and players. Also, many AAU coaches don't have to deal with the high school BS from school administrators and athletic directors. AAU coaches can bypass many restrictions that are placed on high school coaches.

Yes, being an AAU basketball coach has its many advantages. Being an AAU coach, you can build the program how you want and pick or recruit the players you want now. High school coaches are teachers and do not have the time to fully help their own players with recruiting.

There will come a time when AAU basketball is more powerful than high school basketball. In the future, you will see more AAU basketball events on T.V. Some AAU programs will even start their own television network and maybe run their own programming on the Internet.

AAU basketball is what's happening now! I love AAU basketball!

www.woodsrecruiting.com

© 2007 Al Woods

Article Source: http://www.a1articles.com/article_239716_32.html
Occupation: College Recruiter
President, Woods Recruiting, 1989-Present Born in Portsmouth, Virginia, attended Bayside High School in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Al is a graduate of West Virginia State College in 1986 with a degree in Therapeutic Recreation and Sports Management. During that same year, Al signed a contract to play professional basketball in Buenos Aires, Argentina, South America from 1986-1989. Averaging 23 points 12 rebounds and 10.5 blocks shots per game during his 4 seasons in Argentina. What makes me a college recruiter? First I've played high school basketball in college and in the pros. I have been thought the college recruiting process and I've seen how the process works from the players point of view also seen how other high school players were recruited. I know first hand what a high school student athlete deals with everyday with keeping there grades up and the pressures of the game. I understand what parents are thinking about all of this what to do where to turn to for answers. A lot of people as they are recruiters but I would bet that most never played the game or were ever recruited by college programs. Also what makes me a college recruiter is the time and money I put in the to learn this business going to all the football camps, AAU events, summer league torments, All Star games, baseball showcases, talking to college coaches face to face yes I have put in my time and that makes me a college recruiter. In 1989, Al started Woods Recruiting with the money he earned playing professional basketball. One day while at the gym the YMCA in Cleveland, OH, rehabilitating his injured knee Al says, "I saw this young man come in the gym who wanted to play a game of one-on-one basketball. I really didn't know much about the young man who was around 6ft., 9in. We played several games of one-on-one. Afterwards, I asked him what college he plays for. His answer was, to my surprise, that he was just out of high school and no colleges had recruited him. We talked for a while and exchanged phone numbers. I asked him if he was serious about college basketball, I could make some calls to some colleges to see if I could help him out. I called around five area colleges and talked to the coaches about this young man. All the coaches said they would be interested and would call him. Within several days, all five schools contacted him and he ended up at an area college. It was just that easy! After getting in school, his parents called to thank me. It gave me a great feeling of satisfaction that I was able to help this young man achieve his dream! I then realized that there must be other high school athletes in similar situations. So I started going to area high school basketball games, talked to the coaches, met the players and asked if they were being recruited and what their plans were upon graduation. Many of the athletes wanted to play at the college level but were under-exposed to college coaches. So again, I made calls to colleges about some of the area high school players and I was able to get all of them recruited and into college. That's when it dawned on me that there was a major need for this type of service. I would attend more high school games, talk to the coaches, players and parents and I was able to get a long list of high school players who were interested in playing college basketball. At that point, I realized that this could be a business opportunity to help high school student athletes realize their goals. As Woods Recruiting grew, I was able to add other sports. Currently, we work with all high school sports from many parts of the United States. We also have a growing staff whose job it is to work with high school athletes in helping them to get recruited. We take great pride in what we do here at Woods Recruiting. I enjoy all the student athletes and the families that we've worked with over the years. What separates us from other scouting services is our personal touch, our attention to detail and our quality of service. Over the years, we have developed relationships with thousands of college coaches. You can say we have a "golden rolodex" of information. In years to come, my goal for Woods Recruiting is to dominate the high school athletic market from coast to coast, provide more employment opportunities and to make dreams come true! "Success is a journey; this is just one of the stops along the way."
http://woodsrecruiting.com