AAU, Club or Travel Basketball
Parents and players often have to choose at some point whether they want their child to play basketball for Town Travel, Club, or in an AAU program. This decision can be very hard to make sometimes. The pros and cons of joining either of them make the decision so hard for a lot of parents. This article will help you know the things you need to know before making any decision.
AAU:
We will begin this article by discussing the AAU first. The AAU is known by different names across the United States of America. In some places, it is known as Club and Travel but AAU officially stands for Amateur Athletic Union.
The AAU selects kids based on where they live near specific high school boundaries or the skill level. The team is made based on tryouts amongst kids. The season goes on for almost 2 and a half months or 10 weeks. This season includes around 8-10 games per team and a tournament that is played once the season comes to an end. Practices happen twice a week for about 1.5 hours and the players are not allowed to practice out of this time. Playing in the AAU costs more than most other options and that is because of the amount of basketball that is offered, as well as the caliber of coaching.
The best thing about playing in the AAU is that since all of the players are from the same area, it is very likely that their chemistry would be top-notch during games.
One bad thing about playing in the AAU could be a very highly competitive environment that may not be for all players. The best AAU programs have different level teams so that all players can be a part of it. This will allow the AAU program to teach life lessons and other great sports attributes to players of all skill levels.
Club Basketball:
Clubs have become more popular in the past decade. A lot of Clubs have now been going on for more than 20 years. These long-established clubs are probably the best choice if you decide to choose club basketball for your child. However, a lot of these clubs have also been made by some random parents. These clubs may not be the best-constructed clubs. The price for these clubs can range from being as low as 75$ per month, which includes stuff such as travel, jerseys, and other expenses, or as high as $2500 for an entire summer, which would include all expenses such as travel, jerseys, insurance, etc.
The good thing about playing Club Basketball could be a good coaching staff. The coaching in Club Basketball is what it is known for. See if the coaches of your nearby clubs are well regarded or not. If the coach is well-known and has some experience, then playing your child in such clubs could mold him/her into a very good basketball player. Club Basketball teams also usually play at a higher level than AAU or school ball and travel a lot more.
Club Basketball can often be very expensive as told before. This could play a huge factor for some middle-class families who may not be able to afford such high expenses.
Travel Basketball:
Town Travel Basketball used to be a great option for players but is now one of the worst options for a young player. It used to be special to play for your town but now most programs are infected with personal agendas and politics.
There are a few benefits to travel basketball these days. The politics that take place in town travel basketball are at an all-time high. Father coaches stop at nothing to benefit their own kid and his or her friends. Then purposedly not giving us a good an opportunity to a player who is not in the same crowd.
These same fathers are also running the programs and all decisions are made for the program on what is best for their personal schedules and agendas. Not to mention, very few if any of the father coaches have the basketball experience as a player or a coach as a good AAU coach.
With so many options to play basketball in different programs, it is important to make sure the organization you choose for your child teaches life lessons. The life lessons an athlete can learn from good coaches in a solid program will last with him or her forever. STACK Basketball in Mahwah, NJ is the top AAU/Club basketball program in New Jersey and New York and the main reason is the life-lessons the players learn while being a part of it.
