Of course! Here are 5 benefits of playing AAU basketball:
Play Against Great Competition
Games are the greatest way to try out the abilities you’ve acquired in practice and training in a full-speed situation, and AAU basketball provides that experience against a lot of strong opponents.
Yes, AAU has many levels of competitiveness, but most teams should be able to pick the perfect one for them, one that will test them yet not entirely exhaust them.
There are several ways for trainers to mimic games in practice, but nothing compares to competing against another team with coaches and players who are doing everything they can to defeat you, and AAU basketball provides an excellent platform for doing so.
Learn to Earn
There’s no arguing that we live in a time where everyone receives a trophy, particularly in recreational basketball, but it’s not the case in AAU basketball.
Because of AAU’s combative aspect, teams and players should strive to achieve playing time, points, rebounds, victories, championships, and, eventually, trophies. In AAU basketball, not everybody wins a trophy!
This is an excellent lesson for a later age when you must struggle for jobs, awards, pay rises, and other opportunities as an adult. These things aren’t just handed out like playing time and trophies in today’s youth sports, and AAU helps to combat the issue of expecting to be handed anything you want without having to work for it.
Learn to Deal with Adversity
Because AAU basketball is a competitive sport, athletes will encounter players and teams that are superior to them. Meaning there will be harsh defeats, tough games for individuals, and players and teams will undoubtedly face hardship, and there will be a lot of it if you play AAU basketball long enough.
Young athletes understand from the moment they begin playing AAU that they will experience challenges, and they must learn to overcome those challenges, or they will not stay long.
Moreover, this teaches important life values such as tenacity, drive, and toughness, all of which will come in handy when kids face obstacles in their lives.
Read more: What Youth Basketball Coaches Should Teach to Kids
Learn How to Be Part of Team
Learning to be a great teammate is more essential than ever before in competitive basketball; when game time is not equivalent, competitors are difficult, and there is more than a little hardship.
This entails putting the team ahead of yourself, putting your pride on the back burner a little, learning to follow a coach’s directions, and getting along with your teammates.
All of this is more difficult to do in the competitive climate that AAU promotes; therefore, AAU provides players with several chances to learn how to work well with others. Those who start to cope well with others generally go on to become competent adults later in life!
Read more: 5 Important Reasons to Get Your Child Involved in Youth Sports
It’s Fun
Lastly, basketball is a great experience! This may sound self-evident, but adult coaches and parents who become too aggressive and wrap their egos in their student’s developmental performance and team record frequently overlook it. They overlook that basketball is a game, and games, at any level, are supposed to be enjoyable.
