Program Mission
The young men in the program will excel in the classroom, on the court, and in the community. Passion, confidence, intelligence, unselfishness and fundamentals are the corner stones of the program. The players and coaches will work together to create a culture that is positive and nurturing to all its members. Consistent preparation and continuous improvement in both mind and body will be the main goal for every person, every day.
Program Goals
Athletes will represent the basketball program, school and themselves with class, pride and sportsmanship at all times
All players in the program achieve a G.P.A. of 3.0 or higher.
We will build a strong sense of team where players play for each other and the school community above themselves.
Treat every practice and game as preparation to win a Conference Title and a State Championship.
Scheduling (click on menu item “CALENDAR” to see all posted upcoming events)
Commitment: Athletes are expected to be at all team events. Family is first, academics are second and the basketball team should be third. We will work with students and families to be flexible and all effort should be made to be at ALL scheduled team events.
Practice: The basketball season is Nov-Mar. Some weekend practices/games do occur. Practice times during the week try to have freshmen go after school most days. JV and Varsity may practice after school or later time slots. Every effort will be made by the coaching staff to start practice on time and end on time. Have rides arranged at the scheduled times. Coaches must wait until the last player leaves. Please work out rides ahead of time when needed. AFTER SCHOOL, PLAYERS AT SCHOOL MUST BE WITH A TEACHER, IN THE ARC OR AT PRACTICE. PLAYERS MAY GO HOME AND THEN COME BACK FOR PRACTICE.
Away Games: Students are expected to ride the team bus to the game if provided. If a parent wants to take their child home after an away game from the site of competition on a weeknight, it is allowed and you MUST inform the coach. We hope all players will attend varsity games on weekend nights. If a player leaves from another city with an adult that is not related to them then there must be written permission signed by their parent allowing it. AWAY GAMES IN WASHTENAW COUNTY DO NOT GET AAPS BUSES AND REQUIRE PLAYERS TO FIND A WAY THERE AND BACK.
School Breaks: Please know that basketball events are scheduled during school breaks over Thanksgiving and winter breaks. These are opportune times for scrimmages and high-level competition showcases. As you move up the program, please take note of what varsity does so expectations are understood.
State Tournament: We will play in the Class A State Tournament.
Academics/Eligibility
Student grades are checked at the end of the first trimester and every 3 weeks during the season for eligibility. Players below 2.5 GPA range must go to ARC for 1 hour per day either before or after practice.
1) Players with 2.0 GPA are eligible to play in games.
2) Players with a 1.35-1.99 and at most 1 E are on Probation the first time it happens. On probation, students can practice and play in games. 2 E’s at a grade check results in missing the next week of games, no probation. If a student is on probation and does not pass the next grade check, then the player is ineligible. District policy says if a player is ineligible for 3 straight weeks, then the player is done for the season. While ineligible, students will be required to go to the ARC until they become eligible. Grades are checked each Friday for that player for the following week.
3) To be on the team, the player must have a .67 GPA and passing 4 classes.
4) Maintain Amateur Status: Athletes cannot accept cash or any
item valued over $25 for anything sport related.
5) Early school dismissals are possible for away games. We need to work together with the teachers to ensure that these players stay in very good standing in these classes and get the assignments before leaving and turn in assignments.
Study halls in Coach Lovelace’s room, the library (ARC) or PE classroom after school will be necessary for players below a 2.5 GPA. PLAYERS ARE NOT ALLOWED TO BE IN THE SCHOOL UNSUPERVISED AFTER SCHOOL between school getting out and a later practice. Failure to respect this rule will result in running/loss of game playing time and may eventually lead to dismissal from the team. Players need to be in a productive activity while at school.
Team Size and Selection Criteria
The evaluation for team selection will be done by the entire staff for each level with lots of notes and discussion. Many factors will influence the decision as to who makes the teams such as; shooting/scoring, defense, ball handling, court awareness, passing, speed, passion, confidence, coachability, team chemistry and GPA. When selecting the team, determining the most cohesive and successful mix of players for each level along with looking at what is the best for each individual player is the goal.
Player movement between levels during the season is possible and will depend upon merit, need and/or team chemistry.
Playing Time
The coaching staff will try to get all players into each game. There is no guarantee that this will happen. The coaching staff will not discuss playing time with parents. We will discuss this with the players. This is a highly competitive program and is not a recreational basketball team where everyone plays. For varsity competition, the goal for every game is to win the game and we will play our best mix of players to win the game first. More emphasis will be put on getting everyone into games at the junior varsity and freshmen levels but playing time will not be equal for all and some may not play.
Award Criteria
All players in good standing at the end of the season will receive either a freshmen, JV or Varsity award. Players must maintain player status and be with the team until the end of the year to receive their award. To receive a varsity award, a player must be in uniform for 4 varsity games or have a very significant impact, as decided on by the coaching staff, on state tournament game(s) after having been moved up at the end of the season. ** Please note the athletic dept. guidelines for ordering letter jackets colors.
Off Season Expectations
Introduction: We support athletes playing multiple sports. We do not expect the players in the basketball program to focus entirely on basketball all year long. In fact, we encourage them to play multiple sports. If a basketball player participates in a fall or spring sport, then they will be expected to focus on that sport during the respective season. If players are not playing a sport, then we expect them to come to scheduled workouts that focus on strength, quickness and fundamentals. In the summer, we will cooperate with coaches from the other sports so that the athletes can split time to work in all desired programs.
Fall/Spring Expectations:
All Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors who are not playing another sport will be highly encouraged to lift weights, attend conditioning and speed/quickness sessions 2-4 days a week. We have basketball specific strength and conditioning programs. We will have scheduled 4-man skill workouts as gym time and player availability are possible.
Summer Expectations for returning program players:
The emphasis for the summer program for returning players will focus on improving fundamentals, improving team chemistry and having our new senior class learn to take leadership of the program while playing high level competition. We feel the players greatest opportunity to develop their fundamentals is during the spring/summer/fall months, because during the season, so much of the focus is to be on offensive and defensive execution. Therefore, our summer program will include high level competitions and have a major focus on player fundamental development. The summer program is 5-7 weeks. Full practices begin the Monday after Memorial Day with scrimmages throughout June and the summer program may go to mid July.
Interesting Articles on Youth Sports
"These kids are Ticking Time Bombs" The threat to youth basketball
Article by Baxter Holmes, ESPN Senior Analyst July 11, 2019
Under the Knife -- Exposing America's Youth Basketball Crisis
Article by Baxter Holmes, ESPN Senior Analyst July 12, 2019
Focus of these articles are on how much new players in the NBA are showing signs in their mid 20's of wear and tear that used to be found in NBA players in their 30's. The articles are looking at how much basketball is being played at the youth level now and impact on players bodies and health.
Fundraising
We ask each player to raise their player fee amount ($200-$270 range) that is responsible for purchasing all items that go specifically to the player during the season. Specifics about what that includes will be handed out at the pre-season parent meeting. We will give opportunities to raise this amount and partial scholarships are available through SABC. This is in addition to the 'Pay to Play' fee from the district. If a family wishes to write a check then that is fine. We have a full budget sheet for you to view as well as our fundraising plan. Families will have to do their part to help make our program operate at the level that we desire. If you have any ideas to help the team raise money, please feel compelled to lead up an effort to help. We also accept donations to help our families in financial need that have difficulty with the team costs.
Parent Involvement and Communication
As parents you love your children and want to see them succeed, just like the coaching staff does. Therefore, parental involvement in the boy’s basketball program is welcomed.
Negative involvement:
The most negative interactions between the coach and parent occur when either the parent is upset about their son's playing time/role or with how the coach has interacted with the player at a particular time.
The difficult decisions a coach has to make concerning players are team selection and deciding who plays at specific times in the games. All parents want to see their son play in all the games as does the coaching staff. However, in a very competitive contest typically 7-10 players get playing time. Some players may not get into the game at all. There will be plenty of discussion between the coach and player on playing time. Parents will have to talk with their son about his discussions with the coach on playing time.
If you have a concern…..
When a concern arises about a coach to player issue, the parent should react thoughtfully to seek as much information as possible from both sides before drawing conclusions. If parents have a concern, here is the process to address concerns:
i) Talk to your son. See if your concern can be worked out first with a coach to player conversation when the player brings their concern to the coach. This helps to foster important life lessons of learning to communicate and working together. The meeting will not be on a game day or before practice. If unresolved then …
ii) Set up a meeting with the head coach of the team (possibly the varsity coach also) to try and resolve the issue. The meeting will not be on a game day or before practice. If unresolved ..
iii) Set up a meeting with the Athletic Director to try and resolve the concern. The meeting will not be on a game day or before a practice. If your concern is still not properly addressed, you may ask the AD for additional action to take.
Positive involvement:
Parents will be encouraged to communicate with their son on his physical well being, his mental well being, and his academic status. If parents have concerns of any kind in these areas, we fully encourage you to communicate with the coaching staff so that we can work together to help overcome any issues. Parents must provide emotional support for their son in difficult times, as well as in times of success.
VOLUNTEER! Parents are encouraged to get involved with one or more of our various committees and volunteer to help when opportunity arises. Please sign up to lead or help out on a committee or at an event!
Parents are encouraged to tell the coaching staff about scheduling conflicts as soon as possible prior to the intended date.
Please come to as many games as possible, cheer on the whole team and bring others as well!
Conclusion
The player to coach relationship is the glue that holds the program together. Any negative discussions and comments about the coaching staff by the parent, to the player(s), will result in weakening the strength of the team and the program. Parents have every right to expect the coach to be a role model for their son and we will do our very best to always be consistent, fair, and compassionate when dealing with problems that occur during the year. I fully encourage parents to communicate with the coaching staff about concerns they have during the season so that we can all work together, and never against each other.
AAPS Athletic Code of Conduct
All players and parents are required to read, agree and sign the AAPS Athletic Code of Conduct. It is attached below.