The number of Rep Teams seems to increase as your player progresses from U10 to U14, but suddenly, you're looking for a U15 Team, and there aren't many in your area to try out for.
This is partly due to what typically happens in a young person's life around this time, including:
High school's increased homework workload
The need/desire for money and therefor a part time job
Making time for a girlfriend/boyfriend, or for more social activities like get togethers
Making the high school team and choosing that as the primary basketball activity
With more student athletes choosing to give more time to these needs and others, there are fewer players looking to join teams, and in some areas, as a result, fewer teams.
It's also worth noting that some complete teams with finalized rosters end up having to add a player due to the drop out rate. Some end up folding.
You'll also see far fewer "Team 2/Team B"s out there. With all the other things tapping their focus and attention, playing lower division ball can begin to be a bit less attractive by comparison.
Grade 9 is an important transition year for many students, going from having teachers who were not allowed to let a student fail, to immediately working with teachers who don't need to ensure anyone passes - passing is now officially the student's responsibility. Add to that the increased study load and more complex lessons, and its enough to derail any plans for extra-curricular activity.
If your player is in a school with a Tier 1 team, and they make the team, they likely have numerous practices per week, and a busy game schedule that runs all the way to March.
To avoid losing some of the talent in rep, starting with U15, the OBL and other leagues tend not to have any games until April, and registration of the team and roster doesn't happen until February in some cases due to the likelihood of change.
So what do we do if our player(s) want to play high level basketball but did not make a rep team or the high school team?
As always, I strongly recommend finding a good trainer with a solid schedule of 2-3 sessions per week. This way they're staying in shape in the event an opportunity does come up, and if not, they're in game shape for summer league/travel teams.
Many of these trainers have teams playing in smaller leagues, just to ensure the athletes are getting in-game experience, learning how to apply what they're learning under pressure.
It's important to help our players stay focused on the long term goal when short terms plans don't deliver - for example, I pulled my son out of one of his teams so he could focus more on academics (he still plays for 2 teams). He was a bit down about the decision, so I asked him to tell me what his goal was again.
He said, "to play college ball, ideally for a D1 team".
So I advised, "This year is not just about this year. This is about ensuring that College Team goal happens in 4 years. If you only focus on ball between now and then, and you end up with a 60% average in your final year, you're going to have a hard time getting into a college, let alone one with a good team. Play for your high school team, and for your trainer this year, and get your study habit locked in place. Get an A average. Then let's talk about adding a rep league team".
Still disappointed, but understanding that I might have a point, he conceded and we moved on with the work to be done.
I didn't hate being 15, but I do remember being a "nifty niner" wasn't always fun, and I remember the quality of my schoolwork and study process needing a full tune up.
Again, there are more than these things that can take a player out of the game, and they all contribute to the overall reduction in number of available spots for this age group. Keep them in the sport to the best of their ability and schedule, and help them prepare for a richer season next year.
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