Tomorrow morning 75 middle school players will make their way to Hoop Group in Neptune. There they will be part of the MIDDLE SCHOOL COMBINE. It will be a chance for kids to learn more about where there game stands today. It will be a chance for kids to get something rare… a honest truthful evaluation of there strength and weakness.
These days it’s rare that players are given truth. These days young players tend to play more and more. Today kids are more concerned with hype than development. Today it seems more and more kids are far more concerned with ranking and getting in bed with those who will protect and massage their ego’s. Today parents want and need to be told how great their child is as a player. It’s for these reasons why more and more kids don’t develop and many end up either being over or under recruited. That’s because coaches today at every level understand, that too much honesty can cause a player to move on and leave their program. So coaches try to navigate though this difficult balancing act. Say a little truth but not to much and hopes that a light switch goes on or that the player is good enough that the coach can live with them, even when that player doesn’t maximize their potential. That’s just way it is far to often these days. But at least for one day that will not be the case… because at tomorrow’s COMBINE TRUTH IS ALL A KID WILL GET!
The beauty of tomorrow’s combine is that I don’t coach a AAU team. I don’t rank kids or need a parents approval. The why tomorrow only kids who truly want to know what they need to improve as on a player need attend the Middle School Combine. They’ll be no ego stroking tomorrow. They’ll be no special treatment to so called rising stars. Everyone who attends the MIDDLE SCHOOL COMBINE will get honesty regarding their game. They will be measured for height, length, jumping, agility and speed. They will be put though shooting and ball handling drills. There IQ and ability to apply instructions will be tested. Tomorrow a player is going to learn more about their game perhaps than they will all year and for my money … THAT’S A GOOD THING💪🏀
These days kids are running all over the country playing games year round. There parents and supporters are in search of attention more than an experience. That’s because if the truth be told they do not understand what is important. These days kids are not given truth out of fear a kid will get upset and leave a program. Today that mega talented middle school player is treated like a superstar. There given the lions share of the attention. They don’t pay to attend training or to be part of a AAU team. They always on the All Star Team even when they play poorly. There parents are given a bigger voice. These players are constantly protected by those around them. These are all the reasons some kids don’t fulfill their promise. But at least for one day. Those kids who don’t need all those things just mentioned, that hurt a kid in the long run; will be put on the back burner. Tomorrow kids are going to get a road map. A real honest evaluation of their game. Not BS… NOT BUTT KISSING… but rather truth and words that may not be all peaches and cream… but rather words of wisdom that will help them make their dreams come true!
THERE WERE 12 spots REMAINING AS OF THIS MORNING