"What Do We Look For During Try-outs?"

We are extremely proud of our program and are also very pleased that so many players, from this area and beyond, want to be associated with the Purple Aces. However, to maintain the level of success that Purple Aces teams have enjoyed, team selection becomes a necessity. There are many factors that enter into the selection of members for all of our teams. The selection process is one of - if not the toughest parts of coaching.

As coaches we try very hard to be fair in our judgments as we fully realize an athlete's desire to be a member of our teams and the disappointments associated with not making a team.

It is impossible to make a purely objective evaluation based solely on the mastery of basketball skills or any other criteria. Many other things must be considered in order to maintain a successful program. Please realize that the coaches want to make our teams as well as the entire program the very best that they can be and to that end, will not exclude players they believe will accomplish this in the end. As an example, in 2009 the Purple Aces had multiple teams in the 6th and 7th Grade levels for the first time in Aces history.

WHAT GUIDELINES DO OUR COACHES USE TO MAKE TEAM SELECTIONS DURING TRY-OUTS?

1. Players that will make our teams better.

2. Players that we believe have a realistic possibility/probability to play varsity basketball at some point in their

career and additionally, have the potential and desire to take their game to the collegiate level.

3. Players that fit the available positions for the greatest benefit of the team.

MORE SPECIFICALLY, WE WILL CONSIDER:

Mastery of offensive skills (shooting, passing, dribbling, screening)
Ability/willingness to rebound - both offensively and defensively
Foot quickness and agility
Ability to think and react quickly
Does the player like to play defense?
Ball handling ability
Ability to "Post-Up" as a guard
Leadership qualities

EFFORT AND DESIRE TO WORK:

Willingness to put in the necessary work to make themselves and team mates better

WILLINGNESS TO LISTEN, LEARN AND APPLY:

Is the player "coachable" and open to learning

SELF DISCIPLINE:

Ability to work without having a coach hover over them
Ability and willingness to work within the team framework

CONDUCT:

Will the player represent the Purple Aces in the manner demanded during play, while traveling to tournaments, and in general?

ATTITUDE:

What will attitude be if player is not likely to be a starter?
Does the player seem to be a "team player"?

IN ADDITION, THE FOLLOWING THINGS ARE ALSO CONSIDERED:

How many returning players do we have on a given team?
Has the prospective player played competitively at this level prior?
Does the prospective player have the necessary skills/abilities to play a particular team's style of offense/defense?

By no means is this meant to be an all inclusive list that we use to evaluate players - but it is meant to cover many of the things that we look for in the selection of our teams. We strive to use our best possible judgment and if we error, we try to do so by keeping more players on teams rather than less - as was evidenced in 2009.

As always, we appreciate and value each player as an individual, but must base team selection decisions on what is best for each individual TEAM.

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