Growing up can be hard. Sometimes you find out that your dreams don’t come true, or, as Joni Mitchel said, they “lose their grandeur coming true” – if it happens it doesn’t turn out quite the way you dreamed it would. For a lot of people their lives are forever impacted by their response to those situations where your dreams are stalled, interrupted or lost.

You see it play out with basketball, just as it does in other venues, as kids grow up playing “just for fun” and to be with their buddies. For some kids the game comes easy, for others – not so easy. As they grow older they are introduced to competitive play – travel teams, school teams, AAU etc. Things get more serious. The fun part now comes from playing the game right and improving with experience. What separates players as they get older is not natural ability, not “grit” and determination, but a focused and purposeful effort over time. Genetic factors aside – certainly a 6’4” player has an advantage over a 5’2” player – it’s a level playing field (or court).

It’s hard for parents too. We want our kid’s dreams to come true and we’re willing to go pretty far to help make that happen. We don’t like to see them struggle and get hurt. It’s hard to remember that they will learn and grow from all of it – the successes and the struggles – like we did.

Once they get to high school there’s a jump on the intensity scale. For a lot of kids basketball has been linked to their identity for a couple of years. In our high school multiple school districts come together. The talent hierarchy shifts – sometimes it’s not in your kid’s favor. That hierarchy is not set in stone. Between freshman year and junior year a lot can change. Some kids stop growing, others sprout up. Some work harder on conditioning. Some love to play so much they just continue to get better. Don’t be surprised when the 8^th grader who sat a lot on the bench becomes a serious player later on in high school. It happens more often than you would think. 

Freshman year can be a free pass at some schools. Few cuts are made and coaches are looking for growth potential. From there it gets way more competitive. By the way, high school sports are supposed to be competitive. Like it or not we all live in a competitive world. Our success or our struggles are part of preparing us for that world. Participation in competitive sports is just one way we can get ready for what lies ahead.

Not all of the kids will play high school basketball. It can be a tough time for some. Parents will want to try and fix it. It can be hard but it’s usually best if you can support your kid as they work through it on their own. We have to remember that all of our kids are good at something. Some are track athletes, some can sing and dance, and some are the best friend a kid could have. Your kid may be better than my kid at math. I’m not going to the math teacher and asking her to fix it by giving my kid and A because your kid got one. I’m telling my kid to work to the best of her ability. If she does and she still doesn’t get an A, I’m good with it – and she should be too. Most of the kids will experience success in their lives. All of them will struggle at some point. This I know – all of the kids in our program are great kids. They may or may not become good basketball players but they are great kids.

Our role at One Voice is to help prepare kids to meet the challenges related to their dreams. If their dream is about playing basketball at Voorhees we’ll do our best to get them the information they need to become the best players they can be. From there it is up to them. Can they internalize the information? Are they willing to do the real work it takes to become exceptional? Will they match their dream with the effort it takes to make dreams come true?

The bar is held high. You reach your dreams by working towards them, not by lowering the bar to where you are comfortable. We will have honest conversations with them about where we see them now, in relation to their dreams. That information can be hard to hear at times, but we don’t get better, we cannot practice with purpose, without feedback – without knowing where to apply the purposeful work.

We also believe we have another responsibility – to help them to become the best teammates they can be. When they become good teammates they are also moving towards becoming the best people they can be. Those skills are more valuable than shooting and passing skills. Regardless of their basketball destiny, the team skills will always be helpful later on.

When we start again in the fall we shift our focus to preparing for the school seasons ahead. Wednesday and Thursday sessions for middle school players continue to focus on skill development. High school players and a few middle school players focus on learning and running the Lady Vikes offense, defenses and game situation strategies. The focus on fundamentals is included in this work – in other words we still work on shooting, passing, dribbling and defense but in the context of the team’s structure.

Sean, Dan and I will coach two teams in the Hunterdon Central Fall League. This is not directly related to our commitment to One Voice – the two weekly skills sessions per week. We offered to assist with the league many years ago since New Jersey high school coaches cannot coach their team out of season (except for a brief period during the summer). The varsity team will have a roster of 9 players. The JV team will have a roster of 12 players. The varsity roster starts with the 5 returning varsity players from last year’s team. The JV roster starts with the 12 players returning from last year’s fall league team. That roster is set at 12 players. One or two of those players will be asked to play with the varsity each week. The roster spots are currently filled with returning players. These roster spots must be continually earned. Players who do not show up for practices and / or do not give consistent effort can forfeit their roster positions when it is in the best interest of the team.

The coaches determine who is on the roster and who plays with which team. These decisions are based on our assessment of a player’s readiness for this level of competition. Playing time is also earned week to week and in the course of each game. Neither roster placement nor playing time is discussed with parents.

Fall sessions for all high school players, those playing in the fall league and those not on the roster, begins on Wednesday, August 14^th. We’ll practice Wednesdays and Thursdays from 6:00 – 8:00pm (weather permitting). We’ll be at the Lebanon Township Memorial Park until gyms are available in September.

Middle school players return when the gyms open up in September (we’re waiting to get date confirmation).

Bob Peterman