Has The Basketball World Lost Its Rich Culture?

Reputable, Respect, Domination

My experience as a young athlete is completely opposite from what athletes experience today. I grew up in a rich basketball culture. The reputation of summer AAU basketball teams proceeded itself. To hear a name was to know everything about it. It's like knowing 'Boo Williams', 'Compton Magic', 'Arkansas Hawks' and 'JL3'. They are powerhouses still to this day. These AAU Basketball teams are built on trust and loyalty. They were reputable, demanded respect, and took pride in dominating. One of our mottos was 'walk softly, but carry a big stick.' We didn't have to be demonstrative or chauvinistic in how we carried ourselves. We were taught professional polish even as amateurs. Guidelines and standards were concrete. We didn't waste time on politics. AAU basketball teams were legitimately selective. The Arkansas Hawks program used a vetting system. There weren't tryouts. We knew who would make the team based on their talent, athleticism, and grit. The roster was concretely filled with fully committed players. The summer AAU basketball teams I was a part of (The Wings & Arkansas Hawks) and other well known organizations had a great system. Players stayed with the same team from age 12-17. Systems define the identity of organizations.

Has the basketball world lost this rich culture?

Cities are now oversaturated with pop up basketball teams. People encourage and applaud individualism more than uniformity. I hear so often parents venting about their daunting experiences. Kids are often placed on basketball teams where they don't belong, which causes regression. Some have a stagnant experience. I see a lot of psychological manipulation and egotistical driven agenda. Basketball teams lack structure, order, and vision. There are many factors that are currently plaguing basketball's rich culture.

Players are overly concerned and blinded by the pretentious hype of what teams can seemingly provide them. Instead of deciding to join a team that consistently demonstrates character, standard, and identity, they would rather insert themselves into an enabling system that allows them to remain self-absorbed. This is contrary to the intention of the sport.

More people are coaching without a depth of knowledge, forfeiting integrity, accountability, and intentionality. There are permissive and passive basketball coaches that allow certain behavior. Some coaches aren't mentally tough enough to combat negative behavior. When you watch top collegiate basketball coaches, like Rick Barnes or Kelvin Sampson, you won't see their basketball players taunting their opponents, gesturing to the refs, or complaining about things not going their way. You also you won't see players displaying negative body language while being corrected. Those things aren't a part of those basketball coach's system. Coaches are responsible for a level of impact. They set the tone and influence players.

When standard isn't established, parents have the opportunity to be laxed and casual. It's a domino effect from the coach to the parent to the athlete. I see parents constantly displaying vicarious behaviors and completely disregarding coaches roles. They can negatively affect the overall dynamic of the team and players' experience by overstepping due to their control issue. Parents have to decide to deposit positive tools into their athlete's basketball journey.