Boys and Girls club, Hooping up for basketball

Published 8:56 am Wednesday, October 12, 2022

Evening daylight is getting shorter, the nights are getting cooler and the leaves are falling off the trees, so that must mean one thing: It’s almost basketball season. Yes, basketball season is almost here, the high schools and middle schools are getting underway with practice and colleges have already started. The Boys & Girls Club of Elizabethton/Carter County are excited to announce the start of their basketball registration. This year a few changes are coming to the club.

    “Our Skills & Drills program for our 5&6 years olds has been a major success,” stated Rik Anderson, athletic director at the club. “This year, we are expanding it to include our 7&8 division. Beginning with learning the correct fundamentals is an important step in developing a passion for the game of basketball”.

   Cara Bowling, former ETSU and Elizabethton standout, said, “Prioritizing fundamentals in youth sports is crucial. Falling in love with the game of basketball means falling in love with the fundamentals and building the foundation for a future in the sport”. Unfortunately, many of today’s players will not be playing by the time they reach their teens. An alarming rate of 70 percent of kids playing sports will quit by age 13. The average playing time of a youth is three years.

   “Experts say the number one reason kids quit playing sports is they quit having fun,” stated Anderson. “Also, they say the number one reason they quit having fun is they are asked to do things they don’t have the skills for and thus feel they let their parents, coaches and teammates down. Our program is designed to give those kids the fundamentals while letting them learn to use them and have fun in competitive games. We align our divisions with age-appropriate goal heights, ball size and skill level recommended by the Jr. NBA, Joe Haefner (youth specialist) and other youth authorities”.

   Tony Hardin, a long-time successful coach at the high school level and author, stated, “I feel it is very important that players have a good skill development at a young age as a foundation to prepare them for success. It is great the club embraces this concept. It has been my experience that players who learn to have fun while developing skills will actually enjoy practice and those are the kids that normally end up being successful”. “We have been very fortunate to have had former coaches, college and high school players come in and lead our fundamental learning. People like Cara Bowling, Tony Hardin, Len Dugger, Elvin Brown, Russ Lyon, Steve Hardin, Autumn Lyon, Mark Fowler, Matt Lewis, and Gary Harrison are just a few of the people that have given their time to help our youth. You would normally have to pay hundreds of dollars to get this kind of instruction from such a group of knowledgeable basketball people”, stated Anderson. “Pre-school and elementary kids should be placed in an environment where they have fun while developing a passion for the game and not put in a position where a priority is put on success or failure.

   This is what we try to do here at the club. We want every child to have the same opportunity to develop these skills. Our games are very competitive, but the focus is put on the development more than the outcome. Legendary NFL coach Joe Madden said, “If you focus on the process and not the outcome, you will have better results .”Basketball registration is now open at the club. You can sign up by going to www.bgcecc.org/athletic-leagues and clicking on the basketball registration link. Ages division are Boy 5-8, 9&10 and Girls 5-8 and 9&10. State Champion basketball coach Len Dugger stated, “The work the club puts into Skills & Drills program is phenomenal. Fundamentals are such an important aspect of learning and developing as a player and becoming a more successful player. They pave the way for kids to reach their potential as players and I would encourage kids to get involved in the program”.

For more information, you can contact Rik Anderson at randerson@bgcecc.org.