AAU basketball and TB?

[_MIA_]

Has anybody been able to manage this as they got into the HS years? If so how? The "big" tournaments are both around the same time and I have no idea how this would be managed. Pick and choose based upon the "importance" (recruiting, etc) of the tournament if conflicts occur (and if her coaches allow it..huge IF I know)? Or is my DD going to have to scrap one of the sports (at least at the "travel" level)?

Right now she likes both sports equally and is pretty much equally as good in both. I heard her telling my brother over Xmas that she wants to play both in college (which will obviously have to be tempered as she gets older...)

Maybe the sport will choose her eventually, or she will choose it, but I was just wondering if anybody on here was able to manage both..it stresses me out thinking about it. While the conflicts have not been too bad yet, I have a feeling we are going to have to start navigating this pretty soon

 

[softball dad 6]

DD tried it one year in hs. Softball was her priority and the basketball coach knew that up front. She only managed to make a handful of basketball practices and 2 tournaments. She had conflicts with softball the rest of the time. She and the basketball coach were fine with it, but it was less than ideal. I would say it is very hard to do at hs age but not impossible.

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[_MIA_]

I would say it is very hard to do at hs age but not impossible.

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Yes, that is what I am thinking too. The bball org head, who is also her bball team coach (and her future HS head coach and our neighbor..) already made it clear that a choice is going to have to be made when HS starts so the choice may be made for her depending on where she is in both sports when it comes that time...which kind of sucks if she doesn't want to choose.

 

[Towny9]

Yes, that is what I am thinking too. The bball org head, who is also her bball team coach (and her future HS head coach and our neighbor..) already made it clear that a choice is going to have to be made when HS starts so the choice may be made for her depending on where she is in both sports when it comes that time...which kind of sucks if she doesn't want to choose.

Travel for both sports will be difficult. Playing both in college is possible. Our first baseman when I was in college played on the basketball team. He did baseball only as a freshman and basketball only as a fifth year senior. The in between years he did both. He most likely could have played baseball or basketball at a higher level college, but chose our school because they were willing to live with him doing both considering they felt lucky to have him. Having played both baseball and basketball myself (not travel basketball just HS) I feel like basketball is the easier sport to still be decent at and not play travel if you are a top athlete.

 

[Quigs10]

Are you just talking about travel/club teams in each sport or also juggling both in HS?

My DD is in 8th grade now and she plays travel softball and also on a feeder "club" bball team that is made up of girls going to the same HS next year. Juggling the two club/travel teams is difficult because they are going on at same time. In HS, at least out here in So Calif., the two sports are in different months (late fall/winter) bball and (spring) for softball. There is a fall ball league for softball and bball as well, but we just plan on her playing both then and splitting and then switch to full time in each as the season comes around.

Are the two sports in different seasons/parts of the year in OK? I plan on just being straight up with coaches at HS. As a past HS coach myself for many years, I wanted players to play multiple sports. I felt they were better overall athletes. BUT, yes, there are many stubborn and selfish coaches out there that only want the best players playing "their" sport.

My DD situation might be different than yours in that my DD is good, but she (as of now) doesn't really plan or want to play beyond HS. So, my outlook is that she should play both and enjoy the time she has playing the two sports she loves and go back and forth when she can and not to give up either. I don't want her to regret quitting one sport and wondering '"what if' later.

I know its a different time now, but none of this "pick 1 sport" crap or mindset was around much when we played. It was normal to just go from sport to sport all year long. football, basketball, baseball, summer leagues and camps in all...rinse repeat for 4 years. That was "normal" everyone did it. Too much focus on one sport too young nowadays in my opinion.

Let her choose (hopefully both)...or often times the sport will tug her one way or the other. Don't let the coaches dictate her HS years. I always tell my DD, if you're good enough and better than who they have...they'll make it work for you to be on the team and play.

 

[_MIA_]

Travel for both sports will be difficult. Playing both in college is possible. Our first baseman when I was in college played on the basketball team. He did baseball only as a freshman and basketball only as a fifth year senior. The in between years he did both. He most likely could have played baseball or basketball at a higher level college, but chose our school because they were willing to live with him doing both considering they felt lucky to have him. Having played both baseball and basketball myself (not travel basketball just HS) I feel like basketball is the easier sport to still be decent at and not play travel if you are a top athlete.

There were multiple players on my baseball team at Tufts who played multiple sports but none played baseball and basketball it was either baseball and football, hockey or lacrosse (the current head Lacrosse coach at Brown was one of them ) Just not sure I would want her to do that but that would obviously be up to her. Also that was 30 years ago when specialization wasn’t a thing. Heck, my father played both baseball and basketball in college 60 years ago and he didn’t even play HS bball

That said she is 12 and I don’t think she really understands what it takes to play both sports in college, from a commitment standpoint (now and in college) and talent standpoint. I mean in that same conversation with my brother she mentioned UCLA as one of the schools she would like to go to

I also agree about not playing travel basketball and being able to compete vs a sport like baseball/softball…at least at the HS level.

 

[_MIA_]

Are you just talking about travel/club teams in each sport or also juggling both in HS?

Talking about “travel” in both. The main issue is the seasons are basically at the same time at the HS age..summer. The older teams in her bball org are in hotels for much of June and July. If she wants to play both, I don’t see HS in both being an issue assuming she can still compete if she chooses not to play travel in one or the other. Bball will be the issue with that as her HS team is usually quite good…unlike the softball team.

 

[Towny9]

We used to play Tufts at the beginning of every season in late February. They always had a good team, but playing them so early in the season at our place was to our advantage because I don’t think they had even gotten outside on a field by then.

 

[_MIA_]

We used to play Tufts at the beginning of every season in late February. They always had a good team, but playing them so early in the season at our place was to our advantage because I don’t think they had even gotten outside on a field by then.

Yes..we practiced indoors at 6 am until after we came back from our Spring trip..it was a blast

 

[radness]

Has anybody been able to manage this as they got into the HS years? If so how? The "big" tournaments are both around the same time and I have no idea how this would be managed. Pick and choose based upon the "importance" (recruiting, etc) of the tournament if conflicts occur (and if her coaches allow it..huge IF I know)? Or is my DD going to have to scrap one of the sports (at least at the "travel" level)?

Right now she likes both sports equally and is pretty much equally as good in both. I heard her telling my brother over Xmas that she wants to play both in college (which will obviously have to be tempered as she gets older...)

Maybe the sport will choose her eventually, or she will choose it, but I was just wondering if anybody on here was able to manage both..it stresses me out thinking about it. While the conflicts have not been too bad yet, I have a feeling we are going to have to start navigating this pretty soon

Like to say congratulations it's a good dilemma to have
Athletic young person who is driven!

Hmmm navigating...
Well you're good at math so how about some celestial guidance


Good luck on her journey. I know of athletes who have played two sports in college but the sports season were at opposite semesters of the school year. As these youngsters were growing up they prioritize part of the Season that was important like perhaps basketball maybe has a season of two or three months. Where softball has tournaments throughout the year and just for a couple months they would miss softball events but they were not the priority events in the year.