Unity Warriors Spring Team Information

Registration is now closed for our Unity Sports Warriors Spring travel team program.

The Spring is our season! This is the time when serious ballers take the floor.

Led by Wellington Smith, Unity is welcoming a handful of new coaches, along with our existing coaches, to help take your kids to the next level.

Unity Sports is proud to welcome back Mike Bruner, Mike Ondrejko and Cap Pazdera. We’d like to welcome, Bryce Lewis, Daryl Blank and Toni Harrell. Bio’s of our coaches will be on our website shortly. All of our coaches have high basketball IQ’s and enjoy teaching your young athletes.

We are excited to announce that Coach Toni Harrell, will lead our first ever 5^th through 8^th grade girls programs. We look forward to watching the Lady Warriors evolve locally.

Below you’ll find all the necessary information regarding tryouts. Tryouts will be held based on your athlete’s current school grade. After tryouts we will send an email to all those that participated with a link to our blog (unitysportsnj.net) where the final roster will be posted. At this time, information about our parent/coach meeting and practice schedule will be posted.

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Coaches:

• Wellington Smith (Director/Coach)
• Mike Bruner
• Cap Pazdera
• Daryl Blank
• Mike Ondrejko
• Bryce Lewis
• Toni Harrill
• Ethan Williams
• Nat Lancaster

Contact Wellington Smith with questions

908.723.6800 – wsmith@unitysportsgroup.com

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Boys 1st and 2nd Grade

Coach: Daryl Blank

Team: Unity Sports Warriors 8U Gold

Contact Info: daryl.blank@yahoo.com

Registration fee includes:

• One – 90 Min – 120 Min practice weekly in Summit or New Providence, NJ
• 4 LOCAL weekend tournaments include, but are not limited to the below
• 12+ games | practice runs March 14th – June 30th
• NEW Unity Sports Warriors uniform
• Coach’s fee included in registration cost
• Facility rental included in registration cost

March 19th & 20th	All In Basketball	Teaneck, NJ
April 9th and 10th	All In Basketball	Teaneck, NJ
April 23rd & 24th	All In Basketball	Teaneck, NJ
May 21st & 22nd	All In Basketball	Teaneck, NJ
June TBD

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Practice: Fridays – 6:30pm – 8pm @ Morris Union Jointure, 340 Central Ave, New Providence, NJ

Practice begins March 11th – Check TeamSnap for more details.

 

Boys 4th Grade

Coach: Mike Bruner

Team: Unity Sports Warriors 4th Grade Gold

Contact Info: mbruner1505@gmail.com

Registration fee includes:

• One – 90 Min – 120 Min practice weekly in Summit or New Providence, NJ
• 20+ games | practice runs the week of March 14th – June 30th
• NEW Unity Sports Warriors uniform
• Coach’s fee included in registration cost
• Facility rental included in registration cost

Tournament Schedule:

March 19th	March Madness	Fairfield, Madison, Wayne, NJ
April 2nd – 3rd	Spring Tip-Off Classic	Livingston, NJ
April 16th – 17th	Battle of The Bridges	Madison, NJ
April 23th – 24th	Coaches vs. Cancer Spring Tip Off	Fairfield, Livingston/Mendham, NJ
May 13th – 15th	Hall of Fame Classic	Springfield, Mass
May 21-22, 2016	Garden State Spring Showcase	Madison, Parsippany, Branchburg, NJ
June 4th – 5th	Garden State Slamfest 1	Madison/Montclair/Wayne, NJ

Make up tournament in June.

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Practice: Tuesday – 6:00pm – 7:30pm @ Summit Middle School – Main Court – 272 Morris Ave, Summit, NJ 07901

Practice begins the week of March 21st – Check TeamSnap for more details.

 

Boys 4th Grade

Coach: Cap Pazdera

Team: Unity Sports Warriors 4th Gold & 6th Grade Gold

Contact Info: capaz7@aol.com

Registration fee includes:

• One – 90 Min – 120 Min practice weekly in Summit or New Providence, NJ
• 20+ games | practice runs the week of March 14th – June 30th
• NEW Unity Sports Warriors uniform
• Coach’s fee included in registration cost
• Facility rental included in registration cost

Tournament Schedule:

March 19th	March Madness	Fairfield, Madison, Wayne, NJ
April 2nd – 3rd	Spring Tip-Off Classic	Livingston, NJ
April 16th – 17th	Battle of The Bridges	Madison, NJ
April 23th – 24th	Coaches vs. Cancer Spring Tip Off	Fairfield, Livingston/Mendham, NJ
May 13th – 15th	Hall of Fame Classic	Springfield, MA
May 21-22, 2016	Garden State Spring Showcase	Madison, Parsippany, Branchburg, NJ
June 4th – 5th	Garden State Slamfest 1	Madison/Montclair/Wayne, NJ

Make up tournament in June

Practice: Tuesday – 6:00pm – 7:30pm @ Summit Middle School – Main Court – 272 Morris Ave, Summit, NJ 07901

Practice begins the week of March 21st – Check TeamSnap for more details.

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Boys 5th Grade

Coach: Mike Ondrejko

Team: Unity Sports Warriors 5th Grade Gold

Contact Info: MOndrejko@Legends.net

Registration fee includes:

• One – 90 Min – 120 Min practice weekly in Summit or New Providence, NJ
• 6 LOCAL weekend tournaments and 1 trip to a Basketball Hall of Fame tournament
• 20+ games | practice runs the week of March 14th – June 30th
• NEW Unity Sports Warriors uniform
• Coach’s fee included in registration cost
• Facility rental included in registration cost

Tournament Schedule:

March 19th	March Madness	Fairfield, Madison, Wayne, NJ
April 2nd – 3rd	Spring Tip-Off Classic	Livingston, NJ
April 16th – 17th	Battle of The Bridges	Madison, NJ
April 23th – 24th	Coaches vs. Cancer Spring Tip Off	Fairfield, Livingston/Mendham, NJ
May 13th – 15th	Hall of Fame Classic	Springfield, MA
May 21-22, 2016	Garden State Spring Showcase	Madison, Parsippany, Branchburg, NJ
June 4th – 5th	Garden State Slamfest 1	Madison/Montclair/Wayne, NJ

Make up tournament in June

 

Practice: Monday- 6:00pm – 7:30pm @ Summit Middle School – Main Court – 272 Morris Ave, Summit, NJ 07901

Practice begins the week of March 21st – Check TeamSnap for more details.

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Boys 6th Grade

Coach: Cap Pazdera

Team: Unity Sports Warriors 4th & 6th

Contact Info: capaz7@aol.com

Registration fee includes:

• Two – 90 Min – 120 Min practices weekly in Summit or New Providence, NJ
• 20+ games | practice runs the week March 14th – June 30th
• NEW Unity Sports Warriors uniform
• Coach’s fee included in registration cost
• Facility rental included in registration cost

 

Tournament Schedule:

March 19th	March Madness	Fairfield, Madison, Wayne, NJ
April 2nd – 3rd	Spring Tip-Off Classic	Livingston, NJ
April 16th – 17th	Battle of The Bridges	Madison, NJ
April 23th – 24th	Coaches vs. Cancer Spring Tip Off	Fairfield, Livingston/Mendham, NJ
May 13th – 15th	Hall of Fame Classic	Springfield, Mass
May 21-22, 2016	Garden State Spring Showcase	Madison, Parsippany, Branchburg, NJ
June 4th – 5th	Garden State Slamfest 1	Madison/Montclair/Wayne, NJ

Make up tournament in June

Practice: Monday – 7:30pm  – 9pm @ Summit Middle School – Main Court – 272 Morris Ave, Summit, NJ

Wednesday – 6:30 – 8:00pm @ Morris Union Jointure – 340 Central Ave, New Providence, NJ

Practice begins the week of March 21st – Check TeamSnap for more details.

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Boys 7th Grade Gold

Coach: Bryce Lewis

Team: Unity Sports Warriors 4th Grade Gold & 13U Gold

Contact Info: lewisb01@centenarycollege.edu

Registration fee includes:

• Two – 90 Min – 120 Min practices weekly in Summit or New Providence, NJ
• 20+ games | practice runs the week March 14th – June 30th
• NEW Unity Sports Warriors uniform
• Coach’s fee included in registration cost
• Facility rental included in registration cost
• Tryout Fee: $25

Tournament Schedule:

March 19th	March Madness	Fairfield, Madison, Wayne, NJ
March 25th – 26th	Showdown At Spooky Nook	Manheim, PA
April 2nd – 3rd	Spring Tip-Off Classic	Livingston, NJ
April 16th – 17th	Electric City Madness	Scranton, PA
April 23th – 24th	Coaches vs. Cancer Spring Tip Off	Fairfield, Livingston/Mendham, NJ
May 13th – 15th	Hall of Fame Classic	Springfield, Mass
June 4th – 5th	Garden State Slamfest 1	Madison/Montclair/Wayne, NJ

Make up tournament in June

Practice: Monday @ Summit Middle School – Main Court – 272 Morris Ave, Summit, NJ 07901

Wednesday – 6:00pm – 7:30pm @ Summit Middle School – Aux Court – 272 Morris Ave, Summit, NJ 07901

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Boys 7th Grade Black

Coach: Ethan Williams or TBD

Team: Unity Sports Warriors 7th Grade Black & Unity Sports Lady Warriors 5th Grade Gold

Contact Info: ethancwilliams@outlook.com

Registration fee includes:

• Two – 90 Min – 120 Min practices weekly in Summit or New Providence, NJ
• 5 LOCAL weekend tournaments
• 1 trip to a Basketball Hall of Fame tournament
• 1 trip to Albany, NY for the Gym Rat Challenge
• 20+ games | practice runs the week March 14th – June 30th
• NEW Unity Sports Warriors uniform
• Coach’s fee included in registration cost
• Facility rental included in registration cost

Tournament Schedule:

March 19th	March Madness	Fairfield, Madison, Wayne, NJ
March 26th	Easter Classic Basketball	Madison, NJ
April 2nd – 3rd	Spring Tip-Off Classic	Livingston, NJ
April 16th – 17th	Battle of The Bridges	Madison, NJ
April 23th – 24th	Coaches vs. Cancer Spring Tip Off	Fairfield, Livingston/Mendham, NJ
May 13th – 15th	Hall of Fame Classic	Springfield, Mass
June 4th – 5th	Garden State Slamfest 1	Madison/Montclair/Wayne, NJ

 Make up tournament in June

 

Practice: Monday @ Summit Middle School – Main Court – 272 Morris Ave, Summit, NJ 07901

Wednesday – 6:00pm – 7:30pm @ Summit Middle School – Aux Court – 272 Morris Ave, Summit, NJ 07901

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Boys 8th Grade

Coach: Wellington Smith

Team: Unity Sports Warriors 14U Gold – Unity Sports Warriors 17U Gold

Contact Info: wsmith@unitysportsgroup.com

Registration fee includes:

• Two – 90 Min – 120 Min practices weekly in Summit or New Providence, NJ
• 3 LOCAL weekend tournaments
• 2 Tournaments in PA
• 1 trip to a Basketball Hall of Fame tournament
• 1 trip to Albany, NY for the Gym Rat Challenge
• 20+ games | practice runs the week March 14th – June 30th
• NEW Unity Sports Warriors uniform
• Coach’s fee included in registration cost
• Facility rental included in registration cost
• Tryout Fee: $25

Tournament Schedule:

March 19th	March Madness	Fairfield, Madison, Wayne, NJ
March 25th – 26th	Showdown At Spooky Nook	Manheim, PA
April 2nd – 3rd	Spring Tip-Off Classic	Livingston, NJ
April 15th – 17th	Spring Jam Fest	Manheim, PA
April 23th – 24th	Coaches vs. Cancer Spring Tip Off	Fairfield, Livingston/Mendham, NJ
May 13th – 15th	Hall of Fame Classic	Springfield, MA
May 28th – 29th	GymRat Challenge	Albany, NY
June 4th – 5th	Garden State Slamfest 1	Madison/Montclair/Wayne, NJ
June 11th – 12th	Beachbound	Ocean City, MD (Maybe)

Make up tournament in June  

 

Practice: Tuesday –  7:30pm – 9:00pm @ Summit Middle School – Main Court – 272 Morris Ave, Summit, NJ 07901

Wednesday – 6:00pm – 7:30pm @ Summit Middle School – Main Court – 272 Morris Ave, Summit, NJ 07901

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Boys 9th & 10th Grade

Coach: Bryce Lewis

Team: Unity Sports Warriors 4th Grade Gold & 13U Gold

Contact Info: lewisb01@centenarycollege.edu

Registration fee includes:

• Two – 90 Min – 120 Min practices weekly (Summit or New Providence)
• Season runs March 14th-June 30th
• 2 local weekend tournaments
• 4 showcase tournaments (College coaches will be in attendance)
• 3 out of state tournaments (NY, PA, MA)
• NEW Unity Sports Warriors uniform
• Coaches fee
• Facility rental fees

Tournament Schedule:

March 19th	March Madness	Fairfield, Madison, Wayne, NJ
March 25th – 26th	Showdown At Spooky Nook	Manheim, PA
April 2nd – 3rd	Spring Tip-Off Classic	Livingston, NJ
April 16th – 17th	Electric City Madness	Scranton, PA
April 23th – 24th	Coaches vs. Cancer Spring Tip Off	Fairfield, Livingston/Mendham, NJ
May 13th – 15th	Hall of Fame Classic	Springfield, Mass
June 4th – 5th	Garden State Slamfest 1	Madison/Montclair/Wayne, NJ

 Make up tournament in June

Practice: Monday & Wednesday – 7:30pm – 9:00pm @ Summit Middle School – Main Court – 272 Morris Ave, Summit, NJ 07901

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Boys 10th – 12th Grade

Coach: Wellington Smith

Team: Unity Sports Warriors 14U Gold – Unity Sports Warriors 17U Gold

Contact Info: wsmith@unitysportsgroup.com

Registration fee includes:

• Two – 90 Min – 120 Min practices weekly in Summit or New Providence, NJ
• 20+ games | practice runs the week March 14th – June 30th
• NEW Unity Sports Warriors uniform
• Coach’s fee included in registration cost
• Facility rental included in registration cost
• Tryout Fee: $25

Tournament Schedule:

March 19th	March Madness	Fairfield, Madison, Wayne, NJ
March 25th – 26th	Showdown At Spooky Nook	Manheim, PA
April 2nd – 3rd	Spring Tip-Off Classic	Livingston, NJ
April 15th – 17th	Spring Jam Fest	Manheim, PA
April 23th – 24th	Coaches vs. Cancer Spring Tip Off	Fairfield, Livingston/Mendham, NJ
May 13th – 15th	Hall of Fame Classic	Springfield, Mass
May 28th – 29th	GymRat Challenge	Albany, NY
June 4th – 5th	Garden State Slamfest 1	Madison/Montclair/Wayne, NJ
June 11th – 12th	Beachbound	Ocean City, MD (Maybe)

 Make up tournament in June

Practice: Tuesday  & Wednesday 7:30pm – 9:00pm @ Summit Middle School – Main Court – 272 Morris Ave, Summit, NJ 07901

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Girls 7th and 8th just 8th Grade

Coach: Toni Harrell

Team: Unity Sports Lady Warriors 7th & 8th Grade

Contact Info: harrellt@kean.edu

Registration fee includes:

• Two – 90 Min – 120 Min practices weekly in Summit or New Providence, NJ
• 7 LOCAL weekend tournaments
• 20+ games | practice runs the week March 14th – June 30th
• NEW Unity Sports Warriors uniform
• Coach’s fee included in registration cost
• Facility rental included in registration cost
• Tryout Fee: $25

Tournament Schedule:

March 19th	March Madness	Fairfield, Madison, Wayne, NJ
April 2nd – 3rd	Spring Tip-Off Classic	Livingston, NJ
April 16th – 17th	Battle of The Bridges	Madison, NJ
April 23th – 24th	Coaches vs. Cancer Spring Tip Off	Fairfield, Livingston/Mendham, NJ
May 14th – 15th	Pre Hoop Splash	Madison, Wayne, NJ
May 21st – 22nd	Garden State Spring Showcase	Madison, Parsippany, Branchburg, NJ
June 4th – 5th	Garden State Slamfest 1	Madison/Montclair/Wayne, NJ

     June 11th – 12th   Garden State Slamfest 2               Madison/Montclair/Wayne, NJ

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Girls 5th & 6th Grade

Coach: Toni Harrill

Team: Unity Sports Warriors 7th Grade Black & Unity Sports Lady Warriors 5th Grade Gold

Contact Info: ethancwilliams@outlook.com

Registration fee includes:

• One – 90 Min – 120 Min practice weekly (Summit or New Providence)
• Season runs March 14th-June 30th
• 4 or more LOCAL weekend tournaments
• NEW Unity Sports Warriors uniform
• Coaches fee
• Facility rental fee

Tournament Schedule:

March 19th	March Madness	Fairfield, Madison, Wayne, NJ
April 2nd – 3rd	Spring Tip-Off Classic	Livingston, NJ
April 23th – 24th	Coaches vs. Cancer Spring Tip Off	Fairfield, Livingston/Mendham, NJ
May 21-22, 2016	Garden State Spring Showcase	Fairfield, Livingston/Mendham, NJ
June 4th – 5th	Garden State Slamfest 1	Madison/Montclair/Wayne, NJ

       June 11th – 12th Garden State Slamfest 2               Madison/Montclair/Wayne, NJ

logotournament 2013

 

Here Today, Gone Tomorrow: New Jersey High School Basketball’s Transfer Problem

New Jersey high school basketball doesn’t have an offseason. It has free agency.

Division-1 caliber players who stay at the same high school for four years have become a rarity. Even more rare are players who work their way up from freshman or junior varsity teams at one of the state’s basketball powerhouses to earn playing time on varsity as an upperclassmen.

When one player graduates or transfers, and playing time becomes available, it is has become commonplace for another player to transfer in and take the departing player’s spot.

The constant movement of players has caused a seemingly never-ending cycle of one coach adding a star player to his roster, while another coach has the rug pulled out from beneath him and the teenagers involved sacrifice stability in the academic, social and sometimes, family parts of their lives.

“It’s an absolute disgrace,” said longtime area scout Tom Konchalski on an episode of MSG’s Quick Hits. “When someone’s 16 or 17 years old, they need stability in their life.”

Mike Quick, the show’s host, was equally disturbed.

“Transferring is ruining the game of high school basketball,” Quick said.

***

Teaneck head coach: “What? My guy is leaving?”

Leondre Washington, a 5’11 point guard, was terrific for Teaneck in his first two seasons, scoring over 1,000 points by the end of his sophomore campaign, in which he earned Third Team All-State honors from NJ.com.

With two years of eligibility remaining for Washington, and three years of another star guard, Ja’Quaye James, the future was bright for Teaneck.

Then, the news hit. Washington was transferring to Roselle Catholic.

Teaneck head coach Jerome Smart, who felt he had developed a close relationship with Washington, was stunned.

“When it happened, it was surreal,” he said on the NorthJerseySports.com Talkin’ Hoops radio show. “It was like, what? My guy is leaving? This is my guy, my son.

I was bummed initially because I felt like this was the place for him. He was an honor roll student at Teaneck High School. He scored two points under 1,100. He had 1,098 here. He was getting some love. I was talking to college coaches. It seemed like things were going to break for him.”

Smart made it clear that he had no ill will toward his former player and would continue to root for him, though he did not feel that Roselle Catholic was the best place for Washington.

“The other night, he scored two points against Union–are you s***ing me?” said Smart. “The kid was an All-State player. I don’t care what’s going on. He scored 1,100 points in two years and you’re telling me he scored two points against Union? Come on, man. My feelings are hurt for the kid, not personally, because that’s my little man. And to watch this go down–if he was down there dropping numbers and he got offered by UCLA, Kentucky or whoever, I’d be waving the flag probably more than his family would be waving the flag. But him down there, scoring two points against Union, come on, man. That’s ridiculous. That’s ridiculous.”

Smart also added that Washington’s transfer to Roselle Catholic is “not working” and that “if (there was) a situation where he comes back, we’ll open our arms for him. He’s family.”

Teaneck is off to a strong start this season, but Washington is one of New Jersey’s best, and replacing him is nearly an impossible task.

And while it was a shock to his former head coach, Washington’s transfer is just another in a long line of talented players switching schools in the Garden State.

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Players who transfer without a bona fide change of address must sit the first 30 days of the season, though many student-athletes usually take the court on opening day, finding a way around NJSIAA’s transfer rules.

Transfer chart from the NJSIAA website

When members of the NJSIAA voted down a proposal for a more stringent transfer a policy in early December, one of New Jersey’s most respected reporters, Jerry Carino, called it a “historic day for stupidity” in a must-read column.

Take a look at how transfers have shaped the rosters of New Jersey’s best teams:

Roselle Catholic – #1 in NJ.com’s Way Too Early Top 10

Head Coach Dave Boff also called transferring in New Jersey basketball “an epidemic,” though few teams have seen as many impact players transfers in as Roselle Catholic. Since 2012, Boff has had the luxury of having two McDonald’s All-Americans leave another school to join his program. Prior to the 2012-13 season, future Syracuse swingman Malachi Richardson left Trenton Catholic for Roselle Catholic. The following season, he decided to head back to Trenton Catholic, and point guard Isaiah Briscoe, now at Kentucky, would leave St. Benedict’s Prep to replace Richardson at Roselle Catholic.

Aakim Saintil, a guard who now plays for LIU Brooklyn, led the Lions to a Tournament of Champions title in 2013, after playing for both St. Patrick’s and St. Anthony earlier in his career, and Chris Silva, an athletic forward now at South Carolina, entered the fold as a sophomore in 2012. He left Gabon, a country in West Africa, to enroll at Roselle Catholic.

With Briscoe, Silva and two other transfers, Pierre Sarr (Westtown-PA) and Tahir Pretlow (Elizabeth), having graduated after winning the 2015 Tournament of Champions crown, Roselle Catholic reloaded with another group of transfers.

This season, joining Washington is Andre Rafus (#67 in Rivals class of 2017 rankings), a junior wing from St. Frances Academy in Baltimore, Md., and Nate Pierre-Louis, a native of Plainfield, who is on his third high school in as many years, beginning his career at St. Peter’s Prep as a freshman in 2013-14 and spending his sophomore season at St. Benedict’s Prep.

Neither in-state transfer, Pierre-Louis or Washington, sat the mandated 30-day period.

Roselle Catholic also picked up Cardinal McCarrick guard Gilberto Cue after the South Amboy school closed its doors in June.

 

St. Anthony – Ranked #8 nationally by MaxPreps

Bob Hurley’s team suffered one of the biggest offseason losses when starting center and Rivals Top 100 recruit Taurean Thompson departed for Brewster Academy.

Thompson’s departure, along with the graduation of current Wichita State wing Markis McDuffie, opened the door for small forward Daniel Mading (#64 in Rivals class of 2017 rankings), who left The Rock School in Florida, along with power forward Samson George (formerly of The Patrick School) and two Nigerian big men, Savior Ogeneyole and Oscar Okeke.

They also added backcourt depth in Eastern Kentucky-bound Asante Gist, who is now at his third high school, after starting at Roselle Catholic and making a stop at Marist.

After sitting out St. Anthony’s two-game appearance at HoopHall West in Arizona, Mading and Ogeneyole took the court for the Friars, while the others sat during the early part of the season.

Despite the influx of transfers this season, the Hall of Fame coach is relying heavily on players who have been in his program for quite a while, boasting several familiar faces. Star guard Jagan Mosely is a 4-year varsity contributor for the Friars, while Shyquan Gibbs earned his starting spot by cutting his teeth at the subvarsity level. Seniors Idris Joyner and Juvaris Hayes have been mainstays in Hurley’s rotation.

 

The Patrick School – Ranked #7 nationally by MaxPreps

Chris Chavannes’ team had a relatively quiet offseason, outside of the addition of ex-Rutgers coach Mike Rice, who started the season as The Patrick School’s interim head coach, likely because many of the team’s key players returned.

Many of the team’s top players, like Rhode Island commit Cyril Langevine (Christ the King in Newark), guard Jordan Walker (Long Island Lutheran), former St. Mary’s of Long Island big man Nick Richards (ranked #13 in Rivals class of 2017) and point guard Bryce Aiken (Pope John) all wore different jerseys before joining the Celtics.

 

St. Benedict’s Prep – Ranked #9 nationally by MaxPreps

The Gray Bees lost two young guards: the aforementioned Pierre-Louis and Trevon Duval, the number-one ranked point guard in the class of 2017 according to ESPN. Duval, likely a future All-American, is attending Advanced Prep International–a pop-up basketball powerhouse in Dallas whose team is led by Ray Forsett, the former coach at Prime Prep which closed “amid allegations of theft and the mishandling of funds to eligibility questions about its students,” according to USA Today.

The aforementioned Pierre-Louis, now playing for Roselle Catholic, departed Mark Taylor’s team after just one season.

Replacing them are transfers James Scott, formerly of St. Peter’s Prep and Pope John, and David Beatty, who left Philadelphia’s Archbishop Carroll.

 

Other notable transfers

• Five-star Syracuse commit Tyus Battle left Gill St. Bernard’s to play for St. Joe’s (Metuchen), despite the school having a policy against taking senior transfers
• Highly-regarded wing Louis King went from Roselle Catholic to Pope John
• Sophomore guard Jalen Carey, who has gotten off to a hot start at Immaculate Conception, spent his first year at Dwight Englewood
• Guard Atiba Taylor left Hackensack to join King at Pope John

 

***

Some, like Carino, feel that transfers should sit during the postseason in their first year at a new school, but the players mentioned above will undoubtedly play a major role in March.

New Jersey may not see career rivalries like Bird and McHale vs. Magic and Worthy, but not everybody jumps ship. Mosely and Roselle Catholic guard Matt Bullock have clashed three consecutive years in the Non-Public B final. Notre Dame commit Temple Gibbs, arguably the best player in the state, has spent his entire career at Seton Hall Prep. Shore Conference sniper Pat Andree, who already has multiple 30+ point performances this year, is in his fourth season at Christian Brothers Academy.

Do Plays Hurt Youth Basketball?

By. Coach Mac

Decision-making skills (or basketball IQ) is one of the most important skills to develop in a youth basketball player if you want them to succeed long-term.

A lot of coaches know this, yet the way they coach their team completely disregards the importance of this skill.

One of the biggest things holding players back from developing their decision-making skills is the overuse of set plays in youth basketball.

While I’ve been attending many tournaments, I’ve watched team after team run set plays every single time down the floor.

In fact, I was part of many teams that did this throughout my youth basketball career.

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing as the players get older, but for young players just beginning to learn the game, you should never continuously run set plays.

Let me explain a few reasons why…

1. Players don’t make decisions.

This is the big one.

When running set plays, players are told where to pass, when to dribble, who to screen, where to cut, etc.

They make zero decisions on their own.

They’re not learning how to read and attack the defense.

They’re not thinking about where and when they should cut.

They’re not deciding who they should pass to.

They’re not looking for gaps in the defense to attack or different spots on the court they can exploit.

Nope. They already know what they’re going to do.

All of the decisions have already been made for them during practice while the coach was explaining the play.

They’re robbed of the ability to experience reading the game and making their own decisions. They’re simply performing specific actions they’ve been told to do.

Sure, this may put them in better shooting positions in their under 10’s game of basketball which will lead to more points, but do you think this is going to help them long-term?

2. Learning plays steals valuable practice time

This doesn’t require much explanation. It’s simple…

There are far more important things players can do at practice than learning how to run set plays.

Working on fundamental skills and playing different games being the big two.

So can you still use set plays?

Yes.

I don’t want you to think I’m completely against set plays.

I use them and will continue to do so. But my teams will definitely not run them all game and my practice time spent teaching plays will be extremely limited.

How much time should you allocate to set plays specifically?

That’s a tricky answer…

In my blog post on creating a youth basketball practice plan, I recommend spending about 10 minutes each practice focusing on offense or defense (if you’re running a 60 or 90-minute practice).

So if you have practice once a week, you might spend 10 minutes on offense (set plays) one week, and 10 minutes on defense the next week.

I use these 10 minutes to teach 1 or 2 basic in-game, baseline, or sideline plays that we can use a couple of times per game.

I’ll conclude with this…

Too many set plays are hurting youth basketball. Coaches are using them far too much.