Weekend Wisdom: By – Nick D’Amato
AAU basketball has gotten a bad reputation in a lot of ways. For players and officials, the positives and negatives of the AAU Basketball circuit can be debated til’ infinity. What can’t be debated though is that for the time being, AAU basketball isn’t going anywhere. Depending on the area you are in, AAU basketball games may be available in large quantities almost every weekend.
I would never tell other officials to work or not work AAU games. The fact is, the lack of oversight at some of these events and tournaments leads to a wide range of experiences for everyone involved, in particular, the officials. Depending on the organizations in your area, it may not be worth the hassle. However, if these events are well run, the number of games and the money to be made may be too good to pass up. If you are going to get into the AAU game, I would strongly encourage officials to do some research. Look up these tournaments online, talk to officials who’ve worked them before, and ask assignors and mentors what their thoughts are on the AAU ball in your area.
If you are going to get into AAU games over the course of the summer, I encourage you to not merely go for a cash grab but try to get something out of the games. I always say that there are three things I want to get every time I take the court.
GET BETTER.
AAU can be a good chance to get better as an official. Aside from getting reps, the quality of basketball can be better than what you see during the regular season. In addition, you may be able to get assigned higher levels of basketball than you would during your High School season. Assignors may be more willing to take a chance or just not have as many options available as during the winter seasons. Look into the event you are working and see what levels are going to take place during it. If you are lucky enough to have a relationship with the person assigning AAU games, mention that you’d like to work some of the older or more skilled games. The assignor may appreciate that you want to take on higher level games and take it as a sign that you are there to work hard, as opposed to stacking up as many games as you can to collect.
Even if you are working lower level games than your used to, or even higher level games that turn out to be blowouts, there is still something to be gained from every game. There’s always something to be worked on. I’ve worked with partners who’ve spent entire games just working on calling fouls with their non-dominant hands. A few things that may seem minor that I’ve worked on in recent years:
Clock awareness: In the midst of an intense game, or one that is particularly physical it can be difficult to force ourselves to look up at the clock, but as we move up, the clock becomes more and more important. Using AAU games to practice such a little skill can make it muscle memory for other games
Posture and Body Language: In my daily life, I tend to have a slouch. As someone who is not particularly tall and is working on weight, having good posture and body language can help me appear more “official.” Standing up tall, running athletically, and being aware of body language are things that take work, but can really pay off.
Positioning: If you don’t have a lot of opportunities to work 3-person mechanics, but the level you desire to work at uses them exclusively, AAU games can still be a chance to work on your 3-person knowledge. While you aren’t going to get a 3-person crew for an AAU game, you can use it as a mental exercise to work on it. Every time I’m at lead in an AAU game I dilligently work my positioning and when I’m closed down at the paint I think to myself “Rotate.” Even though I’m not actually going through the rotation, it helps me practice getting in the mindset.
Timing: Working on it at AAU games can be beneficial as well. If you aren’t someone who gets an opportunity to see yourself on film as much, this May be it. You may be able to find a friend who is more willing or able to film a game on a Saturday morning than an afternoon during the work week. If they aren’t able to film the whole game, take some time prior to come up with a list of things you’d like them to be able to get clips of and have them send to you.
“Hustle cane, hustle clothes, or hustle music
But hustle hard in any hustle that you pick” Jay-Z
Get a Workout
It seems cliche, but to me there’s nothing worse than coming off the court and feeling like you have to go for the gym or go for a run on top of it. Especially if you are really concentrating on getting in shape in the offseason, giving up a day of working out to half jog through a couple of games can take away from your efforts to get in shape.
Some games will force you to get a workout in with the skill, athleticism, and playing style. Other games it may be harder. Again, it may seem cliche but in these games, sprint to the baseline in transition, even if that means you’re waiting there longer for the plays to advance up the court.
Take every opportunity to sprint, focus on your running form and posture and get good stretches in before and after games.
Be realistic about what you can work. Select a number of games that you think will push you and provide you a good workout, but not so many that you are going to be tempted to go through the motions. We all like to think we can work hard for 3 games than go through the motions for 3, but human nature is going to kick in and have us conserving energy in the first 3 games as well. If the person assigning the game needs more games than you feel you can give your full effort, see if they can give you a break so that you can try to push yourself before and after it.
Use this as a chance to work on your methods of recovery as well. The high school season may not see us working nearly as many games in a day, but may find us working 6 days straight. See what recovery methods work for you. Stretching, foam rolling, ice, heat, light exercise the next day, finding what helps you recover best can help your career and keep you in good shape moving forward.
“So is life, take a chance, roll the dice
Money can’t buy you love ’cause it’s overpriced
Don’t overthink, just hope it’s right
I’m only here for the night” – J. Cole
Get Paid
This one’s obvious, don’t subject yourself to the downsides of AAU for free. If they aren’t paying cash, keep diligent records and make sure you get paid in the end. The organizations putting these events on definitely are.
“But without no money it’s still a wish
’cause I don’t like to dream about gettin paid
So I dig into the books of the rhymes that I made
To now test to see if I got pull
Hit the studio, ’cause I’m paid in full” – Rakim
Happy Memorial Day Weekend!
Until Next Week. Summer. Is. Here.