U.S. Soccer and the Elite Development League

In Cross Over: The New Model of Youth Basketball Development (and articles going back to 2003), I propose an Elite Development League for high school players as a means to improve the overall youth basketball development system. While USA Basketball, the NBA and Sonny Vacarro have pushed different ideas publicly through the media, no firm details have evolved.

However, according to today’s L.A. Times, the U.S. Soccer Federation has created a system based on many of the same concepts and principles as my EDL:

The Development Academy is a super league of 64 of the best-known youth soccer clubs from across the nation and it kicks off a finals tournament today at the Home Depot Center in Carson to close out its inaugural season…The tournament is split up into two groups, Under-15/16 and Under-17/18, both playing in a round-robin format. The groups are made up by the eight conference champions that survived a 10-month regular season…The U-17/18 championship is Friday at 8 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPN2. The U-15/16 championship game is a week from today at 8 p.m, to be broadcast on ESPNU.

The details are almost exact, right down to selling the TV rights to the games to fund the League. The reason for U.S. Soccer’s Development Academy:

The Development Academy was created in an effort to get up to par with the rest of the world in terms of cultivating young talent.

While getting up to par with the rest of the world is not a problem for basketball in the United States, I maintain that the U.S., with the money it invests in youth basketball (though not from USA Basketball), should not settle for an okay system, but should demand that we create the absolute best possible development system for ALL players, from the recreational to the elite.

One European Basketball Academy

My interview with Stephen Clauss, the Director of the Basketball Academy Rhein Main in Germany.

According to the Basketball Academy Rhein Main (BARM) web site:

“Our mission is very simple: we would like to develop young talents into great basketball players and at the same time focus on coordinating an appropriate school and professional education for young talented and aspiring athletes.

Our comprehensive approach to the complete education and development of basketball players will enable them to reach their full potential preparing them for a successful future in basketball and business after a professional playing career.”

BM: What are the ages of the players in your Academy?
SC: We are presently focusing on working with players between the ages of 17 and 22. We consider 21 / 22 to be the entry age where a talented player is capable of playing on the DEUTSCHE BANK SKYLINERS professional basketball team.

BM: How are players selected?
SC: The recruiting of talented players is handled by the Director of the Basketball Academy Rhein-Main (BARM) and the Deutsche Bank Skyliners coaching staff.

BM: Who finances the academy? Do players pay tuition? Alternatively, do players get paid while there?
SC: The BARM is a part of the DEUTSCHE BANK SKYLINERS organization. The players receive a “BARM Scholarship”, which consists of the necessary amount of financial support, so that the players can focus on their basketball and career educations.

BM: Does the academy play together as a team? Do the players play individually with other teams?
SC: All BARM players have a “home team” where they are a dominant member of these respective teams. The DEUTSCHE BANK SKYLINERS cooperate with local club teams, for example TV Langen and MTV Kronberg, who have well developed youth programs and senior teams at various levels of competitive accomplishment. The BARM players will all compete with one or more of these teams. Most of the BARM players are also involved in their respective National Teams.

BM: Do players attend school?
SC: All BARM players are either attending school, attending mandatory military service, or are already a full time member of the DEUTSCHE BANK SKYLINERS professional basketball team.

BM: How is the year structured? Same thing every week? Different emphasis in different seasons?
SC: The BARM player’s schedules are personalized and organized around their education and respective Club and National Team basketball seasons. Therefore the schedules of the players will vary greatly.

BM: How many hours per week do players train? Can we get a sample week for the average player?
SC: On weekdays, all BARM players have one daily individual and team practice. On weekends most play two competitive games: First with their “home team” and second with an additional team, a youth team or the DEUTSCHE BANK SKYLINERS.

BM: Do the players lift weights?
SC: Weight lifting and athletic development is a part of the individual practice schedule.

BM: Is there a nutritionist? Are the players’ diets monitored?
SC: The BARM works together with a professional nutritionist who assists the players in organizing and maintaining a balanced diet.

BM: How much testing of the athletes is there?
SC: All BARM players will go through a big medical and physiotherapy check up in the preseason and undergo additional check-ups at regular intervals, or when necessary.

BM: How many coaches/trainers in the Academy? How many players?
SC: There are a total of 6 coaches working with the BARM players. The BARM presently maintains between 10 and 12 yearly scholarships.

BM: What are the coaching qualifications? How does the academy hire a coach?
SC: The BARM coaching staff is selected by the director to the BARM and the management of the DEUTSCHE BANK SKYLINERS.

BM: What does an average workout entail?
SC: The emphasis of all practices varies greatly depending upon the players personalized needs. Each player’s individual practices will always place focus on his special needs. For example, some players will need a much greater amount of work on the development of their athletic abilities, while others might be physically well developed and need more work on specific basketball skills. Another example; weight lifting programs must be adapted to the playing schedules the players have. The BARM players have a year round lifting program, with the exception of a short vacation break in spring or summer. Because of international competition with National Teams it is not possible to simply do muscular hypertrophy training in the summer. Therefore a well organized lifting schedule must be prepared with emphasis on hypertrophy training in multiple breaks, in and off-season, rather than on one large break in the summer.

BM: Are all trainings done individually, or are there group sessions as well?
SC: Some of the practices are individual and some in groups. In the group practices the players will definitely also work on offensive and defensive tactical skills.