Beyond the arc
This past weekend thousands of basketball players from the United States made their way to courts of Kansas gymnasiums for the 10th Annual Mid-America Youth Basketball tournament.
I, likely many, had the opportunity to witness the events first hand, as a site coordinator for the 9- and 10-year-old girls' tournament held in Augusta.
While the event brought thousands of dollars to local communities and playing experience to many athletes, I couldn't help but wonder if the tournament is more positive than negative for local economies, players, coaches, and parents.
First of all, most of the athletes are not from the respective areas of the tournaments, so many are left to travel great distances to partake in the MAYB festivities, which brings "outside" money into communities seeking economic bursts during a time of economic stress. I consider this extremely positive.
Factor in what most families, teams, and players spend on hotel rooms and lodging, food, and concessions, and you've got a recipe for great things, right?
Economically, yes, MAYB does good things for area towns, but what about the main reason for the event — the players.
Each team involved with MAYB plays in at least five games over the three-day event. Many teams play in the afternoon on Friday, the morning, afternoon, and evening on Saturday, and early morning on Sunday minimum.
Add to this strenuous schedule, extremely physical play, and hot temperatures (which weren't a factor in this past tournament, but typically are), and you find yourself with several hundred extremely worn-out kids.
Add to that, parents and coaches, overseeing the teams, who also are tired, cranky, and sometimes mis-guided with their enthusiasm, and you throw an entirely different element into an already thick vat of frustration and emotion.
Finally, add to all of that, society's "win at all costs" mentality and the whole things goes completely berserk, not out of control, but quite frankly, chaotic.
Parents, players, and coaches get fired up about a lot of things during the tournament, and usually their frustration is aimed at those in the striped shirts. (A job that you couldn't pay me enough to do.)
With that said, the basketball value on the tournament, although taxing on all who participate, does have a large up side. Nowhere else in the U.S. can you find a more affordable place to compete in a three-day basketball tournament, with some of the best competition in the areas in and around Kansas.
Teams who want to challenge themselves against great competition are allowed to in MAYB, and those teams who run on a higher cylinder can use the event as a spring board for bigger and more expensive tournaments.
It's a tough call. On the one hand, you have the economic and basketball value of the event, on the other, the stress and frustration over the events' allotted time frame.
I guess I like to weigh things out. There are positives and there are negatives to the event, but I think I would lean toward the positives of the event, because ultimately, the people involved with the event can make it a negative or positive experience.
Players, parents, and coaches truly hold the key to make events such as MAYB tournaments memorable and positive experiences.
A single act of sportsmanship or encouragement goes a lot farther than a flagrant foul or an obnoxious parent or coach yelling at officials.
Life (and basketball, in this case) are truly what you make of them. So try and make both positive for you, and especially for the kids.
And MAYB(e) things like this, will make economies, athletics, and society more positive than negative.
