Garden City Basketball Travel Options

(Editor's Note: Garden City Basketball submitted this article regarding things to think about when considering travel basketball options.)

When thinking about travel basketball there are a few things to consider. In response to the numerous questions on travel basketball we receive, we hope you find this subjective information useful.   

We think of basketball as being recreational, developmental, competitive and/or elite.  

Travel in any sport requires a commitment. Generally about 8-10 percent of an intramural program can play and have a positive experience at a competitive level. It is highly desirable to be on a team that is able to practice twice a week on a full court for 60-90 minutes a session.

There are many options available:

• The Island Garden (IG) is located nearby at Cherry Valley Avenue and Hempstead Turnpike. There are boys' and girls' programs offered year round. The IG has developmental programs, individual training, Super League, which is competitive (with different levels of competition), and AAU tournament teams (Long Island Lightning teams going to AAU Division 1 and 2, which are elite and Division 3, which is competitive). The Lightning teams have tryouts generally around Martin Luther King weekend in January. You can also pay to play travel/Super League without tryouts on an IG "FE Hoops" team. Most games are local at the IG but other locations like Northsport in Suffolk and SUNY Westbury are also used.  Visit www.islandgarden.com for more information.
• St Anne's and St Joe's Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) has A, B and C levels of play. Typically a CYO "A" team would play in Divisions 1 or 2 in the IG Super League or AAU Divisions 2/3 tournaments. CYO A/B is competitive; CYO C is more developmental. Tryouts are usually late fall/early winter. A good approach to travel basketball is to play for a CYO A or B team where the coach also enters the team into the IG Super League. In this occurrence, your child is on one team with more games (a dozen CYO games plus another 12-18 Super League games) as well as being on a team with more/"double" the practice. The alternative is two different teams with two different coaches with potentially different styles practicing with different kids. Visit the Nassau/Suffolk CYO website at  www.cyons.org for more information.
• The focus of Garden City Basketball is our intramural program, which is recreational and developmental. Garden City Basketball has received national recognition for the quality of our intramural program and its coaching staff. Each year, Garden City Basketball has supported a limited few pre-established teams playing in the IG Super League and in AAU competitive tournaments. Garden City Basketball is at www.gardencitybasketball.org and www.longislandbasketball.com also has lots of hoop info.
• The GCAA basketball program has intramurals that are developmental/competitive and travel, which is competitive. Tryouts are usually in the fall/September.   
• Forming independent teams with friends and pre-selected players is a more difficult undertaking. These teams generally bypass the tryout process. A major consideration is to form the team before the tryouts of other teams so that players (and usually better players) are available/committed.  Purchase of uniforms and equipment needs to be done. Obtaining insurance and practice space can be an obstacle. Playing in the off season (summer league in the Island Garden, Rockville Centre or Valley Stream) an insurance certificate is still needed.    

Information on Garden City Basketball and our programs may be found at www.gardencitybasketball.org. Registration for intramural program is underway and may be done on our website.

Questions? Contact John Skramko at jskramko@optonline.net or 516-746-9659.