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Frequently Asked Questions.....
Q: Explain your program's philosophy.
A: Our program is committed to the following, but not limited to:
* Create an environment for young ladies to grow mentally, emotionally, and physically
* Continue the growth of sound basketball fundamentals and team skills
* Create an environment to provide maximum college exposure and opportunity
* While not to embarrass a player, challenge each player to excel by putting them in an environment of playing against the best athletes and be successful
* Aid a player in competing in their high school program
Q: What type of player are you looking for?
A: These are some of the following characteristics we look for but not "all" of them have to be applicable for each player.
* A player that wants to excel and grow in basketball
* A player that considers basketball their first love of any sport
* A player that has aspirations of playing basketball at a college level
* A player that puts "team" first before themselves-Mandatory characteristic
* A player that feels she has better than average basketball skills and wants to get better
* A player that is willing to listen and be coached-Mandatory characteristic
Q: Why should I join a club like yours when I have my own school team to play with in the off-season?
A: We feel playing with your own school team is very important and we encourage it. For those schools that have an off-season program, we feel you should be able to play with your school program as well as play with our club in most situations. Our program runs from mid March to the end of July. Whereas, school programs run generally from early June to the end of July. Unfortunately, most school programs are very limited in the amount of time they actually will devote to a program in the off-season due to cost, player commitment, etc. 100% commitment by all the players of an entire school team during the off-season is very unlikely. Most school teams have just a couple of players on each team that are fully committed to basketball. The other players on the team have other sports/activities they feel are much more important to them during the off-season. Because of that, attendance by these other athletes will generally be very poor at best. Our club has players that are fully committed to our program and playing the game of basketball.
Our program generally will put you into a much a higher level of competition based on the athletes you play with and against, which in turn will make you a much stronger/better player. The athletes that are on our club as well as other clubs like ours have some of the best athletes that come from their area. Because of that, you will get challenged to play at a high level at all times and improve yourself by playing against some of the best athletes in the states they come from.
Finally, if one of your goals is to play basketball in college, then playing with our club will give you much more opportunity for that to happen. We put our players into an environment where college coaches come to evaluate talent and recruit. We do not guarantee that you will be recruited because of our program, but we will do everything possible to give you opportunities for colleges to recruit you to play basketball for them.
Q: What is the cost for participation?
A: The cost to participate varies depending on each age group. The estimated cost based on a roster of 10 or more players will be between $600 to $700. A roster of less than 10 players will add to each player's cost to participate proportionally.
Q: What does the participation fee cover?
A: Teams that are 14 and under will cover an estimated 4 to 6 tournaments of which 1 to 2 tournaments will be college exposure(each tournament will consist of 3 to 7 games).
Teams that are 15 and older will cover an estimated 6 to 8 tournaments of which 3 to 4 tournaments will be college exposure(each tournament will consist of 3 to 7 games).
All players receive a full uniform, equipment bag, and travel suit to keep.
A sports booklet with individual player profiles in it that is to be distributed to college coaches at college exposure tournaments.
The fee also covers club/AAU memberships, equipment, gym rental, coaching stipend, web site maintenance and administrative costs.
***All others costs associated with player travel(housing, food, gas, etc.) are "NOT" covered by the fee.***
Q: What is the breakdown of how the participation fee is distributed for expenses?
A: Approximately 40% to 50% covers tournament fees.
Approximately 25% to 30% covers uniform, equipment bag and travel suit.
Approximately 10% to 15% covers club/AAU membership, equipment, gym rental, sports booklet and web site maintenance.
Approximately 10% to 15% covers coaching stipend and administrative costs.
Q: Why is your participation fee less/more than other clubs?
A: Each club has a different cost basis depending on what is covered in the fee. The biggest difference in clubs is the amount and type of tournaments each club participates in. College exposure tournaments can be 4 to 5 times more expensive to participate in compared to a basic AAU or traveling team tournament.
Also, the amount of equipment a player is allowed to keep for their own is another big difference in cost variance.
Gym rental costs and coaching stipend can vary greatly between clubs as well.
Last, some clubs have been fortunate to get a large corporate sponsor which in turn lowers the overall cost of the fee.
Q: Do you have fundraisers?
A: Yes, we have various fundraisers available to use if we choose, which will help to offset club costs.
Q: Why is there a registration fee?
A: We charge a registration fee so that we know that a player is serious about playing for our club. We also have costs associated with the registration that need to be covered regardless if you are placed on a team or not.
Q: What about playing time- is there a guarantee?
A: Based on having a roster of 10 equally strong players per team, our goal is to have equal playing time as close as possible for each player during each game. Depending on game situations that may vary. Example- (Players are played evenly for the majority of a game that has been close throughout. The five or six most consistent players during that game may be the only players utilized in the last 5 minutes of the game, regardless of their rotation earlier in the game, based on those players giving us the best chance to win. The five or six players we use will vary from game to game based on who is most consistent during that particular game.) Playing time will also be based on attendance at practice, attitude, effort, match-ups and game situations.
Q: When is the participation fee due?
A: A check must be paid no later than the end of the tryout session for the balanced owed for the season.
Q: What team will I be on?
A: The coaching staff will determine what team you will be on based on your age and your skill level. Depending on your skill level, we may place you on a older team. The age requirements are as follows for each age division. January 1st at 12:00 A.M., shall be the determining date for the age of the player.
12 & Under- January 1, 1994
13 & Under- January 1, 1993
14 & Under- January 1, 1992
15 & Under- January 1, 1991
16 & Under- January 1, 1990**
** Players who are Juniors in the 2006-2007 school year and were born in 1989 also qualify to play in this age division.
Q: Who coaches our teams?
A: Our goal and expectation will be that you will have one of the following types of qualified coaches:
* Current experienced high school coach
* Former experienced high school coach
* Former experienced college player
* Former experienced college coach
* Former experienced AAU coach
* Current experienced AAU coach
We will ask one or more parents from each team to volunteer as a manager to take stats, contact players/parents, etc.
Q: When are the tournaments and where are they played at?
A: All of our tournaments are played on the weekends. Due to the amount of teams in some tournaments, the start date of a tournament may be as early as a Thursday running through the weekend. Most tournaments will only require a weekend commitment of time.
The majority of the tournaments are played in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. A smaller amount of tournaments will be played outside the state of Minnesota, but most of those will fall in bordering states and relatively close to the border of Minnesota.
Q: Where do we practice and how often do we have practice?
A: Currently we are scheduled to practice at Nevis High School in Nevis, Minnesota. Depending on where most of the players come from for our teams, we may change the location to accommodate the majority of the people involved. At this point, we are using Nevis because it is a central location for many people and the cost effectiveness for the club. Other locations for practice that are available for us to use are as follows: Ashby, MN., Bemidji, MN., Grafton, ND., East Grand Forks, MN., Isle, MN., Lake Park, MN., and Walker, MN. There may be other locations posted later. We plan on having a practice once a week on the weekend for the first 4 weeks of the season or so (no practice on Easter weekend). Once tournaments start on the weekends, our ability to have practice will be difficult since we will only practice on weekends during the school year.
Q: Does this program accept donations or sponsors?
A: Yes, we are always looking for donations or sponsorships to help defray costs associated with our club. Our club is run as a non-profit organization and any donations or sponsorships will help keep the program affordable for all players. Click here to get more information on being a sponsor.
Q: Who can I contact for more information?
A: Club Director, Kevin Christensen, can be reached by phone toll free at (888) 556-9236 or email at ClubDirector@MinnesotaNorthernLynx.com
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