We must nurture fantastic five's dreams

The 12 young men warming up at their end of the basketball floor sneak quick peeks at their opponents.

"Is that all there is? Just five?" one player asks.

"That's all," is the reply he hears.

It's another Saturday game in the Spokane Valley eighth- and ninth- grade boys basketball league.

Sponsored by the YMCA, it's a labor of love for the league's organizers and coaches.

For the referees, it must be some form of therapy. How else can one explain referees showing up week after week to hear questions of their genealogy?

For the players, it's a bit of heaven.

The players are a mixed bag of AAU players sharpening their skills, junior high players getting ready for their school season, and backyard players joining their friends on a team.

Each one has dreams - of making the school varsity, winning a league title, hitting a "three" to win the game.

They all drool over the latest shoe styles from Champs or Foot Locker. They all covet reversible basketball shorts so long that in most countries they are called "pants." Some even get them.

But rich or poor, each of these players dreams. There's Garrett, wrestler and the quickest wit on the team.

There's Andy, non-stop hustle and a trombone player.

There's Joel, point guard, wise beyond his years and a musician as well. The Hornets have the inside track on any half-time entertainment.

There's Tom, shy to a fault but quietly confident with a basketball in his hands.

There's Tim, a talented seventh-grader playing in a higher league. The Hornets, short in both height and numbers, are long on heart.

Down by 4 points with 30 seconds to go, they play with a poise that would make the Celtics proud.

A defensive stop and a three-pointer cuts the deficit to 1. As the other team desperately plays keepaway in the final seconds, a dive by Tom leads to another Hornet possession with just seconds left. The game ends as Andy hits two free throws with one second left for the victory.

But is this the last game for the fantastic five? Outside of playing for the school team, there is no organized basketball league here for high school players in 10th through 12th grades.

The city and county rec leagues require players to be out of high school.

How can this gap exist? In a town that wildly supports Hoopfest, how can we not have an organized weekend basketball league for high school-age players?

Are players not on a school team not worth the effort to coach? Is the exercise or the lessons in teamwork wasted on them? Can we look them in the eye and say their love for the game of basketball is misplaced?

Not having a league for these kids is a big mistake.

As our children grow, not only are they exposed to more potentially negative choices in their lives, there is something else at risk.

Their dreams.

Dreams motivate. Dreams keep a lonely child company while he's shooting hoops in his back yard. Then Saturday comes during basketball season, and those dreams come to life.

A player doesn't make the school team in high school for a lot of reasons.

It isn't always ability or love for the game.

Remember: Michael Jordan was cut from his high school team.

A great player I coached previously didn't make his high school team after the coach questioned his commitment to his weight-lifting program.

I guess the part-time, out-of-season job he has after school, to save for his college tuition, wasn't a good enough reason for the coach.

Who showed maturity here?

Players are cut from school teams and told, "We have no place for you."

A high school recreation league would provide a safety net to ensure these kids can still play.

Couldn't the current school C squads be part of this proposed league as well, giving the school coaches a chance to share the passion we feel about basketball with even more boys?

I'm passionate about this.

I'm asking the YMCA, Spokane County, the Valley's school districts to do it, either individually or cooperatively.

Build this league and the players will come.

Give the fantastic five a place to play.

Copyright 2001 Cowles Publishing Company
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.