Code Word "Exposure"

Name a spring and summer team that doesn't talk about "exposure" and I'd call you a liar. The word exposure is a be all, end all by players and parents that want to feel important. Parents believe that you get exposure by going to a tournament out of state when the players are 12 or 13 years old. Smaller AAU programs will sell the exposure in order to get players but none of those players will never play in college or leave the state to play in college.

It can be really frustrating for people in the know when programs sell "exposure." Exposure means you play in front of college coaches and if you think that college coaches are going to go out of their way to see 12 or 13 year olds you are completely out of your mind. Are there times when they sit down and watch a game? Yes. That's because the game they are supposed to watch is starting late.

The out of town trip for any AAU team is always an adventure. It can be a lot of fun and you get to spend a lot of time together. Definitely a good time. While I was coaching AAU, we went on a trip to Iowa during the "live period." There was one college coach that stayed for less than a half of one of our games. Even one of my players, who had hopes of playing college ball, tweeted out some of his frustration. Not exactly a great way to get "exposure."

There are a lot of AAU programs that decide that it's a good idea to have half of their tournaments be out of the state where they are located. Some of these programs have a whole team of guys/girls that will basketball out of state in college. It makes sense for them to travel and I don't blame these programs at all.

Then there are the other teams. The other teams "sell" that going out of state gets their kids "exposure." Exposure to what? Exposure to another program that does the same thing. They end up getting put in the same pool and or play in the first round of the silver "championship" division. On top of that, none of the kids on the team will ever leave the state to play college ball. What sense does it make to have families spend a boatload of money on travel, food, and lodging for no other reason than to play someplace different?

But keep selling "exposure." Great marketing.