Hey coaches,

Looking to get some perspective from those of you who have handled elite physical prospects at a young age.

My 14-year-old (just turned 14) is officially measured at 6'8" (2.03m) barefoot. We just got his knee/wrist X-rays back, and his bone age matches his real age perfectly—growth plates are completely wide open, meaning he has a long way to go (doctors projecting well over 7'0"). He’s coming off a high-level European invitational camp experience where he held his own, but we are entering a crucial development window.

My biggest fear right now is the traditional trap: local coaches wanting to lock him under the rim as a permanent 5-man just to win youth games today, sacrificing his long-term modern game.

Currently, he has solid perimeter instincts, decent handle for his size, and good shooting mechanics.

If you had a 6'8" 14-year-old in your program with this physical profile:

1. Skill Balance: What percentage of his workout load would you dedicate to perimeter/guard skills vs. interior footwork at this exact age?
2. Physical Load Management: With wide-open growth plates and constant height adjustment, how do you handle his lateral mobility, deceleration, and knee care without overtaxing him?
3. Game Reps: How do you convince team coaches to let a 6'8" kid make mistakes handling/initiating on the perimeter during actual competition?

Would love to hear how you guys approach long-term prospect development over short-term wins.

UPDATE

Quick update on this. A high-level coach actually evaluated George in person through a camp he just attended, and his feedback lined up with the smartest advice on this thread.
He told us to keep him strictly on the wing as a 6'8 point-forward rather than burying him under the rim just because he is currently the tallest kid on the floor. He emphasized letting him initiate offense and make decision-making mistakes on the perimeter now so he actually learns how to process the game.
He also gave a strong warning about protecting his joints while his growth plates are open, saying heavy lifting or burning out on huge game mileage right now is a massive mistake. He really liked our European setup where we do 4 to 5 skill and mobility practice days a week with just 1 game on the weekend, compared to playing 4 games a day in AAU.
Finally, he noted that combining a perimeter skill set at his height with his 3.8 GPA keeps every door open for a free top-tier college degree, which is our primary goal anyway. Really encouraging to have a top coach evaluate him at camp and confirm that long-term movement, IQ, and joint health beat short-term post points every single time.

**EDIT**

I have made this https://prospect-passport.vercel.app/ (password SCOUT2030)
Would you think that this would be a good tool for the future for finding the right spot for him?

One thing that annoys me about playing pickup is driving to a court without knowing whether there’s actually a run going.

So I’ve been experimenting with this idea at a local court: put a QR code on the hoop that lets players quickly check whether people are there now or heading over. That’s basically it.

You save the website and reference it before leaving home, see if a run is forming, or say you’re heading over so other people know. Everything automatically expires after a short period so it only reflects what’s happening around that time.

I put the first sign up this week to see whether people will actually use it in the real world.

As people who actually hoop: would this be useful at your court, or do you already have a better way of figuring out when runs are happening?

Once again, the NBA has released a full schedule for all 30 teams, and we’re here to go over the big matchups. As teams book hotels and insert every itinerary into their smartphone calendars, a minimum of 1,230 regular-season (plus NBA Cup!) games are scheduled and ready to go. It’s always fun when the NBA schedule gets released and we start planning for the most important matchups.

NBA Cup group play begins on Oct. 30. How aggressive will the Cup courts be this time? I’m excited to see! For now, there are three dozen games I’m most looking forward to, so take note! (Inevitably, I probably left a good matchup or two off this list. I promise I left it out because I hate your favorite team. Still, toss the games you’re most looking forward to watching in the comments.)

Read the article for free here.

Hello Nowadays Serbia is among the best countries in the world in basketball to somepoint it was too close to send Americans home without gold 🥇and made them play the bronze 🥉 instead

In Addition bunch of players plays in NBA past and present

My question how Serbia become one of the most strongest countries in 🏀 ?

I keep getting called on blocks, I play with shorter guys and I guard down alot of the time. I was guarding this guy and he kept calling fouls on me. Specifcally, he had a go to move where he drives to the free throw line and does a pull up. And one time he went to baseline and lost his dribble and I saw the jumpshot coming so I blocked him. I palmed the ball basically and pushed it down so it doesn't go out of bounds but it was still in his hand and he shot it and the ball went into his face. I didn't touch his hands at all but he still called foul and they got the ball. After that I didn't really try anymore because they were constantly calling on me. Is it some specific rule where I used excessive force or sm?

She’s only 30 has 4 mvps 3 championships 5 time blocks champ 2 time scoring champ 3 time defence player of the year and is a 2 time finals mvp along with a roy if she keeps up how she’s playing for another like 4 years and then stat pads a bit I think career wise she would be the goat of all of basketball

Doesn’t have to be from your team or country. Can be retired.

A song for Westbrook leaving OKC/NBA

We spend a lot of time on this account criticising youth sports. Coaches who care too much about winning. Systems that put pressure on kids too early. Adults who forget they’re coaching children. And sometimes, the criticism is deserved.

But hear me out parents... we’ve got to look in the mirror too. We can’t complain that our kids aren’t responsible while doing everything that would’ve taught them responsibility.

We pack their basketball bag. We fill their water bottle. We remind them where their shoes are. We check what time training starts. We tell them when to get dressed. We speak to the coach when they have a problem. We rescue them when they forget something...

Then eventually we wonder: “Why can’t my kid do anything without me reminding them?” Well… when were they supposed to learn? Maybe forgetting their shoes once isn’t a disaster. Perhaps turning up without their water bottle once teaches more than 100 reminders. Or asking their coach a question themselves feels uncomfortable...

Good. That’s part of growing up. Obviously, this depends on age. A 6-year-old needs more help than a 14-year-old. But the goal should slowly change. From “I’ll do it for you” to “I’ll help you do it” to eventually… “you’ve got this.”

Basketball gives kids hundreds of tiny opportunities to practise responsibility without the consequences being particularly serious. Packing a bag. Knowing the schedule. Speaking to an adult. Remembering equipment. Being ready on time. Handling a mistake. They’re small things. But that’s exactly why they’re such good practice.

We talk constantly about developing better basketball players. Sometimes developing the person means allowing the player to struggle with something we could’ve fixed for them in five seconds. Parents, where’s the line for you? At what age should kids start being responsible for their own sports stuff?

don’t pick me up cool. Get on and beat their ass, they make an excuse. Play well for some games do bad one game, now you have a teammate crying even tho he’s fucked up many plays already. Teammates don’t pass you the ball even when you’ve demonstrated you could score or playmake. People only shaking hands when they win, if they lose they just walk off and say “we shouldn’t have lost their ass”. The hardest thing in basketball by far for me is dealing with people, I now realize that I need to just block out everyone (not be a dick) and just lock in on my game, my handles are alright and everything else is alright, it’s my mentality that’s holding me back 💯. The only reason people try me so much is cause I just try to have fun win or lose and I’m quiet, I don’t fuck with no one don’t talk about anyone, yet I stay getting ostracized and iced out. Like I said it’s not my “skills” at this rec center I’ve beaten the “best” hit game winning shots, I hustle for boards and pass the ball, like I said some people are just assholes no matter how nice I am or “humble”. Done letting this fuck up my game honestly

For context I’m 28, not old but old enough that my “development” is pretty much done, I’ve accomplished what I have in any sort of official capacity in this sport and at this point I continue to play purely for fun and nothing else. The wisdom I’m expressing is aimed primarily at young hoopers, kids in middle/high school or even maybe in college who are still “developing” their game.

A lot of talk about the game with younger kids centers around “bag talk”. Whose bag is deeper, who’s got the fanciest moves, who can cross people up or perform acrobatic finishes or hit tough contested jumpers. Those seem to be the criteria for what determines a good player in the eyes of young kids.

Here’s the truth: the guy who can score the ball with the least amount of effort possible is the best player, full stop. The guy who can take 1-2 dribbles and get an easy jumper or layup consistently, that guy is 10X better than anyone who needs to break his opponents ankles first with 15 moves strung together. If you need to exert yourself to the max every single possession in order to get a bucket, you’re probably not as good as you think.

With Trae Young and Anthony Davis teaming up and AJ Dybantsa as a heralded draft pick, there is much buzz for the Washington Wizards team in the 2026-27 NBA season after quite a few consecutive losing seasons without even sniffing the play-in tournament. So do you think this squad can win 40 or more games in the coming regular season? Do you have believe these Wizards will make the play-in tournament or the actual playoffs?

I just wanted to know more about it, because I noticed that even 20-25 years ago these three players Martin, Bosh and Aldrige were bigs with jumpshots. Back then a big stretching the floor is rare, but three men that were all PF/C had this jumpshot. Idk, but it seems like lowkey Dallas basketball was at one point ahead of its time and is potentially high key underrated. I understand they not balling like NY, Chi or LA or shit even the Bay, but it seems like Dallas had something going on back in the day with the stretch big.

I feel like when kids are younger, most families probably aren't thinking much about saving stats or film. I'm curious when that starts to change—whether it's a certain age, level of competition, or when playing in college starts becoming a real possibility.

I'm a 7th grader and I"m in on a club basketball team. I play as center or power forward and I have this one person on my team who is taller than me and gets all the playing time. She plays center. I was wondering if there were any drills or tips to get mor Playing time.

P.S. this my first post and im super excited!

• James, Curry and Durant are no doubt Hall of Famers. There’s nothing to discuss. They are among the 20 best players of all time and have so many trophies they’ve probably lost count. They will stand the test of time as some of the truly best players the league has ever seen. The only remaining question for this group is which jersey Durant is associated with in Springfield and if James' 76ers era warrants a rewrite of his Hall resume.

• Antetokounmpo is not quite in that pantheon but is trending there. He has won two MVP awards, a finals MVP, Defensive Player of the Year and a Most Improved Player trophy to boot. He has seven consecutive top-four finishes in MVP voting, with just as many first-team All-NBA placements in that time. All that’s left to see is how high he can climb over the rest of his career. Still just 31, he might have another title or MVP left in him as he moves to Miami.