1.) This is very, very typical. But I'm sorry ... I know it hurts!

2.) Yes, he can play AAU or maybe your town has a league?

3.) Take things one step at a time. Has he hit his growth spurt? He could be a very different player next year. OTOH, it is tougher to make JV than freshman.

4.) Definitely don't AIM to play in college -- most kids simply do not ever reach that goal. But if he's really passionate, of course he should keep playing. He might make it to a D3 college, or even start at a junior college.

5.) Encourage a positive attitude. Tell him to keep playing, play pickup with friends, get in the gym. If he tries out next year, hustle, hustle, hustle. And be polite! A friend of mine had a talented but undersized kid ... she encouraged him to always be the kid asking the coach if he needed any help, scooping up loose balls, putting chairs away, etc. His good attitude paid off.

Anonymous wrote:OP, I'm sorry your son is experiencing this. I know it's painful for both of you.

I agree with a PP that posting this question in the sports forum would get you better feedback. But I would definitely explore AAU teams. There are a lot of teams, find a few and attend their try-outs, and don't just try-out for one team. I believe AAU starts after HS basketball season, so in the meantime over the winter I would have him play rec ball. Keep him playing!

There are also basketball training facilities, google "Basketball training near me", and you should see some places. That might be an option to work on skills that he may need training on.

P.S. Don't worry about college basketball at this point. He's in 9th grade! Focus on playing and developing in the game he enjoys.

My son's HS basketball team was full of kids who were sure they'd go D1. And of course none did. Now some did play D3 and that's great. But there's also club basketball in many colleges, intramural basketball, other ways to play.

Anonymous wrote:I'd transfer to a lesser competitive school next year if he really wants to play.

If OP's son is at a private school asking for suggestions on the private school forum would be a good idea. There's a pretty good sense over there as to which schools are the most competitive at which sports.

Agree with others that college is unlikely if he got cut from the freshman team (unless PVI as someone else said). Yes, Jordan was cut from his HS team, but this is not the typical path. Best bet is if he is still very, very ,early in puberty and has a ton of growing left to do.

OP, I'm sorry your son is experiencing this. I know it's painful for both of you.

I agree with a PP that posting this question in the sports forum would get you better feedback. But I would definitely explore AAU teams. There are a lot of teams, find a few and attend their try-outs, and don't just try-out for one team. I believe AAU starts after HS basketball season, so in the meantime over the winter I would have him play rec ball. Keep him playing!

There are also basketball training facilities, google "Basketball training near me", and you should see some places. That might be an option to work on skills that he may need training on.

I'd transfer to a lesser competitive school next year if he really wants to play.

Michael Jordan famously got cut from his high school team initially.

We are Asian American and my son could be your son next year. He puts in the work and skilled but he is not that tall and has average height parents. He is skilled but there is a lot of talent out there. Being on travel or AAU isn’t enough to play college but you probably already know that.

We know some kids who play rec in high school. There are AAU teams and leagues like little legends. If your kid got cut from freshman year, it is unlikely he will play for college. Sorry.

Did your kid not make the PVI freshman team or the Whitman freshman team?

The former is the #2 team in the country…while the latter is good in the state of MD but would get blown out by PVI, Sidwell, Bullis, etc.

Important to understand the caliber of the freshman team and whether transferring HS is an option.

Unfortunately, the top AAU teams are coached by the top HS team coaches in the DMV. I assume there isn’t much of a winter season for AAU basketball while HS seasons are playing.

How tall is he? How tall are you and his other parent?

There is no chance in hell he’s playing college. There might be 1 player on varsity that will play any level of college

He should email the freshman coach and reiterate that he really wants to be on the team and would be happy to just be a practice player with no expectation of playing in the games.

If he got cut from his freshman team, it is highly unlikely that he will be good enough to play in college. Please don’t make that the goal. If he really loves the sport, find another place for him to play. Please keep in mind that the chance of DS making the JV team next year are very, very slim. He would need to leapfrog other players to make a smaller roster, which is highly unlikely.

Do you want to ask on the basketball forum as well to get sport-specific advice?

Don’t worry about college. There are a lot of rec and travel options. Keep playing.

My freshman son didnt make the final cut for his freshman basketball team. He made it till the final selection day (second cut), but on the first training day, inexplicably, the coach cut two players (my son was one of them). My teen has played rec and competitively for the past 5 years, and basketball is his life - he puts in the work every single day, and being cut from the HS team has devastated him. As an immigrant parent who doesnt really understand the sports scene here as much, I wanted advice as to how to guide him. He is keen to keep playing so we are exploring travel teams again (our past AAU experience was not that good - we had issues with the coach). How can he keep playing basketball competitively outside of the school team in HS. Do colleges consider players not playing in their school team? I would like realistic advice please. Thank you.