Marquette Basketball Camp

[WarriorFan]

I'm looking for a good summer basketball camp for my 14 year old son.  Has anyone sent their kids to the MU camp?  How is it?

I know some of these camps are more of a babysitting service... he's not looking for that.  He really wants to become a better player as a result of the camp. 

Looking forward to high quality "scoop" advice!

[mu_hilltopper]

My 9 year old went this summer .. loved it, but I don't think his skills improved. 

I imagine it is much more rigorous the older you get.

[MU82]

As a parent, I sent my kids to several basketball camps. As a coach, I have both run camps and worked at camps.

The main reason to send a kid to camp is for him/her to have a good time, to get him/her playing and thinking about basketball in what otherwise is probably a down time for the sport in his/her mind, and maybe to teach a new skill or drill.

One should not send a kid to a basketball camp hoping to see major improvement in the skill set, or even much improvement at all. Even a small camp, like the one I run, has a 12-1 kid/instructor ratio. Only so much individual work can be done. Mostly it is drills, basic fundamentals and some scrimmages.

As most of us know, the kids who improve the most are those who love the game and are driven to improve by spending considerable time working on their games by themselves or with family/friends. I had one player whose parents hired a private coach to work with her twice a week and give her a plan to follow on the other 5 days - THAT girl improved significantly. I also have seen improvement from kids who played on AAU teams - partly from the instruction they received but mostly from just gaining extra experience by practicing/playing several times a week in what ordinarily is the offseason.

Back in the late-90s, early-aughts, my son went to Ray Meyer's last 5 camps in northern Wis. I wouldn't say he came back as a "better" player any of those years. But he loved the experience, he had fun, he picked up a thing or two, and he spent a week being immersed in basketball instead of video games. I considered each of those experiences money well-spent.

My daughter went to the MU girls camp one year and really liked it. Again, I don't know that she "improved" much, though. I have no experience with MU's boys camp.

[Jockey]

Mike, my grandson has been to numerous camps - run by both former NBA players and by coaches.

While the coach camps are generally better, your post is spot on. It is all about loving the game and playing a lot. That is how kids improve.

AAU is great as well, because besides playing a lot, there are a limited number of kids for the coaches to work with so each kid is getting a lot more attention that they would at any of the camps.

[BrewCity83]

I sent my son (now 18) to MU's camps run both by Crean and Buzz when he was grade school to middle school aged and he had a blast every day there.  The MU players help out with the camp and the kids get to play a tournament at the end.  It was always well run and they always stressed hard work and sportsmanship.  I'm sure Wojo's MU camp is great too.

[MUfan12]

I'm looking for a good summer basketball camp for my 14 year old son.  Has anyone sent their kids to the MU camp?  How is it?

I know some of these camps are more of a babysitting service... he's not looking for that.  He really wants to become a better player as a result of the camp. 

Looking forward to high quality "scoop" advice!

For the cost, I'd explore some individual or small group training. At the very least, he'll walk away with some drills he can do on his own time. Camp would be fun, but I don't know how much development goes on.

[Benny B]

Unless these are week-long camps with 3-a-day practices, drills, specialized instruction, and pre-camp conditioning routines, don't expect much in the way of material improvement.  The best takeaway - as others have said - is one or two drills, concepts, skills that they can improve upon post-camp.

Most "University-Sponsored" or "Team" camps are designed around fun, not improvement.  Fun is profit for dummies.  And since the hard work requisite to improving one's skill-set in a week is not fun, well, you get the picture.  Making money off hard work requires the right combination of entrepreneurship and skill rarely found within the confines of a university's athletic dept.

If he really wants improvement at 14 y/o and you have the coin to drop, consider sending your son to an overnight basketball camp for 2-4 weeks.  I can't recommend any basketball ones myself, but off the top of my head I can think of about a half dozen places for him if he played hockey, so I'm sure there won't be a problem finding a good hoops camp somewhere... though you might have to put him on a plane to get there.

[MU82]

If you have coin to drop and serious improvement (rather than fun) is your goal, do your research and find an individual coach. Some will work with 2 or 3 players at one time for a lower per-person fee, so maybe another parent or two you know is looking for a similar experience.

Camps are fun. Fun is important. But it's not much for actual improvement.

[#UnleashSean]

I would look into a gym that has continued instruction throughout the year. Once or twice a year for a full year will do a lot more than  a one week camp. I know a few for baseball, but you'll have to look yourself for basketball.

Anecdotal: When I was in 8th grade our future high school basketball coach ran a year round camp (summer 8th-summer freshman)  camp for 3 feeder schools. Our freshman team went 20-1. We beat a couple teams around 80-15 or so. Unfortunately me and a few other players ended up switching schools for better scouting.

[barfolomew]

This thread has reminded me of my youth.

I went to Jerry Sloan's overnight summer camp at Aurora College for a couple years, probably sixth and seventh grade.
One of the years, it was approaching lights out and my roommates and I were playing poker for m&m's or something, and someone ducks in from the hallway saying Gilkey! Gilkey! Gilkey's coming! (Grayal Gilkey ran the camp since Sloan was coaching Utah by this time. Don't ask why I remember his name.)

So being guilty Catholic schoolboys who assumed we would be in some sort of trouble, I dived into the closet while the others hid the evidence. Next I hear, "Hi, Mr. Sloan" and see the closet door slide open and Jerry says, "Son, is this where you spend your time when you're at home?"

I got sh!t for the rest of camp. Think I won the most improved award that year though. Good times.