FAQ – Wheatland Wizards Travel Basketball

Wizards Basketball

Boys Wheatland Wizards FAQs

Q: How are the Wizards players selected?
A:
Participants must register and attend the designated one-day (1-2 hour) tryout. The WAA Wizards Director conducts the Wizards tryouts with a team of assistants to determine which players have the skill level to compete on the travel basketball circuit. Player skill level is evaluated in controlled scrimmages, dribbling, movement, basketball IQ, defense presence, rebounding, and attitude/sportsmanship. Players with the appropriate skill level will receive an invitation, sent to the participant’s parent/guardian, within 48 hours after the final tryout, to join the Wheatland Wizards travel basketball team.

Q: How are the Wizards teams determined?
A:
Team placement will be determined after tryouts and before fall practices begin. Input in regards to desired teams is given to Wizards Director from all Wizards coaches. Each coach will submit a proposed roster to the Wizards Director of the players they wish to have on their team. The Wizards Director will determine final team placement based upon skill level of the player, the division level the team will be competing in and necessary player make up for each team.

Players are placed based on the following:

  • Where will the player receive the most quality playing time?
  • Which team will the player be able to contribute to the most?
  • Which team will the player have the most opportunity to handle the ball?
  • What is the player’s appropriate competition level?

The Wizards Director will have the final approval of all teams. Teams, however, will not always be composed of the players with the best basketball skills. Player skill, position and stature all must be considered when determining team placement. For example, it is not in the best interest of the Wizards to have a team with 8-9 guards and no height.

New tryouts are conducted every year for the Wheatland Wizards. A player selected the previous season is not guaranteed a roster spot. Everyone must try out for each season!

Q: Do coaches have input in who makes the team or the teams overall?
A:
Yes, Wizards coaches have a significant role in both player selection and team rosters. We believe receiving as much input as possible about a Wizards tryout participant gives us the best decision in our selection process.

Q: Who determines the Wizards BLUE and Wizards GOLD teams determined?
A:
The Blue team coach submits a list of his desired team to the Wizards Director. The Gold team coach submits his desired team to the Wizards Director after the Blue team coach. Participant skill level and team balance is very key in determining teams. The Wizards Director makes the final decision in the ranking of teams.

Q: Why is there a Wizards BLUE team and Wizards GOLD team and not two equal teams?
A:
To field quality, competitive traveling basketball teams on all levels, it is best to have one team, BLUE, to compete on the higher, upper A level against teams of the same stature in the area, and for one team, GOLD, to compete on high/mid-level with A/B teams similar to their skill level. The objective is to field teams with their appropriate competition counterpart.

Please note: Both Wizards teams, regardless of the team color, are very competitive in the travel basketball circuit annually. It is not unusual for our Wizards GOLD team to be better than several competing programs that claim to be A level.

Q: When are Wizards BLUE and GOLD teams finalized?
A:
Wizards teams competing in the fall/winter session are finalized by August 31st each year. The Wizards Director and Wizards coaches use the summer camps to view and scrutinize the skill level of players. A one-day tryout is not enough to determine whether or not Wizards participants are BLUE or GOLD team players. Wizards’ summer camps, June thru August, are used for lengthy controlled scrimmages, placement of players in certain match-ups, and individualizing skills thru challenging drills.

Q: What is the player commitment required and player expectations?
A:
Wizards tryouts are in June for the following Fall/Winter season for players entering grades 3rd-8th. Wizards summer camps for all participants who accepted their invitations for the fall/winter season take place in June, July, and August. Camps run three days straight, monthly. Each grade level camp time on average is 1.5-2hours in length. All summer camp sessions are provided by WAA Wizards Director and his team of trainers. Regular season practices begin in mid-September.

All teams practice twice a week, approximately 75-90 minutes each practice. All Wizards teams typically practice at IPSD 204 and/or 308 school district middle schools. Player/skill development sessions are provided by Wizards staff of trainers, apart from the Wizards’ regular season practice schedule. Sessions with the Wizards trainers begin October through February.

Games and tournaments begin early-November and continue through early-March. Wizards’ home games are typically played at Granger Middle School and Metea Valley High School. Each Wizards (boys) team, 4th-8th, play approximately 45-50 games, including tournament games. 3rd grade Wizards teams play an abbreviated schedule. Most of the tournaments and away games are in the DuPage County area and/or in the immediate Chicagoland area (within one hour of Aurora/Naperville).

Players are expected to play for the Wizards program and not to play for another travel basketball program at the same time. We encourage and ALLOW players to play for their junior high school/middle school team and the Wizards program at the same time.

Wizards’ tryouts are in March for the Spring season. Spring season practice begins early March. The start of games begin early-April and the end of the Spring season is early June. Most of the tournaments are in the DuPage County area and/or in the immediate Chicagoland area (within one hour of Aurora/Naperville).

Wizards’ tryouts are in June for the Summer season. Summer season practice begins mid-June. The start of games begin late June and the end of the Summer session is mid-August. Most of the tournaments are in the DuPage County area and/or in the immediate Chicagoland area (within one hour of Aurora/Naperville).

Q: How many players are selected for each Wizards team?
A:
Typically, Wizards Teams have a maximum of 10 players, although roster size may fluctuate slightly due to player health and availability.

Grade levels 3rd thru 7th – teams are composed of a maximum 10 players.
Grade levels 8th through High School – teams are composed of a minimum 9 players to a maximum 10 players.

Style switcher RESET
Color scheme