50 All-Stars

October 1st, 2018

The Official Newsletter of 50 All-Stars Basketball

Issue #9

WOW,WHAT A START!

We've made a few changes and definitely expected a nice result, but even we've been shocked by the unreal reception and transformation of our program over the past month. So many new members, so many players trying to step up their games in a major way, so many parents going completely out of their way to get their kids hours in our gym, and so many dreams and goals being met absolutely each and every day. It's invigorating to say the least, but it's inspiring beyond measure to say the most. Thank you, thank you, thank you for placing your trust in our hands. We will NOT fail you!

A TON OF NEW KIDS

We've recently revamped our entire program in terms of truly opening our doors to the general public. Where we were hesitant for years to bring in kids that wouldn't be the right fit for what we do, we are now more inclusive than ever supported by our ability to finally offer a great program and experience for more than just the kids who want "all-in 100%". Besides bringing in several Oakland kids through our outreach program, we're also offering 3, 6, and 9 month options for the part-time seasonal kids who wish to take part for months at a time. All of this has increased our base enough to create an even better experience for our current members.

There's more excitement at each workout, due to the higher number of invigorated kids; and there's more opportunities for everyone due to the flexibility that knowing we have enough players at every level affords us. There's more diversity within our program, not just in ethnicity but also in the multitude of mindsets and approaches there are to attempting to achieve our dreams. And with a larger pool of players to select from, our travel team will undoubtedly be assisted as well.

Overall, our already-fantastic program has just improved tenfold. Congratulations to all those that helped make this a reality.

NEW WEBSITE

Our new website has launched and taken us off into the direction that is most efficiently beneficial to our current customers, our potential customers, and for the players whose goals we are entrusted with. Listing everything we offer is an extremely tough task, given that we offer so much... but we believe we've done just that in the most minimalist way possible. Organizing motivation is hard, but we believe we now offer all that and more to our players within a friendly landscape. And ease of access for members and non-members alike is tricky, but far more people find our site more intuitive than ever. Be sure to look around, and please let us know what you think!

There are a few things of note that you simply must see, however. Our new pricing structure offers a new way to enter our program for those who would rather test the waters before diving in. Our program's philosophy is highlighted for you to understand us more in-depth, our rosters page shows you how much space we have while including enough to motivate each player to show as often as they're able, and our challenges page is enough to be too much for even an NBA player. Be sure to also check out our curriculum page on a daily basis to know the quote of the day and to get a head start on that day's workout so that you can get even more out of our events.

All this might seem like a lot, but know that's exactly what we try to be: The program that offers its players more than any other program on earth!

CHALLENGES SECTION

Our brand-spankin' new Challenges section is the part of our updated site that will help players the most. We have endeavors that are projects for players of any level to delve into for a long period of time. Our clinics, combines, and our pick 'n' roll gallery of lessons are described in-depth. There are daily drills, monthly homework assignments, and game focuses designed to instantly assist players in reaching the next level. And our pre-workout and pre-practice drills are listed to help players get a step ahead of everyone else at our events. The Skills and Tricks categories are both crucial endeavors every player should at least attempt once, as these extremely fun activities becoming benchmarks in their lives is potentially a huge driving force behind eternal inspiration. The Chastain Challenge and the Five Perfect Weeks Challenge are especially tough, but both offer enormous and immediate benefits. The Bamboo Challenge is crazy profound but also just plain crazy in an out-of-the-box sort of way. This page also lists a couple of apps to increase reaction time and intellect within those that solve these interesting puzzles. We have so many challenges on this page that it might truly be impossible to complete, but I'm certain there's at least one player out there willing to try!

PICK N ROLL QUIZ

The Pick n Roll is the most lethal play in basketball, and has been around for decades. If done properly, there's virtually no way to continually stop it. We take the twelve possible defensive reactions, and we assign 12 counters for each in our Challenges section for our players to memorize and eventually master. This is a lot for anyone to recall, let alone kids at the elementary level; but we push each and every one of our players to at least try. Along with the list of defensive and offensive couplings, we have video of how we attack each on the site as well. But the best thing we've added is a short quiz to test your ability to pair each set of reactions.

The quiz is extremely straightforward, the answers/links are right there on the site, and kids can take the quiz anonymously or officially on the site as often as they'd like. It's still an extremely difficult feat, but we've found that even being brave enough to TRY to take the quiz is beyond most players. We've made some headway in this regard, as at least our best players have given it a go... but our goal is to eventually get the rest to try as well.

The quiz gives you your score immediately, and we honestly don't care that the results have been far below par. We just like that our players have begun to take the first steps towards what will be a remarkable aspect of the game for any player on earth to master... let alone a kid still below the college level.

4th GRADE FOCUS: TENNYSON VEST

Tennyson Vest is not only one of the happiest kids in our program; he's also one of the most ferociously intense players. That combination of kindness and thirst for destruction is the exact balance we strive for with each member of our program. He's a high-level athlete with his eyes set on big dreams, and we are proud he's chosen to pursue those dreams within the confines of all we do. Here's this quarter's FOUR QUESTIONS FOR OUR FOURTH GRADE FOCUS:

Q. ARE THERE ANY PLAYERS IN OUR PROGRAM YOU LOOK UP TO? A. Finley Chastain because she does a lot of things correctly and knows most of the drills.

Q. WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU KNEW YOU COULDN'T FAIL? A. I'd become a professional baseball, soccer, basketball, and football player.

Q. HOW HAS OUR PROGRAM IMPROVED YOUR GAME? A. I'm a much better shooter than I was before.

Q. WHAT'S YOUR BIGGEST HURDLE? A. Confidence. Because I don't want to fail, and sometimes I think I can't screw this up. But I'm getting better at it.

WHO THIS PROGRAM IS FOR

We'd truly like to provide for everyone, but sadly this is not possible. So we simply choose to provide for those who aren't provided for elsewhere; the players who wish to go all-in to get a D1 scholarship and the players who wish to work hard to reach their own personal full potential. For the players that want it all, we offer more than they could ever desire: 2 days of weekly team practice to bond with others with similar goals, 5 days of intense training to improve person growth, monthly clinics, travel tournaments, and so much more. For the kids that would like to improve their personal skill, we offer training 5 days a week that they can show up to whenever they'd like and games to play in year-round. We know these two groups aren't every type of player, but we feel as though no other program properly provides for these two groups while many other programs offer exactly what other types of kids want and need.

Many players (and parents) want our elite team practices, but they don't want to travel. Some want to only scrimmage, but not on the days we offer. Some want to be a part of a serious team, but only for 2 months out of the year. Perhaps one day we'll have the resources to provide for every combination of player, but for now it takes 100% of what we do to *truly* provide for the kid who's honestly attempting to go pro. And because we take their goals so much more seriously than absolutely every other program out there is willing to, we refuse to sacrifice an iota of elite team stuff to accommodate for those who aren't a part of the two aforementioned groups.

So for all those who have an ELITE mindset, our program is for you. For all those who want 3, 6, or 9 months to truly improve their personal game, this program is for you. Our niche is unchallenged, and what others already do and provide we currently have no interest in. For those of you who love what we do, please know that we will never bend or fold to financial pressures by changing to meet the needs of the masses. This program of ours will always be the perfect place for you and others like you.

DENNIS POMAZANOV RECRUITMENT

It's been a tremendously long road for Dennis, but he's finally made it to his Senior year. Through the ups and downs, he's learned which process to trust and which not to trust. This past summer was his most crucial summer, where the coaches either notice you or they don't. It's safe to say that Dennis truly knocked it out the park. At least a dozen schools were after our 6'7" guard that carried our rag-tag team to compete heavily against some of the best teams and players in the country.

There are (arguably) better players at even his own high school that received zero offers, so that speaks volumes to what we can provide players with our methodology. His best offer is a D2 school in Texas that ranks in the top 10 in the country. He still has to visit and sign, but all is pretty much set. Being the feature player on a team that desperately needed him was all many coaches had to see before they jumped on board completely in hopes of acquiring a player so brave and able to do such a vast array of things on the court. We can't wait to do it again for the next high-level player that comes along, and we're super proud of Dennis no matter where he chooses to play. We'll have much more on this next newsletter.

PREOBRAZOVANIYE

The word "Preobrazovaniye" means TRANSFORMATION, and 7th grader Edward Doronkin is looking to do just that. Edward has been here since the inception of our program 5 years ago, and his sister (an alum of ours) is currently playing at the college level. For years, Edward has always been an "off then on then off again" type of player, but now he says he's officially IN. We have 100 days until 2019's elite team's practices begin, so that's how long we've made this challenge of his last. Joining this Russian 7th grader is another Russian 7th grader of ours Zach Pomazonov (whose brother Dennis is our star high schooler). I told them both whoever finishes this most flawlessly gets the honor of having their name forever attached to the drill to be added to our Challenges page.

There are 5 crucial drills (5) included in this 100 day challenge: Lana's Moves, Elbow Sweeps, Kobe Post, Double Bounce Series, and Free Throws with Runs. These are all drills to make one unstoppable in the post. The 4 conditioning drills (25 Push-ups, God's Drill, Knee Jumps, and another 25 push-ups) are all meant to transform these two physically. The stronger and more coordinated these two fairly tall players become, the more likely they'll become dominant forces for our team. We'll let you know how they do next newsletter, but I'm already proud of them both for starting this process. Davai! Давай!

TRYOUT MONTH

The entire month of September was tryouts for our 2019 elite team. We call the team "elite" only in terms of the mindset those chosen wish to take on. Our normally exclusive Tuesday and Thursday team practices were open to all members in addition to the other normal 5 days of the week to properly allow us to judge each player's dedication, intellect, and skill. All players who filled out the eligibility form will now be carefully looked through to find the 15 players we'll need for our Elementary, Middle School, and High School teams. In early October, we'll send the first invites and then conclude our invitation process by month's end.

This year's tryouts went exceptionally well, as all players were especially focused and showed up a ton. Making these decisions is never easy, but my positive spin is to see it as an honor to either provide a player with a chance to shine on the elite team or to bestow upon a player the opportunity to triumph through the devastation of not being selected. Having the fallback of a program that offers 5 days of high-level training per week all year-round makes me comfortable enough to be either the devil or the saint of this scenario. We'll announce the teams to all in November, and then go from there. Great job, everyone!