Competitive Basketball

Our goal is to provide a competitive club program with an emphasis on basketball fundamentals and skill development. We strive to enhance each athlete's skills in an effort to better equip them for their short and long-term goals. To give our athletes the necessary skills to perform successfully in basketball and life, while making sportsmanship, respect, responsibility, leadership and teamwork top priorities.

The PYS Competitive Basketball program is independent of Englewood High School and the High School Basketball Team, but the coaching staff is committed to making the youth program the best that it can be. The coaches selected for PYS Competitive Basketball will be working with the EHS basketball coaches to establish similar verbiage and culture for athletes 3rd-12th grade. This consistency throughout the program will help ensure greater success on the court, classroom and in the community.

League Information:
Teams are divided up by grade level from 3rd to 8th grade. Teams formed will compete in the Gold Crown Foundation and typically play games on Sundays. Gold Crown’s league is the largest and longest running youth basketball league in Colorado. This league serves boys and girls teams from Pueblo to Greeley, and Summit County to Aurora. Each team is guaranteed 12-14 games, 10-12 regular season games and at least 2 postseason games, in a double header format. A Gold and Silver Division is offered for each gender and grade level in order to balance out competition.

Tryout Information:
Teams are selected based upon evaluations at tryouts which typically occur around mid-September, prior to the start of the winter leagues. Tryout information will be released by the end of June.

Cost Estimates:
Basic costs for the program are typically between $200 to $250 for each player. The program payments are used to pay for gym time, league registrations, required insurance, and miscellaneous equipment. There are scholarship opportunities available for players. All coaches and administrators are volunteers. Tournament fees are typically extra unless an end of season tournament is included in the league that the player is participating in. The Gold Crown preseason tournament is around $400 per team ($40-50) per player and up to the coach/team if they would like to participate.

Practices:
Practices are typically 1 ½ to 2 hours per practice, two or three nights a week starting in October and are usually scheduled at night. Practices will be held at a variety of Englewood School locations.

Playing Time:
The primary focus of this youth program is to develop skills for players and to enjoy the game of basketball. Playing time will be at the discretion of each head coach of each team. The coach will be sharing his playing time philosophy and expectations prior to the season commencing. Our coaches are committed to the development of all players, but playing time in games is determined by each coach.

Summer Basketball Opportunities:
The PYS Competitive Basketball Summer Series will include two skill development nights per month from May-August. Dates, times, and locations will be released by the end of April. The cost of the program is $20 and athletes can register at any time at www.pirateyouthsports.com . The Summer Series is for anyone interested in playing for our winter competitive teams. We will be teaching players a variety of drills that they can work on to better prepare for tryouts and improve the skills needed to play at a competitive level.