Rankings, Exposure, Etc this is from 2010 yet here we are

I used to keep up with how many girls from the area received scholarships to play basketball. The Chronicle ran a story during the Final Four that over the past years the average was around 16 however my records are bit more accurate. The Class of 2005 produced around 50 kids and 2007's group was up in the forties. In fact since 2005, over 60 young ladies that played for our club program got a chance do their thing at the next level. 2006 was the lowest year for scholarships, somewhere around the low twenties and it appears the Class of 2010 will fall in low thirties. Expect the Class of 2012 next level players to mirror the one from 2005. There are a lot of solid ballplayers that can play at the next level and by next level, I'm including not only D1, but D2, D3, NAIA and JUCO. The reason I am writing about this is July is right around the corner and parents need to be aware of certain things. Two articles by Clay Kallam sum it up in a nutshell. The first talks about exposure and if your kid does well, that's a good thing, however if she doesn't, she will be exposed. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/basketball/womens/columns/story?columnist=kallam_clay&id=3339615 The second is for unrealistic parents who can't seem to see their kids faults, don't seem to be able to compare the skill level of their child to other kids their age that play the same position, so forth and so on. Ironically , what I have seen is some people can see what another kid is doing wrong and not what their own daughters weaknesses are. This truly amazes me. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/basketball/womens/columns/story?columnist=kallam_clay&id=3350884 The third is really to help those hung up their kids rankings when the odds on getting a scholarship is less that 4%. http://www.collegesportsscholarships.com/percentage-high-school-athletes-ncaa-college.htm Let me go back to the Hoopgurlz.com Class of 2007 http://hoopgurlz.com/players/all/2007 This was a solid class all the way around nationwide. Maya Moore is still #1 and the very first time I saw the kid, I knew she was special. She had S.A.C.S., an acronym I made up on the fly, and this separated her from everyone else. 1.Size-College coaches love big guards with strong bodies, it's rough at the next level and having a kid like this come on board can end 30 year friendships, plus jump start you to consecutive National Championships. 2.Athleticism-Moore could play the 1,2 or 3 and excel at either position for her club team, Georgia Metros. Everything she did was fluid and graceful, a thing of beauty to watch. 3.Confidence-She knew she was the girl, no matter what and kept her cool on the court. She wouldn't get flustered by constant face checking, elbowing, tripping, name calling,etc. Moore made you pay on the court, with or without scoring and sometimes you never saw it coming, just like a silent assassin. 4.Skills-Go back to #2 and add post up moves, mid range shooting and solid ball handling under pressure. Since then she has added the long ball to her arsenal which shows no matter how great you are, you should keep working on your weaknesses. Tashia Phillips was ranked #1 in the initial rankings by USA Today, I believe back in 2004 or 2005 and our own Stephanie Gilbreath, Cinco Ranch, was ranked #2. Phillips wound up at Xavier teaming up with club ball teammate Amber Harris, both kids played for The Family. Xavier should have gone to the Final Four this season, however two wide open layups were missed along with Stanford driving coast to coast for a buzzer beating layup ended their magical season. Gilbreath was all everything on a National scale and turned the Cinco Ranch program completely around after coming back from an ACL injury in the 8Th grade. The sad part is she hasn't played one game for the college she chose, USC, since graduating high school due to back to back to back knee injuries. Her dad, Wardell, and I go back over 30 years. We played against each other in various leagues in the late seventies and early eighties when Sim was slim. I truly sympathize with him because I know how an injury can change or even end a career. On a happier note his younger daughter, Brianna, is excelling under Michael Cooper at USC. Several of the kids listed in Hoopgurlz.com Class of 2007 Top 100 have enjoyed success at the next level, but as I always tell parents, the bottom line is this. Getting a free education is a blessing, not where your child was ranked. Hopefully this helps.