Where Are All of the Girls Basketball Players?
As women’s basketball is on the growing rise in popularity in America, thanks in large part to Caitlin Clark, in Alaska there is an interesting contradiction to this trend. In the last decade there has been a palpable decline of girls basketball players in urban areas and, contrarily, a substantial increase in volleyball players.
A necessary disclaimer, this statement is based on a decade of experience as a basketball player development coach and strength and conditioning coach in Alaska. There currently is no research to support this claim that is not the opinion of myself or others; and with that I’m thinking this would make a great thesis for a University of Alaska Anchorage college senior.
We really need to identify if there is an actual exodus happening, and why.
As a basketball player development coach, I train athletes of all ages primarily in Anchorage and around ninety percent of the kids across all ages are boys.
I am also fortunate to be able to do basketball camps all across the state of Alaska. While the 90% trend does not apply in these cases, it does help highlight the reality that basketball is Alaska’s primary sport.
Many non-Alaskans think it’s hockey.
While we do play hockey here, it is an expensive sport to play and manage logistically. In poor rural areas across the state, the ability for a community to have a hockey team is less likely than you growing another big toe.
What is easy to play anywhere is basketball. You don’t even need shoes. I’ve been to several communities in Alaska where kids show up in socks because their family, for whatever reason, hasn’t been able to get them gym shoes, and after basketball camp, they’re at it again shooting outside on hoops at parks.
Ballet shoes and boots at basketball camp in Point Hope, Alaska.
Thus, in rural Alaska, basketball is alive and well for both genders and I don’t see that changing any time soon. But, in urban areas like Anchorage, there appears to be a significant downward trend in numbers, and here are my three main theories as to why:
Volleyball is the pretty girl, popular sport to play
In volleyball, you can sparkle not sweat, and for teenage girls this is a much more appealing reality than becoming a human swamp sprinting up and down a basketball court.
Being a great basketball players requires a level of ruthlessness and aggressiveness that isn’t ingrained in what we as society typically value for our young girls. Most of the time, when you meet a young girl who is unapologetically emboding these areas of toughness, a male role model in her life (and sometimes female) is not far away encouraging her to grow these qualities, and most often has a background in athletics.
Basketball is mentally and physically demanding
In the weight room I’ve trained collegiate volleyball players, and currently at the Sweat Lab we work with the high school level, and with all due respect to all the wonderful volleyball athletes out there, there tends to be a general lack of tolerance to intensity.
By design when comparing volleyball to other sports, it’s one of the least intense by nature. While it challenges athletes to have excellent hand eye coordination, vertical jump, hitting power, reaction time, and be excellent at volleyball skills, the need for a high aerobic threshold, muscular endurance, and ability to create and take physical contact, is not like it is in other sports.
This doesn’t mean volleyball players don’t have or need a level of toughness, my argument is that the toughness needed for volleyball is simply much different than that of basketball. And, different isn’t bad, but I am guessing that it’s a deterrent for a lot of young girls out there to continue with basketball as they get to a middle and high school age.
Her basketball experience was a bad one
The number of young ladies who have ended up at my skill development sessions because they need to, “rebuild their confidence” is very disheartening. I’m not trying to point fingers or offend anyone who takes on the responsibility of coaching a team because that’s certainly no easy task, but there are a few bad eggs out there who unfortunately have misguided priorities and are more focused on winning instead of building players love of, and character through, the game.
Having played volleyball and basketball myself in high school, I will say this, volleyball is an extremely fun and valuable sport, and this article is not intended to take anything away from that.
What it is intended for, is to bring awareness to the possibility that this is happening at an accelerated rate and my question remains:
Why is this actually happening?
What are your thoughts?
