Doesn't matter what devision you are playing, just look at the sixers this year, they are still playing with the juniors mentality that everyone gets the same amount of court time!!!!

No rep level team should run equal court time no matter the age, you play to win, not to please the players necessarily, espcially in rep. Coaches who run equal court time throw away games constantly, look at Marty Clarke at an example and even how he ran the AIS team in SEABL

Interesting question as it got raised in an Under 10 Div 1 game I was involved in yesterday. The answer is simple where I sit. Div 1 is the top division. If you want equal court time, play Div 2, 3 or so on. It's one thing to develop players - and that involves giving everyone court time - but the principle of just sharing it around ..... nah, sorry.

div 1 for under 10's is just stupid- last time i checked 8 and 9 year olds need development not winning and definitely not x's and o's that is why basketball is so screwed here- we focus on divisions and running offence's instead of teaching good fundamentals

depends on club, team, age, division.

a large club with 10 div 1 players - court time might be squeezy for some.

lower div teams might only have 6-7 players.

depends on coach / club and where it is all going.

the old half full / half empty

bench players benefit from getting game time in another team / comp if not being satisfied.

i think the thing is here for everyone to get on same page - coach / club need to outline what is going on and the player / parents needs to ask questions

These are similar to my thoughts too. I was just keen on others thoughts. I think under 10's all should share. U12's maybe a bit less even in div 1. I guess u14's and up with the state team selections and the nationals on the line any decent club will be looking to ensure their div 1 team is the best they can be and this would mean the best players getting the majority of court time.

i have an approx starting 5 and start the subs s i get a read off my players.

not everyone is going to deliver every game - so if a bench player is doing ok they stay on.

if the match up is wrong - i make a sub

if the player is having a dirty game - they can sit down.

some are role players - ie shooter in the clutch, defensive specialist, rebounds etc

check out the 6ers boxscore... seems like marty should stop sharing it around

Even spread of minutes tends to happen in blowout losses when coaches react by trying other options or letting the bench play. See Perth's boxscore in the loss against Wollongong for an example.

It should be fun at that age if they are paying to play they should play. The best ten year old probably won't be the best twenty year old. Who cares who wins the under U10's

In an ideal team, all players have equal abilities and skills, and are all playing to their abilities on the night. All players have the right to equal court time, but there are too many factors associated with court time.

Like people have said, training is where it all starts. If players are not turning up to training, or putting in at training to develop skills, or not following coach's instructions, then they must expect less court time. Kids develop best at training where they can be talked through and shown what they don't understand.

The other issue is when coaches have their favourites. I have seen this where kids have poor training attendances, low actual (not perceived) skills, poor teamwork, but show all the "correct" body language and have the coach's ear for some reason. The coach overplays them and this spreads like a cancer throughout the team.

Bottom line? I believe that court time should be more "situational" based on the game rather than prescriptive, and the best team should be on the floor as much as possible. That best team varies according to the situation. It is up to the coach to develop skills and it is up for the player to commit to the team and make the most of their development opportunities. From the player's side, commitment and discipline drives court time.

here here Jack Toft.

In the littlies, play the players that show up to training, listen and work hard.

Take off a player for being undisciplined, not for making a mistake.

Nolan "Take off a player for being undisciplined, not for making a mistake"

I agree 100%. If you create a culture where they get penalised for making a mistake, players play with fear and it doesn't work. However, the easiest way for a player to build up time on the bench is not to play by the team rules

Making mistakes is possibly one of the best things a young player can do, because as is often the case the thought process or decision was the correct one but the executional of the skill was off, and the good coaches work on fixing these, and if it was a bad decision mistake, alter it a little bit so it works for THAT particular player, same with fundamentals, don't make massive changes to skill related components, making tweaks and minor adjustments to what they feel is comfortable, not to what the coach finds comfortable, just as long as it works.

I have seen a lot of junior teams starting squads with el-shito players only because their parents are the club sponsors/team managers /club volunteers ect.....It can really make you sick watching the same old game after game.

^^^ I further that one. And it happens to such a point that the one who misses out is the one with enormous potential but doesn't receive the adequate coaching to realise the potential.

I used to play district years ago at Sturt from U12-U16 in lower divisions (Div 2 and 3) and i never remember there being equal court time. Even in div 3 we had 9 players and i remember i'd always play the entire game every game and other guys would be lucky to get 20 mins if they weren't starters. As a player you always want to win no matter if your playing streetball or NBA and if ur better than another guy you deserve to get more court time. Thats my opinion. Coaches role should be to try and make everyone a better player and help them improve their basketball- but not at the expense of losing games.

No matter what age group, if a player goes to the
training and puts %100 in, they should be given the
chance to get on the court, this a team sport not a
a few individuals game. Coaches have a backward thinking and assume that because a player is not in the
starting five they are not capable of been on the court and producing good basketball. What rubbish.
They are made to feel they are not good enough.