Its about time!!!! Been a waste of taxpayers money the last few years with all these overseas jaunts.

Why has it been a waste? Our national teams have continued to perform very well.

Why would you keep going overseas when you can play in a high level competition for at least half the cost.There was nothing wrong with the way it was originally structured. Play SEABL plus a couple of overseas trips. Produced Bogut, Jackson, Mills, Anderson etc etc

Very good decision and will definitely attract those that did not see AIS as a good developing pathway. While our juniors had performed well in the Worlds, lack of competitive experience was evident especially in the finals at the U19 Worlds, not everyone was able to sustain the pressure and physicality of the contests.

Also @Isaac - CoE is under BA but supported by the AIS, which will continue to support all other sports in its capacity. So not the new name for the AIS

Overseas trips are 100% vital to the COE athletes. They need to develop and learn what it takes to be an international athlete and just playing SEABL isn't going to do that. We are not going to win medals on the world stage without our athletes understanding all of the ins and outs of travel, tournament style play, foreign countries, quick recovery etc.

Entering back into SEABL is a fantastic step forwards and will definitely assist the athletes development but it is most certainly in conjunction with overseas tours.

@Chook

you are correct - this is in addition to overseas tours.

Very happy with this, always circled the AIS v Frankston game on my calendar to go and have a look. Will never forget Patty Mills scoring 41 and just showing speed I had never seen before, that was an exciting night!

Alpha, are the CoE teams they speak of basically what we knew of as the AIS teams, though?

Correct, the teams are basically the same except the AIS has no direct influence on the program and the direction as in the past, it is fully under BA including the funding and operations - Lemanis is the program head with associate managers in charge of the men's and women's programs. As far as I know they have not appointed a men's CoE coach yet but will happen soon.

Not with the program any more. I believe he moved back to Vic.

I also think this is a great move.
If you have the chance, get along and watch some of these games and see the talent coming through. Some of these kids are awesome...

Best games of the year to watch. If you've followed them over the years you will of seen Australias best.

So if they can't play in the play off's how will it effect the SEABL comp in terms of teams resting players etc?

I think this is great for the CoE/AIS as week to week league play helps develop the talent and prepares them from the rigors of NCAA/Pro league play as its not all about winning under 19/17 tourney's but developing future boomers and getting them ready to play in high quality leagues NBA,Euroleagueand thus then the Olympics

They might, but playing week-in, week-out together prepares a team well too, I think a mix of both is best. Our junior teams havent really done any better since they stopped competing in SEABL, so I dont think it was detracting from their performance.

So many reasons why this is something which should have been considered long ago, however now it is going to return, great! Looking forward to watching our up and coming juniors, also adds that extra bit of interest to the SEABL competition IMO...

agree with CHOOK, and glad to hear this is all additional to the overseas trips

So since they left SEABL what have the AIS teams been doing?

World Champs, Albert Schwatzer tournament no problem with that but its where the rest of the taxpayers money that is being scrutinizsed by the government now.If you want the cash, then you need to justify your program. Alot of sports have had massive cuts to there funding by the federal government.

This was the best decision for the basketball program at AIS in over a decade. You will now see
players attend the AIS that are both Talented and Raw but will feel they will develop quicker by playing against SEABL team that will also have imports along with borderline NBL players.

Lets hope these players also have the option to still pursue US college if they want.

Its WIN for the next generation of Australian BASKETBALLERS!

Someone told me recently that one of the main reasons the AIS was withdrawn from the SEABL was because the AIS had moved to a younger age group of players because of FIBA's change of age groups for World champs.

Is that correct?

If so does it mean that the next crop of SEABL team vs AIS team games will see younger athletes that might not be quite ready for the competition?

HO i think you are right, not 100% sure but i seem to remember being told something along those lines.

My main concern with the AIS is the education side of things, as the very large majority of athletes i have spoken to who have attended the AIS have said the education simply sucks and is years behind. I know of one athlete who withdrew from the program as a result of the poor education, and another athlete who knocked back a position a couple of years ago for the same reason.

That aside and back on topic, excited to see them in the SEABL and think it is a good move.

I personally would chase a college pathway before an AIS pathway, but each to their own i guess.

The schooling is certainly tough and comes as an addition to a heavy workload so not surprised to hear these comments. Also they are simply a reflection of the contemporary society, which students are spoon fed required information. They want it all served on a silver platter - too lazy to seek information themselves, but those self motivated will certainly succeed.

ST Marys at Moraga are rubbing their hands with glee

I have been in education for the past 25 years and while the system has been reviewed on so many occasions and modified and adjusted to current requirements, it always comes down to teacher/student interaction and self motivation. So works both ways...

I do know which school they go to in Canberra and again I will reiterate my point that the achievements are based on self motivation and individual interest. I have too spoken with the parents and past scholarship recipients and they all agreed that it was a public school but the support offered to the athletes was far greater than in their past schools. And these kids did attend private and public schools in Vic. Also I don't hear too many complaints about Melbourne high, ranked #1 in the state yet a public school. And you will find examples on both sides of the table, the fact is these kids are taken out of their comfort zones, which impacts on their overall performance. It would be interesting to see a study that compares high school performance of those going through the AIS and those outside of it and going to the college. The most important criterion for those outside would be to have the same amount of training per day.

Also our high system educational system is not created to satisfy SAT but is crafted for our University system. My advice to those interested in going to an US college - get tutors or enroll into on-line courses to prepare for a SAT test, don't think many can afford to send their kids to the states. Also SAT scores do differ among colleges but they are just one of the entry requirements.


Anyway, I think what has been proposed by BA is a really good move and really wish all the best to new scholarship recipients. I will personally try to find time and come to watch some of their games. Too bad we did not get a chance to see Dante in action.

#549, Froling's son has already been accepted, so he's a definite.

Anon 446496 -No incentive for them to play? Well I would like to think that the best young talent the country has to offer would go out to compete and to win every single game they play, whether finals are achievable or not. In a sense it could be a good thing for them to learn to flat out compete simply to win when there is no other prize on the line apart from getting the W on the day.

There seems to be a few whiners that SEABL clubs didn't get a vote. I say BOO BLOODY HOO. Your either scared of getting beat by 16-18 year olds or your a sour puss. This move will benefit the CoE kids immensely by playing against bigger, stronger bodies with experience on a semi regular basis. It will benefit the SEABL clubs with game attendances and you would think that it would most likely give the SEABL clubs the opportunity to tweak their games, because lets face it, the SEABL clubs should beat the CoE teams, so they can use that time to mix combos, try new looks at both ends of the floor and give some different guys more minutes.

On the whole I loved the AIS programs and what the coaches did for our young ballers. But sadly in the past few years the selection went away from real basketballers who coul dpl ay their position to very good athlete's and try to teach them how to play other roles. It has had a little success but overall has to be said, it has failed.

Good luck to the kids playing in the SEABL, will make for a good road double in Canberra.