Development League FAQ

 

This FAQ Section & our Development League are for players in Grades 1-3

 

---

In addition to this FAQ, feel free to visit our Overview of Development League (overall goals, formatting, & more!)

---

 

For Development League: what are the age group divisions? 

In our Development League, all skill levels are welcome. The following age group divisions are available (6 total divisions):

• Grade 1 Boys
• Grade 2 Boys
• Grade 3 Boys
• Grade 1 Girls
• Grade 2 Girls
• Grade 3 Girls

 

For Development League: what is the official age cut-off for registration?

In our Development League, the official age cut-off is a registered player must be at least 6 years old by October 31st in order to participate. 

 

For Development League: when does registration open?

In our Development League, online registration always OPENS on McLeanBasketball.com after Labor Day of each calendar year. 

 

For Development League: when does registration close?

In our Development League, online registration CLOSES on the first Sunday of every November.

 

For Development League: what is the height of the basketball hoops?

In our Development League, 1st and 2nd Graders play on 8ft Hoops. And 3rd Graders play on 9ft Hoops. 

 

For Development League: what happens if a player registers AFTER the first Sunday of November?

In our Development League, after registration closes, a player can still register online, but they are automatically placed on a "waitlist" and worked into a team if & when a spot becomes available (this is not guaranteed). And there are no team formation requests fulfilled if a player registers via the waitlist after the first Sunday of November. 

 

For Development League: where do I register?

In our Development League, once registration opens after Labor Day, there will be a "REGISTER ONLINE" link that will become available on our website. From there, you will want to navigate to "Development League" and select the division based on the grade of the player (Grades 1, 2, or 3) for either Boys or Girls. 

 

For Development League: how are teams formed, and can I specify preferred teammates and/or coach?

In our Development League, teams are formed in-house by our administrators (not by player evaluation or player draft). On the player registration form, there is an opportunity to both list preferred teammates and/or coach(es) with the ability to list a max of 3 preferred teammates and 1 preferred coach. 

PLEASE NOTE: we do our best to fulfill all team formation requests, however, we cannot make any 100% guarantees when it comes to team formations for our Development League. There are times when we must deviate from the requests submitted on the registration form. Thank you to all for your patience & understanding on this!

RECOMMENDED: regarding team formation requests - our administrators process team formation requests on a "first-come, first-serve" basis, so please be sure to submit your child's online registration form with requests ASAP when registration opens after Labor Day of each calendar year. Ex: if 10 registrations request the same coach for a 2nd Grade Girls team, the first 6 sorted by registration date are given priority.

 

For Development League: is there an opportunity to specify "conflict days" (or times)?

In our Development League, teams meet once per weekend for a Practice / Scrimmage "session". Age Group Divisions are assigned to either Saturday or Sunday as a whole division (ex: Grade 2 boys). All players in the division play on the same day in various time sessions on their assigned day. While we are sensitive to kids having other activities, divisions are assigned gyms on days (Sat or Sun) and different times based on the number of players registered through the entire league. 

PLEASE NOTE: Timeframe for "sessions" on Saturdays is typically between 8:30AM with the last session starting at 5:30PM. And on Sundays, sessions run starting from 12:00PM noon with the last session starting at 3:00PM.

 

For Development League: are there games, or only practices (or both)? And when, where?

In Development League, teams meet once per week for a Practice / Scrimmage "session", always over the weekend, either Saturday or Sunday depending on the age group division. 

For 1st + 2nd Graders: the session begins with a 60-minute Practice, followed by a 30-minute Scrimmage.

For 3rd Graders: the session begins with a 45-minute Practice, followed by a 45-minute Scrimmage. 

WHERE & WHEN: Development League plays on Saturdays or Sundays in local McLean VA Elementary Schools. Timeframe for "sessions" on Saturdays is typically between 8:30AM with the last session starting at 5:30PM. And on Sundays, sessions run starting from 12:00PM noon with the last session starting at 3:00PM.

 

For Development League: when does the league start and how long does it run?

In our Development League, the "team formation" process starts once online registration CLOSES after the 1st Sunday of November. Our goal every season is to have all teams formed and schedules confirmed by Thanksgiving. The official season would then start the first or second week of December, and goes through the first week of March.

For Development League: what happens after a player is placed on a team and team formation is complete?

In our Development League, after a player has been successfully placed on a team via our team formation process, the respective Coach for that player will either email or call the parent of the player to give them information about their practice day and other schedule info. 

PLEASE NOTE: In the event that you do not hear from your child's coach in a timely fashion, then please contact our Development League Coordinator Tom Roth at tomroth@mcleanbasketball.com

 

For Development League: how can a parent / adult become a coach? Are HS Students welcome to coach?

In our Development League, coaches can be adults (parents or not) and High School Students. ALL must register online to be eligible to coach a team. We let 2 coaches pair together (and of course get their son/daughter), but one must register as the head, one as the assistant. Request each other on your online coach registration form.

We also try to work out scheduling if a coach is coaching in more than one division (even outside of Development).  The coach needs to make each League Commissioner aware of the request via email. 

 

---

For any additional questions not found in the Q/A's listed above, please feel free to email us directly at admin@mcleanbasketball.com