Best Overall in The State

[warmachine7954]

So how is allowing open enrollment and letting kids go to whatever school they want fair, while the private schools have to have a multiplier on their enrollment and play against schools much larger than them if they chose to play in the D1 division?

If they choose is the key.

[BIGPURPLEMACHINE]

If they choose is the key.

Yep.

[warmachine7954]

So how is allowing open enrollment and letting kids go to whatever school they want fair, while the private schools have to have a multiplier on their enrollment and play against schools much larger than them if they chose to play in the D1 division?

And private schools can "indirectly recruit" any kids they want. Even from out of state and offer financial assistance. Can public schools do that?

[RealisticFan45]

So whos the best in AA? Break it down, WEST, MIDDLE and EAST

[burnalittle]

And private schools can "indirectly recruit" any kids they want. Even from out of state and offer financial assistance. Can public schools do that?

You are naive if you think public schools with open enrollment dont recruit! Incredibly naive! And D1 private schools cannot offer assistance for athletes. If they do, then they have to play D2.

[warmachine7954]

You are naive if you think public schools with open enrollment dont recruit! Incredibly naive! And D1 private schools cannot offer assistance for athletes. If they do, then they have to play D2.

I think if a coach in a public school in Memphis walked up to a kid and said, "Hey, come over to my school because were better." That kid wouldn't be able to keep his mouth shut. Not every coach, but you better believe that there are plenty that would turn that guy in. There is no real "open courting" like you might think. Do schools use adult not affiliated with their program? Sure. Do they use other kids to lure them over? Sure. Does AAU drive a lot of these transfers? Yes. Has the TSSAA allowed AAU to have a say in the what happens in high school sports in this state? Yes.

 

Why does no one complain when a school like Oak Hill, Montverde Academy, Findlay Prep ect... gets kids from all over the country? And they get the best of the best. 

 

How many D1 schools compete with public schools for a championship? 

 

People really get hurt over Memphis being really good and dominating A, AA, AAA in recent times. I've said it before and I'll keep saying it. This didn't really happen until the restricted practice rules came into effect. The skill level and level of basketball across the state has gone down. It's no coincidence it started to decline when the restricted practice rules started. Let the kids practice with a coaches and get into a gym.

 

Stop talking about fair. Can you really compare a private school to a public school? The privates that play against publics chose that path. They need to deal with that choice. If they want fair stay over with the rich people and play that game.

 

In all honesty we need a better post season system and possibly  a better way to classify. 

 

What we've said in Tennessee is this,

 

"2 weeks before you season starts coaches can coach their players. So let's restrict kids that need or don't have the chance to practice with a qualified( some more than others) coach and access to a good facility at all times. So that means that schools in cities will have a naturally larger pool of athletes and basketball players to choose from( because of access to adult with knowledge of the game and access to a  decent gym) will win the majority of the games i.e championships (in basketball). Then, let's let the schools with all the money, because they don't play the same style of basketball, have their own championship. This is fair."

 

Let kids be coached. Have a dead period or two but let them be coached or have access to a coach and facilities. That is what's fair.

 

You can't put a dog with potential on a lease and expect it to to be let off and run with other dogs that have been allowed to run their whole lives.

 

The level playing field the TSSAA tried to create in basketball started leaning West towards the Mississippi much more than people can seem to stand.

[memphiswrestling171]

Should check out the video of Jaylen Fisher getting fouled which to me doesn't look like the Bartlett kid did it on purpose and Fisher goes absolutely crazy and then the fans went crazy as well...

[memphiswrestling171]

You asked earlier about open enrollment. Memphis City schools is now defunct and Shelby County Schools is the governing body. Schools like Collierville, Bartlett, Arlington and others broke away and formed their own districts.

 

In a city like Memphis, that has a documented poverty problem for years, keeping kids in a district near their home just continues the problem of poverty. In our day equality is a hot word in every aspects of life. And education is no exception. Take schools like Hamilton, Mitchell, Booker T, and all the other schools that no one has heard of because they're not very good in sports. These schools are usually in rough, rundown areas of town. Have you ever been to the Liberty Bowl and seen that neighborhood? Have you ever been to a game at Melrose? Most people from outside of Memphis go to Wolfchase or downtown to Beale St. or to the FedEx Forum. They don't see the neighborhoods and experience what it's like. Boarded up shotgun houses, bars on windows, convenient store clerks behind bullet proof glass. Those areas are really rough. If I have to go I don't hang around very long. Ever heard the saying, "If you don't belong, don't be long."? Memphis is a small city with some big city problems.

 

Allowing students to attend a better or perceived better school is supposed to help them beat the problems that some of them have been surrounded since birth. Allowing a student to go across town to a school that has a program of study that will help them in the future is a good thing. Would you disagree? If a school has a good basketball program, like Mitchell, or a good football program like Whitehaven, or a good Track and Field program like Southwind, what would prevent a kid that has athletic potential from going to one of those schools? Would you like your child to attend a school that's in a bad neighborhood, that fails in every aspect of education, and is dangerous? Memphis is different than other cities I've been to. I've had the opportunity to travel a bit so I've seen some places. Most cities (100,000+) have areas that are poor and impoverished and areas that are affluent and rich. Ever city I've seen these places are pretty clearly defined by a landmark, government office or geographical feature. In Memphis you can drive down certain streets and see nice old houses, very well kept, and people out and active. Then you can continue down the same street for 4-5 blocks and be in what most people would call the ghetto. That poses a unique problem for people that have some money and don't want their child in a bad school. Many students stay in the home school area and graduate from it. Everyday I hear about a student that came from a bad school in Memphis and is struggling but beginning to get over the hump at Germantown. But with that I hear about the kids that come from a bad school and continue down the same path they would have been on at their area school. Basically, open enrollment is an educational trend that is happening in cities all over America. Open enrollment is supposed to afford students the best opportunity for their future.

 

Does this happen in rural areas? Not often. Is it needed in rural areas? Rarely.

 

I'm sure this won't be good enough for you but this is my answer about open enrollment.

[memphiswrestling171]

In all honesty. And I'm from Memphis and I go to plenty of games that honestly is packed gyms and most times I'm the only white guy in the gym and maybe 1 official. And we can go back and forth about recruiting kids for sports all day long but reality it's sports... If you can possibly help a kid in poverty who has talent and a possible future in playing sports then let him go to another school where he will get noticed and may have a little bit better education to possibly help his life in the long run..nothin worse then holding these kids because most of them are already struggling with being poverty lack of education lack of parental involvement... We should be trying to help these kids get off the streets and guide them in the right direction even if that means letting them go to diff open enrolled school

[steelerfan32]

Well now that the dust is settled, it's pretty clear who the best teams in the state are... BA and Memphis East .. It would be a heck of a game if these 2 played each other

[TonyG]

Well now that the dust is settled, it's pretty clear who the best teams in the state are... BA and Memphis East .. It would be a heck of a game if these 2 played each other

it would be interesting but I personally don't think

 

They played last summer in the Jerry Peters Classic at MUS. BA beat East, lost to Gtown and smoked CBHS

[RedRobin1]

it would be interesting but I personally don't think

 

They played last summer in the Jerry Peters Classic at MUS. BA beat East, lost to Gtown and smoked CBHS

 

Summer comparisons are meaningless, especially with the D2 schools, where many of the basketball players spend their summers preparing for the upcoming football season.  BA is the best Tennessee team that I saw this year.