Richmond Youth Basketball League (RYBL) is not a year-round operation but it’s getting pretty close.
With nearly 1,200 registered participants in its variety of programs this past season, the RYBL brought the curtains down on the 2014-15 campaign by heading outdoors for its 2015 Classic Tournament.
The 3-on-3 event was staged at the South Arm Community Centre earlier this month and was essentially a youth version of the annual 4-on-4 Dolphin Park Classic — complete with non-stop music and a full concession, minus the beer garden, of course.
“Three-on-three is something FIBA (International Basketball Federation) has really been pumping up lately,” explained RYBL program coordinator Matt Winograd. “It increases the number of ball touches for skill development and really goes well with our program values.
“We used to run something similar indoors back in the 1990s but last year we moved it outside.”
That decision made a whole lot of sense.
Richmond has some of the best outdoor courts in the Lower Mainland and South Arm’s unique rubberized floor surface and glass backboards lead the way.
It also reflects what is happening in the city as more and more kids find time to head to their nearest community centre to shoot hoops. It’s not rare to see the lighted courts even busy on cool winter nights.
“It’s very popular for many reasons,” explained Winograd, who teaches in the Richmond School District when he is not busy overseeing the RYBL. “You don’t need a whole lot of equipment to play and the rise in popularity in the NBA and college basketball is helping too.”
The RYBL season is divided into two programs — fall/winter and spring — and features co-ed and single gender age divisions ranging from 5-to-17-years-old.
For the more serious players getting ready for high school basketball, there are Grade 7 rep teams that compete in Lower Mainland leagues for boys and girls. Both RYBL girls teams reached the podium at the recent U13 provincial championships.
This past season, was also one of the best in recent memory for Richmond high school basketball with five teams from four schools qualifying for various provincial tournaments at the senior level. It’s no confidence many of those players are RYBL graduates.
“It’s great to see so many kids go on to have success with their school teams,” added Winograd. “High school basketball is definitely on the rise in Richmond and it’s not just one or two schools.”
For more information on the Richmond Youth Basketball League visit rybl.ca
