The Appleton East Youth Basketball Association (AEYBA) has been designed to provide opportunities, training, recreation and education for young student athletes to develop and enhance their overall skills while competing in a highly competitive environment. The AEYBA is a non-profit, volunteer organization dedicated to youth basketball.

Formed in 2001, the AEYBA is dedicated to the development of basketball skills for boys and girls in Grades 3 through 8.

The AEYBA program provides a competitive playing environment for all of its players. We consider our “Team” to include players, coaches and parents. Before you commit to any one of these roles, we urge you to review the link to the AEYBA Program Expectations or visit the forms section of the website. You should become a member of the AEYBA Team only if you are able to make the commitment expected by the AEYBA. Our past experience has proven that those unwilling to make the commitment do not have a positive experience, while those willing to make the expected commitment have a very positive experience.

We have been asked repeatedly how the AEYBA Program works: How do we play with different teams each week? How do we divide teams? Why don’t we play our “A” team every week? Why do you have different coaches? The AEYBA Program Expectations link below and found in the Forms section of the website will provide some basic information regarding the AEYBA program. 

AEYBA Program Expectations provides more detailed information and defines more completely, the serious commitment necessary for successful participation in the AEYBA Program.

Membership fees are:

• 2nd Grade: $120
• 3rd Grade: $120
• 4th Grade: $180
• 5th Grade: $180
• 6th Grade: $180
• 7th Grade: $200
• 8th Grade: $200

Contact us if you require financial assistance.  A completed AEYBA Financial Assistance form is required for financial assistance.  Please fill out the form prior to registration.

Lost or damaged uniforms require a $95 payment.  For further information please see the Program Expectations link above.

In addition, all parents are required to volunteer time at fundraisers & tournaments sponsored by AEYBA.  Four (4) hours per player is required, with a maximum of eight (8) hours per family.  Please see the Volunteer Policy Change for further information. 

All players and parents are encouraged to attend the Player/Parent Opening Night to learn more about AEYBA and register for the season.

Registration on the AEYBA website is required and can be accomplished by clicking on the Registration link on the Home page.  In the event that you are unable to attend the Player/Parent Opening night, please complete the linked registration above with payment.  Your son/daughter's head coach will be in further contact with more details.

• All players are expected to be at all practices and games. 
• Practices are twice each week for at least 1½ hours. 
• Playing time at every level is dependent upon effort in practice. 
• We practice an entire grade at the same time. 
• Practices go from 6:15pm - 7:45pm & 7:45pm - 9:15pm.
• Younger grades get preference for early practice times.
• Gym assignments are based on team size.
• We utilized Appleton East feeder school gyms for practices.

***Please note the practice days above are tentative and could change based on gym / coach availability.

The objective is for there to be at least two qualified coaches per grade level team. A qualified coach is someone who has achieved more than one of the following accomplishments:

• Experience with playing at a competitive level (High School or above) 
• Has attended coaching clinics
• Has previous coaching experience with competitive basketball programs

Along with the two qualified coaches for each grade level there should be at least one or more coaches acting as assistance for each grade level team.

If there is a grade level with only one qualified coach, the maximum number of players for that team will be 20 players. In this case, there will also be a need for at least one or more assistant coaches.

The maximum number of active tournament players that can be on a grade level team is 25 players. This restriction in numbers is due to the following issues:

• The limited practice times and space available.
• Financial resources available for uniforms and tournament fees.
• The reasonable number of players that can practice together at once.
• Potentially, the number of coaches available.

If there are more than 25 players that sign up at an opening night for a grade level, there will need to be a tryout with the purpose of selecting the top 25 most skilled players with potential for development at that grade level.

Tryouts, if required, will include evaluation sessions that take place at the first two practices after the opening night. Qualified coaches not involved with this team will be assigned by the AEYBA Board to act as a committee to perform the evaluations of the players. The Head coach of that grade level will have input to the evaluations but the final decisions will be made by the committee.

The purpose of these above guidelines is to maintain a quality youth basketball program that has qualified coaches and a manageable number of players in each grade level. This will allow the players involved, the ability to continually improve their skills from year to year in preparation for High School.

Head coach listings can be found on the individual AEYBA team pages.

As a non-profit organization, AEYBA relies solely on contributions to support its activities. There are three primary ways that the organization raises money.

Player Fees: Each player is expected to pay an annual fee to help defray the cost of uniforms, team supplies, and tournament participation. Contact a Board member regarding financial assistance.

Tournaments: AEYBA hosts up to four tournaments/league game days each year for girls and boys teams in two different age groups (typically, 3rd-6th Grade and 7th-8th Grade). Proceeds from entry fees and concessions go toward various AEYBA expenses. Parent volunteers are encouraged to sign up within the Dibs system for open volunteering opportunities at these tournaments to satisfy their program requirements.

Corporate/Personal Donations: Through the generosity of local businesses and individuals, AEYBA has been the beneficiary of thousands of dollars in charitable donations and numerous donations of goods and services in support of AEYBA activities.
 

AEYBA wants to support every child that is interested in basketball. To that extent, we do not hold tryouts unless the number of participants exceeds the coach/player ratio we try to maintain.

In the unfortunate event we cannot accept all who register, tryouts will be held so that we can maintain the quality of instruction we have worked hard at obtaining. 

Tryout dates will be posted if tryouts are required and the dates are established. Again, registration results will dictate the need for tryouts.