By Dan Vance
MaxPreps.com
The NBA Draft is over, college commitments have been for the most part made, but basketball is all but over for the year in Indiana.
AAU Tournaments have showered the state through the month of June, showcasing to a plethora of college scouts, the next big names since Indianapolis North Central's Eric Gordon and company have now left way for the next class to take center stage.
In Fort Wayne, the always exciting Parks and Recreation Summer League is doing its part, keeping a bevy of the city's talented underclassmen still going at each other, even in the off-season.
"I love the summer league because it really feels like your season never ends," New Haven senior point guard Irving Upshaw said.
The Parks and Rec league is the premier league for the players in the state's second largest city. While, as usual, the top players are filling their plates with one, two or even three AAU programs, many of them make sure that playing with their home school in this league is the most important piece of the summer puzzle.
"I guess you could say that it is a loyalty thing," Fort Wayne Snider senior Carl Miller said. "In AAU you get a lot of looks as an individual player that will help you get to the next level. But in high school, your goal should be to win titles with your team. How can you expect to do that come next November through March if you do not spend time with them during the summer?"
The league holds sixteen teams, this year including just six of the schools that make up the city's Summit Athletic Conference. The lack of the city teams this year opens the door for schools from other bordering counties to get involved. Those teams not only get to strengthen their program, but also get a look at how well they could compete against the more up-tempo city schools.
"For us, we get to play against a lot of these schools in the season, so now is just about seeing where we stack up," said Leo junior Seth Gullet, one of the top scorers thus far in the league. "But for the Eastside's and the Fremont's, this is their only real chance to dance with the big boys so to say."
The league provides chances for all teams, no matter what conference, city or class they are in to have an equal chance to play each other.
Thus far, the smaller schools have not enjoyed much success but have found that they can at least know their place in the grand scheme of Northeast Indiana basketball.
"I think we see our weaknesses much more clearly against a Fort Wayne school than we would against teams from our own conference," Tyler Knell of Fremont said. "We usually know we are not going to win, but at least we can see what to fix."
Other schools use the league to showcase some up and coming talent. Fort Wayne South Side boasts a roster full of its own players, but also the city's most standout middle school player Rayfield Davis.
"It is such a mix of having fun and wanting to win. You get to try some new stuff, see what other people have and see how your team clicks," South Side summer league coach Brian Bereman said.
The league competes on Tuesdays and Thursdays throughout the months of June and July, culminating in a small tournament at the end. While the winners do not necessarily win anything major, it is the bragging rights that mean the most.
"If we can show during the summer that we are the top NHC (Northeast Hoosier Conference) school, then that's a major boost," Upshaw said. "But even a win or two over power teams like North or South Side means a great deal, too."
The league boasts five divisions in all, including Divisions 1 and 2 for boys and girls. Division 1 is made up of varsity teams and players while Division 2 is for junior varsity and freshmen squads. The girls also have a middle school division.