<p>Hi, im a 10th grader and I want to play basketball at harvard. So how difficult is the competition? Is it on par with any Canadian schools like UBC or SFU or perhaps better?
How do I get the coach at Harvard to recognize me? I am the top of my grade and I will probably be the starting 2 guard next year. So should I attend any camps at Harvard or send in tapes of me playing?
I don't think my basketball skills are good enough to be accepted purely as an athlete, but I have very good grades(4 APs already, SAT 2300, straight As) and very good extracurricular as well. I don't think Basketball will be my ticket in, but I do want it be seen as a very strong supplement, not just a regular hobby. Also, is it true that Ivy league coaches will hire decent athletes with potential and high academics to bring the whole team's average grades up?
PS: I'm in Vancouver, Canada.</p>
<p>Look at the Harvard basketball roster at gocrimson.com and compare your size, skill, and bball achievements with those already on the team. Since the arrival of the new coach a few years ago, H’s teams have been very competitive. I suspect they find plenty of talent with decent stats to fill the team. You will need to be NCAA division I level talent to be considered. Work hard at bball, hope you continue to grow, keep up the academics and see how you measure up junior year.</p>
<p>If you are an outstanding player, national level, you will be looked at whether by tapes, press, or camps. </p>
<p>“I don’t think my basketball skills are good enough to be accepted purely as an athlete,” Then you need to get in based on your grades, and try to walk on to a squad. And you’ll be doing yourself a disservice if you only look at Harvard. Do you think that a short list of 9 or 10 schools encompasses excellent education in the US?</p>
<p>“Also, is it true that Ivy league coaches will hire decent athletes with potential and high academics to bring the whole team’s average grades up?”</p>
<p>Those are called ‘index boosters’, and there is some of that in Ivy League recruiting. But coaches can only recruit a limited number of athletes, so first and foremost coach wants solid Division I-caliber players (meaning that most of these guys have scholarship offers elsewhere) with academics that are strong enough to be admitted, (a threshold well below your 2300). </p>
<p>If your basketball skills are on a par with other recruits, coach would love to bring on a very high index recruit. But if the skills aren’t there, your test scores and GPA are of little value to the coach.</p>
<p>Harvard basketball is on a roll right now and recruiting very strong athletes. With your academic qualifications, you should think about other schools in the Ivy League that are academic peers of Harvard but whose basketball programs are rebuilding. Your experience is likely to be very similar.</p>
<p>Harvard is a D-1 team that has won games in the March Madness Tournament for the past two years… They recruit mainly based on basketball skill, so you probably want to be in the ESPN Top Rankings if you want an offer, especially with the increasing interest.</p>
<p>“I don’t think my basketball skills are good enough to be accepted purely as an athlete”</p>
<p>It is extremely hard to walk onto the basketball team. This past year, there were 2 guys who had walked on. One never saw any playing time and was more or less there as team GPA booster. He just graduated. The other one is the godson of Obama. Enough said.</p>