Aug 11th, 2020 at 05:11 PM
Fall
In 2010 approximately 100 of Canada’s top high schooler ballers were in prep or high school basketball programs in the United States, with many more also trying to make their way south. The exposed a serious lack of opportunities to be properly prepared for higher level post-secondary and professional basketball in Canada. What came about next was a need for leaders of youth AAU and prep movements to come together and examine what could be done. A Canadian Basketball Council was formed and FITS Toronto played host to a panel consisting of Wayne Dawkins P.H.A.S.E. 1 Academy), Keith Vassell (The Rock Sports), Tarry Upshaw (REDA Prep), Ro Russell (Grassroots/Faith Christian Center) and Mike George (CIA Bounce) educating members of the basketball community on the issues facing the development of basketball players in Canada and the need for a local prep league.
2010 Canadian Basketball Council Panel Discussion on Prep Schools
Following the panel discussion a consensus was reached and P.H.A.S.E. 1 took the lead in creating Canada’s first prep league the National Prep School Athletic Association (NPSAA). For the decades, Canadian coaches, educators, parents and general fans of amateur basketball watched as our best student athletes flowed south to American prep schools. The main causes behind this rapid exodus was simple; athletes were receiving better preparation and exposure by playing against top ranked competition in front of many NCAA coaches and professional scouts. The NPSAA would be the answer for families who were not ready to send their young athletes away from home south of the border.
The 2010 inaugural NPSAA League featured a mixture of academy and prep teams from across Ontario, including P.H.A.S.E. 1 Academy, YAAACE Prep, REDA Prep, Athlete's Institute, Metro Prep, Tri-County Prep, AGBU, and Faith Christian Center from North Carolina. Despite NPSAA founder Wayne Dawkins passing the torch of leadership to new members the NPSAA league finished in 2012 with Grassroots Canada led by Nik Stauskas losing a hard fought battle to the reigning Champions REDA/Athlete's Institute.
2012 Nik Stauskas NPSAA Playoff Highlights
Although in 2020 sports leagues and teams at all levels are facing the challenge of a worldwide pandemic COVID-19 slowing life to a crawl, our student athletes are still in need of more opportunities to reach their greater goals. The NPSAA has been diligently preparing our league to become a safe and competitive environment to provide development and exposure to more Canadian basketball players. We look forward to you joining us!
To learn more visit www.NPSAA.com