The Out West Program
The Out West Basketball Association is Canada's premier club basketball
program specializing in the development of female basketball players.
Out West teams operate from late spring to mid summer. Out West has a record of outstanding athlete development.
Out West is a
registered not- for-profit organization supported by dedicated
volunteers, corporate sponsorship, and Alberta Casino proceeds. Out
West is pleased to provide players with quality development programs
utilizing experienced coaches while charging families modest
participation fees. Participation fees for school aged Out West
athletes are a maximum of $575 for U13, U14, U15 and U16. U17 athlete
fees are a maximum of $775. Fees for post secondary teams will be
determined upon conclusion of season content planning in December.
Why Out West?
Out West has a track record of success as a specialized
organization focused upon development of female athletes, and the proof
lies in the results. Out West athletes have excelled in their primary
and secondary school programs, and an impressive number have gone on to
play in over 20 post secondary basketball programs in Canada and the
USA. More Out West athletes have gone on to play university, college,
professional and National basketball programs than in any other club in Canada. Eight Out West athletes have gone on to play professionally in
Europe after outstanding post secondary careers.
Out West has successfully attracted upper level coaches for its teams
with solid experience in their respective backgrounds. Out West coaches
include those who have coached at the high school, post secondary and
professional levels.
For information on our coaches, visit OUT WEST COACHES
The 2008 Season
The key objective of the Out West program is to offer athletes the
opportunity to develop from the U13 age bracket all the way to the
professional level of play. Out West limits the number of teams in each
category in order to permit optimum development. Selection of athletes
results from recruitment activity and application. Successful candidates
are those who have the drive, commitment and skill sets to play at the
elite level of each team category. For the 2008 season, Out West will
operate teams in the following categories:
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Out West U13
-
Out West U14
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Out West U15
-
Out West U16
-
Out West U17
-
Out West Senior Team (Players
graduating from high school in 2008 and intend to play post
secondary ball, and those who currently are playing in a post
secondary program) This team will travel to compete in Western Europe.
- Out
West Elite Team - the Out West Elite team is comprised of players who
are currently in the latter stages of a post secondary basketball
program or who are graduating this year, and who intend to play
professionally. This team will travel to compete in Western
Europe.
The Focus Upon
Development
Out West is fortunate
to have attracted senior experienced coaches. Out West has arranged for
additional collaborative relationships with foreign organizations to
enhance Out West's ability to provide leading edge athlete development.
This will include interaction with foreign coaches and players and the
inclusion of European players on Out West teams for the 2008 season.
Bridge to Europe
Out West has worked hard to build
relationships with foreign interests to enhance its ability to develop
athletes. Several years ago Out West entered into arrangements with
certain U.S. organizations to further the interests of Out West athletes. This included advisory assistance from a
WNBA team organization.
Over the past several years the Out West
Elite team has traveled to Europe in order to enable Out West athletes
to learn and experience the European style of basketball.
Out West arranged games against highly competitive
professional teams in Europe. In the 2008 season, the Out West Senior
team will travel to Europe as part of its development process. In
addition to Out West's continuing interaction with European professional
clubs, Out West is pleased to confirm that it has formed a relationship
with a professional recruiting agency in Europe to enhance the process
of professional placements of Out West athletes.
Out West has become a leader in
Canada in relation to athlete placement. Although Out West is proud of
its 8 former members who have gone on to play professionally, the goals
for the future are much more aggressive. Out West organizers believe
that formal arrangements developed with European interests over the past
several years together with recent initiatives will open more doors for
Out West athletes who wish to achieve hoops excellence.
