Talking turkey, boys basketball can wait till after Thanksgiving
Few coaches openly talk about it, but many think it.
It's time to change the boys basketball calendar and begin a week later.
What that means is an end to Thanksgiving tournament basketball, which is perfectly fine with more people than you'd expect.
Surprisingly, and anonymously, it's fine with several coaches.
They don't want to come out and say it because it might send the wrong message about avoiding competition, but many agree starting later would yield long-term benefits.
In a football county like DuPage, and in an athletic environment that relies heavily upon multisport athletes, it makes sense on several levels.
A prime example of why Thanksgiving week should be a dormant time for basketball came a couple of weeks ago when Naperville North's sophomore team played a Saturday tournament game at the same time its football team played for a state title in Champaign.
The same thing happened last year when Wheaton Warrenville South's varsity basketball team took the court as its football team took the field for a state championship game.
That's just wrong. Everyone should have been able to join in the football celebrations.
Although the bulk of basketball teams are rarely affected by a football team's success, it's become a common occurrence at many schools around here. Driscoll, Glenbard North, Naperville North and WW South all played in state title football games this year while their shorthanded basketball teams muddled through Thanksgiving tournaments.
It's time to create a definitive break between the fall and winter seasons. Thanksgiving could become that breaking point.
Some teams may become a little stir crazy awaiting their first game during the extra week of practice, but it'd be a short week. They could practice Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday before enjoying a long weekend with family.
Which brings me to another point about starting later.
Basketball is a season spanning three major holidays in Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. Two of the holidays are surrounded by basketball tournaments that eat into at least three or four days with games. Additional games are often played within a few days of New Year's.
Several tournaments this season begin Dec. 26 for teams that also play conference games on Dec. 21 and 22. Glenbard South has a Western Sun Conference game scheduled on Jan. 4. The DuPage Valley Conference plays on Jan. 5.
For families hoping to visit faraway relatives, the basketball schedule often leaves no window of opportunity to travel. By eliminating Thanksgiving tournaments, it'd at least open one holiday traveling window.
For everyone else it'd be a chance to just chill out and rest their bodies.
It may not be the biggest issue in the world, but it's something that could make the season better.
And let's be honest. Thanksgiving tournaments are probably the most forgettable time of the season. They're rarely an authoritative voice in sectional seeding meetings, they're merely a starting point.
Shift that starting point a week later and see what happens. To make up for the games, sprinkle a couple of extra Tuesday or Saturday games throughout the season.
As much as teams try to keep up with the competition and cram in as many games as possible, dropping a few early ones wouldn't hurt a thing.
More than a few coaches surely would give thanks for the later start.