WYBA is a volunteer run organization dedicated to the following;
- Providing opportunities to boys and girls in grades 4 through 8 to participate in organized basketball.
- Using clinics to teach WYBA players fundamental basketball skills.
- Inspiring young athletes to master the ideals of good sportsmanship and healthy team dynamics.
- Teaching each player that basketball is a team sport.
- Assuring the safety of all participants.
- Encouraging all participating parents to behave in an exemplary manner as both coaches and spectators.
Our mission is to provide quality coaching and competition for boys and girls interested in developing their basketball skills. We hope our players will develop a love for the game of basketball and an appreciation of the "team sport" experience.
Our Board of Directors is all volunteer and we are always interested in talking to you about volunteer opportunities with the Watertown Youth Basketball Association.
Positive Coaching Alliance
The WYBA is Positive Coaching Alliance partner. We require our coaches to attend training sessions produced by Positive Coaching Alliance-approved trainers.
We encourage our coaches, parents and players to adopt the Positive Coaching Alliance "ROOTS" approach to youth sports:
- Respect for the Rules
- Respect for the Officials
- Respect for your Opponent
- Respect for your Teammates
- Respect for the Sport
In our travel basketball program, we require our volunteer coaches to participate in Positive Coaching Alliance educational programs and we encourage our coaches to get certified as Positive Coaching Alliance "double-goal" coaches striving to pursue both 1) winning and 2) teaching life lessons.
Our Programs
We offer two different programs for Watertown boys and girls in grades 4 through 8.
In-House
Our In-House program is for 4th and 5th grade players. We combine the grades to create a group of equally skilled balanced teams. All games are held on Saturday mornings at the Watertown Middle School. For 4th/5th there is one practice per week per team. We run a series of skills sessions prior to creating the teams. The season runs from early December through to the first week of March.
Travel
We sponsor travel basketball teams for Watertown boys and girls in grades 5 through 8. Our "A" and "B" teams participate in the Metrowest League which consists of suburban towns located to the west and south of Boston.
Our teams hold try-outs in mid to late October, and practice and play games from early November through mid-March. Practices are held starting in November and are held in the gyms of the Hosmer & Lowell Elementary Schools.
All regular season games are played on Saturday afternoons/ evenings and Sundays, starting in December. Home games are played at the Watertown Middle School and in other towns participating in the Metrowest league. Playoff games take place weekdays and weekends in early to mid-March.
Teams may also play in weekend tournaments sponsored by towns in eastern Massachusetts.