Players keep busy on and off the court

Spencer Patterson

Monday, July 19, 1999 | 9:39 a.m.

Imagine dropping nearly 3,000 teen-age boys for five days into Las Vegas, a city best known for bright lights, high rollers and adult entertainment.

Such is the scenario every summer, as the adidas Big Time Basketball Tournament rolls into town, bringing with it prep hoopsters from states near and far.

For coaches, parents and college recruiters, a week in Las Vegas offers opportunities unavailable in most hometowns.

But for more than 2,700 high schoolers, the tournament's downtime presents something of a dilemma: what to do in a town built to satisfy adults.

Certainly, much of their time here is spent playing basketball, with teams playing as many as three games in a day.

But when teams are eliminated from the tournament early on, they may find themselves with an extra day or two in town before they can fly home (or to their next basketball destination).

For some teams, travelling packs of parents set the agenda. For others, coaches plan group outings.

And for more than a few chaperones, the activities are designed to keep them busy in a supervised setting.

"They're in Las Vegas and they're just trying to act older than their age," said Tony Salamone, coach of Cincinnati-based Evolv Basketball.

Chris Grier, coach of the defending tournament champion Michigan Mustangs, sets strict curfews for his players.

"If we have an afternoon game the next day, the latest they can be up is 12:30. If it's a morning game, it's 11 p.m.," Grier said.

With more than 40 in their party, coaches, players and parents for Seattle-based Hoopaholics eat breakfast together each morning to discuss the day's itinerary.

"We're a pretty disciplined team on the court, and we're pretty disciplined off the floor, too," Hoopaholics coach Price Johnson said.

Grier said his team met before the tournament to discuss the 'do's and don't's" while in Las Vegas.

"If you don't tell them, they might say they didn't know," Grier said.

"The bottom line is, you've just got to have good kids."

Local attractions

As with any tourists, a tour of the Strip is generally the first activity for most clubs new to town. With many teams staying in Strip hotels, packs of tall teen-age boys can often be spotted wearing-shirts emblazoned with the words "Big Time."

"We want to make sure they see all the hotels on the Strip while they're here," Johnson said.

The Colorado Jam took in the Fremont Street light show and used the local hotels as a primary food source.

"We've been hitting the buffets, so they've been eating well," said Jam assistant coach Steve Delk.

Area roller coasters were also a popular draw, as was Strip waterpark Wet N' Wild, which offered participants a $4 discount.

Several teams were planning to see Hoover Dam before leaving town.

Hotel pools had mixed reviews, with many coaches opting to keep their players out of the sun as much as possible during the grueling tournament.

"When you have two games in a day, and it's this hot outside, you rest," Barnes said. "If you're playing that day, the sun takes your energy. So you try to stay where it's cool."

Gym rats

Some players have no trouble staying out of the sun (and staying out of trouble), preferring to spend their free time taking in the rest of the tournament. They can be spotted long after their games have ended, sitting in the bleachers or scanning them for the most famous faces in college basketball.

"Some guys love to go over to the other gyms and see other kids play and see the big-time college coaches," Barnes said. "It's a great basketball atmosphere."

But long driving distances and unfamiliar roads kept other teams from leaving their primary gymnasium.

"That's the only bad thing about this tournament -- the driving times," Salamone said. "Otherwise, we'd watch more games."