The tension between players and high school coaches over AAU basketball has picked up over the years, and it's not going away any time soon. Many prep players have deemed AAU/YBOA competition as their best chance to advance to high collegiate levels.

The consensus from area high school coaches is that the players gain experience and exposure from competing with and against top-level club talent but in some cases lose sight of teamwork skills.

"AAU is a good venue for college coaches to watch players, but it destroys what you're trying to do in a high school setting," Bradley Central coach Kent Smith said. "It's all about the individuals trying to draw attention to themselves and not learning the fundamentals and how to play as a team. Every year, I have to undo three months of bad habits when we begin practice."

Smith noted that former University of Tennessee at Chattanooga standout Alphonso Pugh "never played a minute of AAU ball and he had a good college career."

"High school coaches know these kids' backgrounds; we know their home life and how their grades are. We see them every day," Smith said. "There can be positives depending on the AAU coaches. You get some at the highest level that use that season as a chance to market players and be a part of it, but if you get a coach that continues to work on the fundamentals, it can be good. It gives the kid who doesn't play another sport an opportunity to play year-round."

Grace Academy coach Jon Mattheiss cited another positive along with the negative aspects.

"We try to play against good competition, but it's Class A ball," Mattheiss said. "In AAU, they're able to play against double-A and triple-A players, but there's not as much defense and there's more unorganized offense.

"Coaches in high school are about state tournaments, championships and personal pride. AAU is about 'How many points did I score?' In high school it's about how we did as opposed to how I did."

The area's top two prospects, according to TNPrepHoops.com -- Grace's Brandon Herman and Cleveland's Ish Sanders -- play for top-flight AAU programs. Herman is with the Tennessee Travelers, while Sanders plays for the Nashville Celtics. Both enjoy the high school game but said AAU is their best chance for NCAA Division I attention.

"A lot of people ask how I've been getting looks," said Herman, a 6-foot-1 guard who lists Marquette, Mississippi State, Georgia Tech, Marshall, UTC and Middle Tennessee State as college possibilities. "It's because of AAU. At Grace there's not as many people watching us, but with the Travelers we travel around the U.S.

"I feel like I could get recruited just by playing at Grace, but they wouldn't be as big of schools."

Sanders is a 6-3 guard being recruited by mid-majors such as Butler, Tulsa, Miami of Ohio and Wright State.

"Most of the time, I approach AAU and high school games the same," Sanders said, "but in a way you can't because the bigger college coaches don't come to high school games. In AAU you know that if you perform well you're going to get a look."

He and Herman both said their high school teams' success is important. Grace's Golden Eagles advanced to the Class A state semifinals before falling to eventual champion Manassas this past season, and Cleveland's Blue Raiders reached the Class AAA sectionals in 2008.

"A high school championship would mean a lot more to me," Sanders said, "because in AAU you have all the pieces you need. In high school you have to make everybody around you better to be successful."

Said Herman: "AAU just isn't as important as high school basketball in terms of wins and losses."

John Carroll of Scouts, Inc., one of the top recruiting outlets in the country, said AAU has surpassed high school play as the primary source for talent searches.

"The AAU basketball circuit has almost totally replaced the high school program in terms of importance and influence," Carroll said. "However, a large percentage of AAU coaches are not true coaches, or true students or teachers of the game. Most AAU coaches are recruiters, amassing the most talent they can and taking it on the road. But they are not capable of putting young players in teaching environments and helping them develop the skills necessary to be more prepared to move on to a college program."

Lee University coach Tommy Brown uses the AAU/YBOA season as more of a networking opportunity.

"I'll go to the national tournament in Orlando every year," he said. "Every college coach in America is there just about, and I just go out there to talk with them. This way they can call me and tell me if a guy is looking to transfer."

Brown's trick has worked, as six players have transferred from NCAA Division I programs to his Flames in the past three seasons.

"Sometimes we'll just go to AAU tournaments with the hopes of getting some of these guys on the second go-around," Brown said. "We just wanted to get to know them and wanted them to know us.

"AAU is all that is out there in the summer, so college coaches can get out there and see a lot of players at once."