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For this roundtable discussion, we gathered athletic directors and coaches from across the country to share their opinions on the National High School Invitational, a tournament managed by ESPN Rise that will feature several of the country’s top boys’ and girls’ basketball teams. Games will be televised by ESPNU, ESPN2, or ESPN.

Teams will be chosen based on their ranking in the ESPN Rise Fab 50. A number of state associations and leagues have already forbidden member schools from participation, while others have granted approval.

The following people make up our panel:
• Dan Cardone, Athletic Director at North Hills High School in Pittsburgh, Pa.
• Kenneth Cheeseman, Head Football Coach at White Pass High School in Randle, Wash.
• David Hoch, Athletic Director at Loch Raven High School in Baltimore County, Md.
• Chuck Jones, Athletic Director at North Central High School in Indianapolis, Ind.
• Kirby Whitacre, Director of Athletics at South Bend (Ind.) Community School Corporation

AM: Is the creation of a national championship for high school basketball a good idea?

Cardone: When it comes to interscholastic athletics, I am opposed to anything that has the word “national” before it. The filtering down of what occurred at the professional level, and has now invested itself in the collegiate level, means high school sports are the latest to be exploited by the media. This is especially true in high school football and basketball.

Focusing attention on the “elite players” means that high school sports are becoming a breeding ground for collegiate programs, as colleges have become for the NBA or the NFL. Also it appears that ESPN is not stopping there—they are targeting 10 to 16 year olds for the ESPN Rise games. What is next? Having 5-9 year olds nationally televised?

Cheeseman: No, I think this takes high school sports to a level it is not meant to be at. We want kids to have fun and not make it something so “big."

Hoch: Admittedly, I am a philosophical purist. I do not think a national championship is a good idea. As a matter of fact, it is counter to many, if not most, of the principles of education-based athletics in which I firmly believe.

Just as I stated in my blog entry concerning high school all-star games, the players on the teams involved would already be well known and not a secret to college recruiters. One cannot, therefore, use the argument that this will increase awareness and opportunities.

Jones: I do not believe that a national championship for high school basketball is even remotely a good idea. Somehow on the high school level, we are losing sight of what high school should be: a four-year opportunity to get a great education. Athletics is a part of that process, and nothing more.

Instead of kids getting a great education and their coaches and athletic department leading the way, schools are now focused on winning a championship. Someone, somewhere must have the courage to say, “This is not right. It is not in the best interest of the athletes and their schools.”

Whitacre: No, it is not a good idea. A state championship should be the culmination of a season.

In Indiana, we don’t want anything interfering with that concept. This national championship idea is media and financially driven. It is one step closer to the exploitation of high school athletes in a way that NCAA Division I athletes are exploited. Finally, the schools mentioned for this year appear to be elite “basketball prep schools” that are not typical of high school state championship teams.

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Do you think the NFHS should support it?

Cheeseman: No. The NFHS is in the rules business for high school sports, not the gaming business.

Whitacre: I do not think the NFHS should support this. They should maintain the best interest of high school athletics and activities as their main philosophical focus.

Jones: I hope the NFHS does not support this in any manner. The NFHS repeatedly tells us both in written form and during presentations by their staff that we must keep high school athletics in their proper perspective and communicate the proper role of student-athletes in their school setting. This national championship would represent a real change in the position they have previously taken. I have also spoken to our state association about my concerns and have asked that they take a similar position against a national championship.

Cardone: It is my hope that the NFHS preach the right message: that student-athletes at the high school level enjoy competition for its own sake. The media has overtaken every aspect of our lives and has no limits to what they will do. Someone has to have a conscience, and the NFHS is our voice at the national level.

Hoch: This is extremely complicated. The NFHS has long championed education-based athletics and the safety and welfare of student-athletes. It has always done what is best for high school athletes.

The NFHS could get involved in order to take an active role in safeguarding their principles. Furthermore, these events could develop as they have with cheerleading—with or without NFHS involvement. By getting involved, the NFHS could at least offer guidance and suggestions. I would not be so presumptuous to predict what they would do, but I know that all aspects would be carefully considered and that they would reach a decision upon their long-stand principles about what is best for student-athletes.

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If a tournament were sanctioned as a national championship, what kind of stipulations would you like to see in place ?

Cheeseman: If we do have a national championship tournament, this is the area where most of the controversy and complaining would be.

Cardone: I have no thoughts on this, other than to say that I am for a level playing field in the realm of high school sports. I would like to see us look inward, to ensure transfers are not motivated by athletic intent. When I see that a high school team is ranked in the top five in the country, with five Division I recruits, I am miffed. Was this school or academy so blessed that all these players grew up in their system? We have had only two division one basketball players in the last 20 years in our school.

Whitacre:I cannot get excited about this in any fashion. I suppose if pressed for an answer, the proceeds would have to go to scholarship funding or somehow come back to all high school athletic programs. I cannot fathom any selection process that would realistically produce a true national champion, no matter the field size.

Hoch: Since I am not in favor of a national championship, it is difficult to fully focus on this question. The profits should be placed in a fund to help strengthen athletic programs in areas around the country that are struggling. In this manner, the game would not benefit only the few selected teams, but could actually provide for the greater good.

A wise colleague and friend also mentioned that a number of nationally elite teams (in the polls) may not truly be high schools but rather sports academies. These institutions exist largely for the singular purpose of developing basketball talent, then provide the academic underpinnings to satisfy the basis of being a high school team.

Here’s an idea for any proposed national championship: Only public high schools with defined enrollment boundaries and athletes who have met all state eligibility requirements can participate. Regardless of the size of the field for this proposed tournament, relying on a rating system poses yet another problem. You will run into the same debacle as NCAA football. While the NCAA basketball playoffs work, you can’t replicate this approach on the secondary level. Without representation from all or most of the states, how can you truly call a tournament a national championship?

If you would like to participate in upcoming AthleticManagement.com Roundtable Discussions, or have a topic you'd like to suggest, e-mail Online Editor RJ Anderson at: rja@MomentumMedia.com.