AAU TEAMS and TRYOUTS
AAU Questions
If you have any questions about AAU, feel free to contact us. We can talk through what teams might be a good fit or answer your other questions.
AAU Programs and Tryout Dates (2025-26)
This list is not in any order and is not comprehensive. It is most of the teams in the Milwaukee area, however. If you are aware of other programs, let us know and we can add them. Click the name to go to the tryout page for each program. The rough location of each program is in parentheses but tryouts and practices could be in different locations.
AAU Season
The AAU season generally runs from April or May through July. Some teams will offer skills training sessions throughout the year.
AAU Teams
Most programs will have 2 teams per grade level. The A team will generally travel more extensively and play a higher level of competition. The B team will mostly play a regional schedule. Some programs have affiliations with specific sponsors and they tout those as access to top-level play. For example, 24:Up is associated with Under Armor so their top teams play in a league-style circuit called UA Rise. These circuits are generally for the older age levels, however.
If you have any questions about AAU, feel free to contact us. We can talk through what teams might be a good fit or answer your other questions.
AAU Programs and Tryout Dates (2025-26)
This list is not in any order and is not comprehensive. It is most of the teams in the Milwaukee area, however. If you are aware of other programs, let us know and we can add them. Click the name to go to the tryout page for each program. The rough location of each program is in parentheses but tryouts and practices could be in different locations.
- 1on1 Milwaukee - August 4 - 7 (Wauwatosa)
- Wisconsin Lakers - July 25 & 26, August 2 (Lake Country)
- 24:Up - July 28 & 29 (New Berlin)
- Wisconsin Lady Shooters - July 31 (Wauwatosa)
- Wisconsin Impact - July 25 (Waukesha)
- Chapman - August 2 & 3 (Mequon)
- Chapman South - July 28 & 30 (Muskego)
- Chapman North - August 9 & 10 (Saukville)
- Club 52 - August 2 (Mequon)
AAU Season
The AAU season generally runs from April or May through July. Some teams will offer skills training sessions throughout the year.
AAU Teams
Most programs will have 2 teams per grade level. The A team will generally travel more extensively and play a higher level of competition. The B team will mostly play a regional schedule. Some programs have affiliations with specific sponsors and they tout those as access to top-level play. For example, 24:Up is associated with Under Armor so their top teams play in a league-style circuit called UA Rise. These circuits are generally for the older age levels, however.
What is AAU
AAU stands for Amateur Athletic Union. It is an organization dedicated to promotion and development of amateur sports. I covers many different sports, including basketball.
However, most people use AAU as a generic term for summer basketball programs, not all of which are actually associated with AAU. Some of the clubs listed above are registered with AAU and some are not. From a practical standpoint, it doesn't seem to matter whether an organization is associated with AAU. These clubs will be found at similar tournaments whether they are technically AAU or not.
Why Join an AAU Team
The biggest reason is to get more time in on the basketball court to get better at the game. Here are some of the things that AAU can offer:
How to Join
You will need to tryout for the club. To try out, you must register for the tryouts with the team(s) you are interested in. There will be a fee (something like $20-50) paid at registration. The tryouts are either 1 or 2 days, depending on the club. If you can't make a tryout, some clubs will be flexible in finding another way to try out. There are some clubs that don't fill all their teams by the end of tryouts, so there will be some opportunities, even if you miss these tryouts. Just contact the club to see if there are open spots.
Soon after the tryout, you will be notified if you made a team. If you make a team, you will need to pay the fee to accept the slot. Unless your club is one of those that offers skill sessions throughout the year, you then wait until next spring to order uniforms and begin play.
AAU stands for Amateur Athletic Union. It is an organization dedicated to promotion and development of amateur sports. I covers many different sports, including basketball.
However, most people use AAU as a generic term for summer basketball programs, not all of which are actually associated with AAU. Some of the clubs listed above are registered with AAU and some are not. From a practical standpoint, it doesn't seem to matter whether an organization is associated with AAU. These clubs will be found at similar tournaments whether they are technically AAU or not.
Why Join an AAU Team
The biggest reason is to get more time in on the basketball court to get better at the game. Here are some of the things that AAU can offer:
- Higher level of competition. For the most part, these teams are made up of the better players in their respective programs, so the competition level is generally higher than Jr. Raiders. That said, there is a range of programs, so you don't need to one of the better players on your team to play AAU.
- Playing with and against different players. Our players play with the same group for years. AAU allows them to experience other players with different attitudes and play styles. This can broaden their experience and help them grow and learn. They also see different competition and learn from those play styles as well.
- Playing for different coaches. It can be valuable for a player to hear a different coaching voice from time to time and AAU definitely offers that.
- Coaching by paid coaches. AAU coaches are paid for their time, so they have an incentive to work on their craft and become more expert at coaching than a volunteer. These coaches generally have primary jobs and coach on the side out of their love of the game.
- Exposure to college recruiters. This only applies to players who want to play in college, but AAU is a valuable way for players to get exposure to college recruiters, especially if they are casting their net beyond the local area.
- Traveling for competitions. For the more elite players, the local competition is not enough, so traveling to play against the best competition is important to their development.
- Summer improvement. Summer is the time when basketball players can work on their skills and really make leaps in their abilities. AAU is a structured way for that to happen. Players could work on their own or through skill sessions like the ones we offer, but sometimes they need the team structure to be motivated.
How to Join
You will need to tryout for the club. To try out, you must register for the tryouts with the team(s) you are interested in. There will be a fee (something like $20-50) paid at registration. The tryouts are either 1 or 2 days, depending on the club. If you can't make a tryout, some clubs will be flexible in finding another way to try out. There are some clubs that don't fill all their teams by the end of tryouts, so there will be some opportunities, even if you miss these tryouts. Just contact the club to see if there are open spots.
Soon after the tryout, you will be notified if you made a team. If you make a team, you will need to pay the fee to accept the slot. Unless your club is one of those that offers skill sessions throughout the year, you then wait until next spring to order uniforms and begin play.