AKRON, Ohio — The high school basketball season is over, but the importance of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) basketball is becoming more apparent now than ever before, as one coach and his son in Akron are training hard for the upcoming AAU season. 

What You Need To Know

  • AAU has become just as important as regular high school season 

  • Coach and son prepare for AAU basketball season 

  • Coach explains AAU brings opportunity for college recruitment
​Coach Darryl Peterson has been coaching his son for nearly all his life. Now they’re conditioning for the upcoming AAU basketball season.

"Attention to detail, just getting prepared, from a mental standpoint we have already did all of our body work, this is just the quiet before the storm kinda thing," he said.

AAU is a program that allows players to keep playing basketball after their high school season is over, but Coach Peterson says it’s more than just playing the sport.

"AAU is a big part of basketball," he said. "I feel no one goes to college these days from high school basketball. It's the AAU platform, and I feel like it's gotten huge."

Coach’s son, Darryn Peterson, is a sophomore now and is training intensely for the upcoming season. He said he is treating this as an opportunity for college recruitment in the future.

"Just taking care of my body," he said. "People like LeBron are playing 20 years. I want to be able to do stuff like that, just taking care of my body, make sure I'm stretching and drinking lots of water."

Peterson knows that taking his skills to the next level is going to take a lot of work and dedication, and what better way than to do it right alongside his father.

"I love it he just wants me to be great, he knows what I am capable of so he can push me," he said. "Off court he’s the best dad. When it’s about basketball he’s hard on me. When we are at home we don’t even gotta talk about sports, school, off court life."

Darryn’s dad is ready to do what it takes to get his son ready for the next level and said basketball has made them closer.

"It helped us grow and bond together, and it brought us closer actually, when you spend a lot of time in the gym together, you get a different understanding, a different relationship," he said. "We developed a friendship bond."

Both Coach and his son are hoping that their AAU experience and their relationship will translate to long successful future on the court. Coach Peterson said their AAU season starts on April 15.