On Saturday morning, a small park tucked away in a quiet Elmsford neighborhood played home to a score of area hoopsters, as high school-aged basketball players took to the blacktop to compete in the long-running Massaro Park Summer League. For some, the league is an opportunity to gather with friends and stay active, but for others—like members of the Mamaroneck High School basketball program—the weekly games are an important part of building for varsity success.
On July 17, playing for assistant Mamaroneck coach Trevor Dimmie, an undermanned group of Tigers players stayed perfect in MPSL action, coming from behind to beat NextLevel Athletics 19-17 on a last minute bucket by rising junior Aaron Bard. The victory may have clinched the Tigers a top-seed in the upcoming six-team MPSL playoffs, but for Mamaroneck varsity coach Tyrone Carver—who was watching on in his capacity as the league commissioner—wins and losses are secondary to developing the on-court bonds that will strengthen his program in the upcoming years.
“We just want them to play and build some camaraderie, but we also use this as a time to evaluate and see what we have,” Carver said. “We have about 13 guys who are returning from varsity or played on the JV level last year, and we don’t really care about wins and losses, we just want them to get used to hearing our voices and improving against some pretty good talent here.”
Carver said that most teams in the MPSL are comprised of a mixture of current high school AAU and unaffiliated players, which provides a unique experience for his players who also participate in the more high-school centric Premier League, run by the East Coast Elite organization, during the week.
“It’s good for us to come out here,” said Carver. It’s a different type of talent, different type of schemes, and it helps us prepare for the winter season.”
Between games in the Premier League and the MPSL and twice-a-week 6:30 a.m. practices, Carver said that Mamaroneck’s basketball players are together up to five times a week over the summer, something he feels is especially important given how much off-season development time programs lost last year due to pandemic restrictions. That lost year, combined with the eagerness of a Tiger team trying to build upon a 2021 season that saw it defeat a vaunted Mount Vernon squad twice, have helped stoke the Tigers’ enthusiasm for a robust summer schedule, according to Carver.
“We felt like last year, we were behind the eight-ball in terms of developing some players and developing the team because of the Covid situation,” he said. “Our returning guys got a taste of success last year and want to keep that taste in their mouth and I think that our younger guys see that success and want to be a part of it, too.”
