Today we’d like to introduce you to J Schwartz.
Hi J, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
In 2018, my daughter decided she didn’t want to play softball anymore and wanted to play AAU basketball. We researched a bunch of clubs, most of which were on the west side of the cities. I wanted to spend less time in the car during the week, so I started researching how to start my AAU club. I had 20+ years of coaching, mainly at the high school level. I decided to give it a try. We held our tryouts, went to a mega tryout by AAU, and convinced 27 families to trust the newly formed East Metro Wave with their basketball player’s AAU season. We have grown every year since going from 3 to 6 in 2019; we had 12 teams lined up in 2020 and canceled the whole season because of COVID-19. We have 20 teams this year and will host our tournament for the first time.
Alright, let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what challenges have you had to overcome?
There have been some struggles along the way. In the last couple of years, a few clubs have started on the east side of the Metro area. We have had to find a niche in a very competitive market. Sometimes, finding gym space and enough coaches for our growing program has been difficult, but it always seems to work out. Another difficult aspect is balancing an increasing business while being a high school teacher, dad, and boyfriend.
I appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about East Metro Wave?
East Metro Wave is a boys and girls AAU basketball program that provides off-season spring seasons, basketball camps, and small group training. What makes us different from other clubs are:
- Our top-of-the-line coaches.
- A family-friendly schedule.
- The fact that we welcome multi-sport athletes.
The Wave doesn’t just teach basketball plays. We teach players how to play basketball. We are known for turning C players into B players and B players into A players. We are about making basketball players better.
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
My business partner, Natalie Wood, deserves much credit for helping us take our business to the next level. She made our website more multi-faceted, which made our service so much better. Her work ethic, drive, ingenuity, and intelligence have helped so much on the business side. With our tremendous coaches, the East Metro Wave is what it is. There are too many to name, but a few have been with our program from the start. Dan Schueller, Eric Prose, Garrett Pokela, and Dave Blumberg have assisted with different aspects of the basketball side. Thanks to everyone for their role in our growth.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.eastmetrowave.com
- Instagram: east_metro_wave
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eastmetrowave/
- Twitter: @EastMetroWave
