Frequently Asked Questions
2020-2021 Basketball Season
1. Does the RGBA have a COVID-19 plan and protocol in place for the 2020-2021 season?
The RGBA has worked closely with the Richfield School District to adopt a COVID-19 plan and protocol for the 2020-2021 season that follows all CDC and Minnesota Department of Health guidelines for safely returning to play for youth sports. The current COVID-19 plan and protocol can be found on our website.
2. Will travel basketball tournaments be held?
At this time, we are uncertain whether the traditional travel basketball tournaments will be conducted for the 2020-2021 season. The MYAS and various AAU organizations have successfully held multiple tournaments within the state of Minnesota during the months of July and August; however, the traditional travel basketball tournaments will be highly depend upon the evolving state of the pandemic and each local school district’s policies for gym rentals. We know that the tournaments successfully conducted this summer are different than what we have grown accustomed to, including limited fan attendance allowed, strict guidelines for entry and exit of gyms to allow teams and fans not competing against one another to social distance, and the elimination of most concessions.
3. If travel basketball tournaments are not held, what will the season look like?
We strongly believe that maintaining a strong basketball community is important for the well-being of our youth. Therefore, if basketball tournaments are not able to be held, we would still provide opportunities for teams to practice (likely twice per week), provided we are still able to rent gym space from the Richfield School District. We have also begun initial exploratory discussions with other basketball associations about forming a travel basketball league that would allow our teams to compete in a safe manner against teams from outside our association.
4. Will fans be allowed at travel and in-house basketball games?
At this time, we are uncertain whether any fans will be allowed at travel or in-house basketball games. Fan attendance at travel basketball games will be heavily dependent upon the policies and procedures required by each school district for gym rental. Like most everything else associated with this pandemic, these restrictions are liable to change for the better or worse at any given time.
Currently, the RGBA has secured gym space with Richfield Public Schools. However, we are only able to currently accommodate 25 people in a gym at any time. This means that attendance at games would be limited to the two teams (likely 10 players on each time), each team’s head
coach, one official and one scorekeeper. Under these constraints, no fans would be permitted to attend any in-house games held within Richfield School District gyms.
5. If the season is cancelled or cancelled partially into the season, what is the RGBA’s refund policy?
Due to the uncertainty regarding our ability to guarantee a full or partial in-house or travel basketball season this year, the RGBA Board has adopted the following refund policy for the 2020-2021 season:
K-2 Program
• Full Season Cancellation: Full refund minus a $10 transaction fee.
• Partial Season Cancellation: Prorated refund if two or more sessions are cancelled minus a $10 transaction fee. o For example, if 5 of the 10 sessions are cancelled, 50% of the registration fee will be refunded minus a $10 transaction fee.
In-House
• Full Season Cancellation: Full refund minus a $10 transaction fee.
• Partial Season Cancellation: Prorated refund if two or more games are cancelled minus a $10 transaction fee. o For example, if five of the 10 in-house league games are cancelled, 50% of the registration fee will be refunded minus a $10 transaction fee
Travel
• Full Season Cancellation: Full refund of registration and tournament/coach fees minus a $10 transaction fee.
• Partial Season Cancellation: o Registration Fees: Prorated based upon the number of weeks remaining in the season minus a $10 transaction fee. Example: The typical travel season is approximately 20 weeks. If the season is cancelled with 5 weeks to go, 25% of the registration fees will be refunded.
o Tournament/Coach Fees: Prorated based upon the actual cost to the RGBA of the tournaments and practices missed for each team.
Please note that the RGBA incurs transaction fees of approximately 3% for every registration and refund provided. The $10 transaction fee that will be applied to the refunds only partially covers the cost to the RGBA to accept registrations and provide for full or prorated refunds based upon the policy above.
6. Will there be any changes to the travel basketball tryout procedures for this season?
Yes, there will be some changes to the travel basketball tryout procedures for the 2020-2021 season. We will not be conducting tryouts this year.
7. Will the RGBA host a tournament this year?
The RGBA is continuing our partnership with MYAS for the 2020-2021 basketball season. However, we have not requested to host any tournaments, nor will we be hosting our own tournament this year given the current climate.
8. What if I have a more specific question that has not been addressed above?
While we have tried to anticipate the most common questions, we realize that we have not answered all questions or concerns that you may have regarding the 2020-2021 basketball season. If you have any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact Naomi Lewis (RGBA President) at [email protected] or Blaine Joerger (Director of Basketball Operations) at [email protected] We will plan to continuously update our FAQ document as information changes or new questions are asked.