Irvine Flight Basketball expects our players to show respect for teammates, parents, coaches, opponents and the officials.
If you or your son would like to know how to become part of the Flight Family, please send us a message via the Contact page
As Founders & Coaches of Flight Basketball, we can tell you what our goals and accomplishments are and were for the teams we've coached over the years. We can tell you what various teams and young men & women have achieved, but nothing satisfies us more than hearing from those young adults themselves. As Coach Lisa will tell anyone who will listen, nothing in her life makes her smile wider or feel prouder than hearing Jason (or one of her many kids) call her "Mom", or, many years past their playing days, having one of her past flight players call her "Coach."
To my Flight Family,
Flight is not just a basketball team, we are family! Back in 08 Coach Jeff and Coach Lisa took over our team not knowing who we were, not knowing our names, and not knowing the talent we all had. We were just young kids wanting to play basketball, with little knowledge about life and discipline. Flight changed that!
Flight taught me about sportsmanship, teamwork, respect, listening skills, responsibility, and much more. Flight also taught me discipline, which is a characteristic needed for everyday life.
Being young kids we all made a lot of mistakes. Flight taught me that with dedication and determination anybody can overcome mistakes. During my time with Flight I learned that even though we lost a past game, we still had to go to practice and prepare for the next one. When I or my teammates got knocked down in the middle of a game or practice we had to pick ourselves up and keep playing. These experiences carried over into my school work, my job, and even personal issues.
Thank you Coach Jeff, Coach Jason, Coach Tom, and Coach Lisa for everything you have done for me. I may not have been the brightest kid, but you guys are one of the main people that made me who I am today. Until we meet again, keep pushing the Flights kids. Their future is bright being a member in Flight!
Matt Van
Dear Flight Family,
I’d like to share some of my experiences when I was on the team and how that has shaped who I have become today. When I first joined the team, I recognized some of my teammates from NJB and other leagues but did not know any of them that well. From the get go, Coach Jeff, Coach Lisa, Coach Jason, and Coach Tom all did an awesome job of bringing us together and making it feel like I was a part of a family rather than just a team.
I learned countless lessons from these great coaches, but one thing that really stuck with me is being unselfish. I guess I didn’t really recognize it at the time, but looking back, it is amazing how much time these coaches put in for a group of 13 year olds. On top of this, I could never figure out why they put up with us. They didn’t have a son on the team, nor were they trying to prove themselves as potential high school/college coaches. They simply did it because they loved the game of basketball and wanted to help mentor us as we transitioned from childhood to adulthood. This willingness to always put others first has taught me the importance of giving back to the community and always being there for others on and off the court.
Another extremely important lesson I learned was how to compete. In each practice there would be some form of competition, whether it was 5 on 5, 1 on 1, coming first in suicides, or winning a box out drill. If you didn’t win, you already started jogging over to the baseline because you knew you were about to bear crawl, crab walk, or sprint up and down the court. At first, I didn’t understand it. It felt like our team was being punished without any explanation. After a few practices, it started to make sense. These drills weren’t based off of skill level, but rather how badly you wanted it. It didn’t matter if you were the best 1 on 1 player or the tallest guy; if you worked harder than the guy across from you, you were going to beat him. That simple. Everyone would work harder with each drill, constantly challenging each other and making one another better.
Now that I am 4 weeks away from college graduation, I realize how big of a role this team and family have played in helping me get to this point. While this team fueled my drive to always win, that’s not what this team is about. Sure it makes things better when you come back with some hardware after playing basketball all weekend, but more importantly, this team taught me to be there for one another and to work hard. I knew if I was having a bad day at school, my teammates would be there to pick me up at practice.
Regardless of your talent level, if you put forth your best effort in every practice you were going to find your way onto the court come game day. This discipline and drive to work hard has carried over to high school and college teams, succeeding in the classroom, and working in the real world.
I hope all of you are doing well and it would be awesome to see you soon/meet some of the newer members of the family. Thanks so much for all of your help along the way and always being there for me.
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