PitchingFan posted:But the players did. Look at the roster for those teams and see how many played in WWBA. They did not come because their players were playing on other teams. Most of the WW Sweets roster has dual teams as summer teams. The same is true of GBG. The top players came with other teams and or they combined to make a power team. Showtime players joined with another team I know because we watched them play. So to say they did not come is wrong, they just did not come as their team but the players were still here. Very few top players do not play in the WWBA.
I agree that it is tough to come this far and I would say the same the other way around. My son went to PG National Championship with Arizona and it was the most expensive trip of the year and not worth it for us. If they moved WWBA to California the southern teams would not come but the top players would still be there because even after you are committed it is the place to be.
But those same teams that you stated did not come to Jupiter either. There were only 5 from West in Jupiter.
It's obvious that you are not going to be convinced that very strong players and teams do not travel to the WWBA from the Western third of the country. You say "They did not come because their players were playing on other teams." It's the other way around. The teams weren't going, some of the kids wanted to play there, so they hooked up with other teams and went as guest players. My son's travel team is decent* -- 9 D1 commits, including a PG All-American -- and they did not come to the WWBA, so my son was fortunate enough -- through a HSBBW connection -- to hook up with another team. And the WWBA was great for him. Really enjoyed it. But he was the only one from his travel team there.
From a business standpoint, I'll say again that PG's market penetration in California is low. Maybe it's not cost-effective for them to pursue the California market harder.
*Of course, they're not ranked at all because they did not play any PG events.