Junior basketballers made their long awaited return to the court and put themselves to the test at the 2020-21 Junior Braves squad tryouts.

Players didn't hold back and showed the best of their ability after months on the sidelines.

"Seeing the kids so happy and to receive such positive feedback from the parents is terrific," Junior Braves chairman Cathy Manderson said.

"Everyone turned up and gave a great effort.

"We're thrilled to see the kids on court and to have that little bit of normality back in our lives."

In the lead-up to tryouts the Braves held a series of online drills and reactivation sessions to prepare the kids physically for their return to the court.

"The reactivation sessions eased them back into competitive play and also gave us a sense of the skill and what we were looking at in terms of overall numbers," Manderson said.

"The kids are in great shape thanks to the sessions run by Joe Hurst during lockdown."

The aim for the sessions was to safely prepare the athletes physically for the season ahead, with the goal to prevent injuries after months of reduced activity.

"They are an important part of the process for athletes to be able to return to full speed," Hurst, the BBA director of coaching said.

"The kids successfully transitioned from the work we did on the outdoor courts during reactivation straight back into our first tryout session."

Hurst was pleased to see approximately 280 kids participate in tryouts.

"The whole day went off without a glitch under the COVD-19 restrictions and it was great to have a strong turnout which shows the parents trusted us to take care of their kids," he said.

There are two more sessions to be held this Thursday and Sunday and then the coaches and Manderson will get down to business.

"This time next week we will be done and dusted and be starting to select teams ahead of what looks to be our first tournament over the Australia Day weekend," Manderson said.

"We've got a lot of work to do between now and then to get the teams in order ahead of what's always a great weekend at the Bendigo Junior Classic."

Bendigo will host a three-day tournament on January 23-25 2021 at the Stadium, an annual event for junior basketballers.

"We can't wait to get the kids back playing tournaments and the last couple of years at the Junior Classic we received feedback from visiting associations who commented on how great the Stadium was as a venue," Manderson said.

"It's a good reminder of how lucky we are to have such a great facility to play basketball."

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