The MadLax helmets on the national teams is proof of just how thin those teams have gotten. MadLax own model is to have a local DC team in every class that they call their Capital team, and then pull in 3-6 players (or more) from around the country for certain tournaments like NLF and Club Nationals to upgrade their roster to a National team. So MadLax players have a "national team" built into their existing team. The only reason why a madlax player would look to one of the other "national" teams is if he were not good enough to play on the MadLax nationals. if Madlax second stringers are able to make these so called national all star teams, it shows how diluted the teams really are. If everybody is an all star, then at some point nobody is an all star - it is just the same players being recycled through different teams.
100%. And based on the # of HoCo AAA helmets at these "elite national" events, it goes to the point made on this board many times that:
2nd/3rd line MD "elite" lax kid = MD "AAA" starter = "all star lax kid" in every state except MA, CT, NY, NJ, PA, MD, GA, IL. AZ, TX, CA, FL are getting there, but it's 5 years away. That leaves 38 states where the 500 MD boys who ride the bench at elite or start at AAA would be "all star" laxxers.
I don't detest the national team models but you make a great point about talent dilution.
