Defending Class AA boys basketball state champion Windham would move from AA North to AA South in a classification proposal under review by the MPA. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer

Big changes could be coming to Maine high school basketball, if a proposal reviewed by the Maine Principals’ Association last week reaches the full membership and then passes a vote. There’s still a ways to go before that, and these things tend to get massaged and tweaked before finally going to the floor at the MPA annual spring meeting.

On its face, the proposal looks good. Twenty-eight teams in Class AA, nearly doubling the size of the division for the largest schools. Twenty-eight teams each in Classes A though C. Only 19 schools in Class D, but each with an enrollment under 100 students.

This plan, put forth by the basketball committee for the classification committee’s review, makes a lot of sense. It’s obvious a lot of thought went into its development. It’s bold. It’s unfortunate that loud, squeaky wheels will likely take it apart until what passes this spring is only an echo of this plan.

That seems to be how these things go.

The last time the MPA had a stab at basketball classification, it came up with a plan that called for the small Class AA to become one statewide division, similar to what’s seen in sports like boys ice hockey, football and lacrosse. An uproar from some AA schools that wanted to hold on to regional championships spiked that idea.

Already, we’ve seen pushback to the proposal from coaches around the state. Cony girls coach John Dennett isn’t a fan because he sees it as taking away from rivalries his school has with other central Maine schools that would move to Class AA while his Rams remain in Class A. Nobody is saying Cony wouldn’t play those opponents. And rivalries are what you make them. We can’t hang on to the past so tightly we spite the future.

Portland boys basketball coach Joe Russo doesn’t like the proposed Class AA split from a competitive standpoint. The balance of power, he said, is shifted too far to the South. At this moment, Russo is correct, the plan would place the four teams that played in the last two Class AA championship games all in the South. But the thing about high school sports is, that changes. Students graduate. A few years ago, when Edward Little and Bangor were strong, the argument could be made that AA North was stronger. Competitive balance isn’t static.

Basketball should be the easiest sport in which to compete as a smaller school. With five players per team on the court, depth isn’t as big a factor as in other sports, like football and soccer, for example. If you can find eight or nine athletes in your school who exhibit a little skill, you can contend. We do see smaller schools in each class take home championship hardware. The Forest Hills boys basketball team had a strong run recently, and the Orono boys won back-to-back Class B crowns on the lower end of the middle of the enrollment pack.

Enrollment does count for something, though. It’s why you don’t see Forest Hills (enrollment 49) taking on Oxford Hills (enrollment 1,021).

Southern Aroostook has won the last three Class D girls basketball state championships. In the proposal, it would move from Class D to Class C. Anna Chadwick/Morning Sentinel

The Southern Aroostook girls basketball team has dominated Class D in recent years, winning the last six Class D North regional crowns and the last three state titles. With a projected enrollment of 108 students, Southern Aroostook will go from being one of the larger schools in Class D to one of the smaller schools in Class C.

Southern Aroostook would have plenty of company in moving up a class. Of the eight teams that won a basketball state championship in 2024 in Classes A through D, five move up in this proposal. Joining Southern Aroostook in moving up to Class C would be Class D boys champ Bangor Christian. Class C girls hoops champ Dexter would move up to Class B. The Oceanside girls team moves from Class B, where it won the Gold Ball, to Class A. The Brunswick girls, winner of Class A, go to Class AA. Only Monmouth (Class C boys), Orono (Class B boys), and Gray-New Gloucester (Class A boys) would stay put.

Five of the eight 2024 runners-up in those four classes would also be moved up a class in this proposal.

We get it. For many schools, a piece of its identity comes from the class in which it competes. At Hall-Dale, Dirigo and Winthrop, there’s an institutional memory and history built on decades of trips to the Class C South tournament. In the proposed system, the Bulldogs, Cougars, and Ramblers go from being mid-sized Class C schools to being on the small end of Class B, and there’s no doubt that feels … off. They don’t see themselves as Class B schools. It’s like wearing somebody else’s shoes. The fit doesn’t feel right.

As the plan is studied and debated, the key point to remember is this: it’s not about what’s best for your school, it’s about what’s best for the most schools. This plan gets more right than others, including the one under which high school basketball is played now. It should be given an opportunity.