Over the years and just recently in fact, I’ve written about the importance of perspective when it comes to youth sports. Despite our desires, one must recognize just how unlikely it is, that any one of us is raising a professional athlete.  Don’t get me wrong, the last thing I want is to shoot down anyone’s dream –this is about understanding reality and the difficult journey that lies ahead.
I suspect this is one reason having fun tops the list of advice to youngsters from both collegiate and professional athletes alike.

The NCAA publishes some statistics that speaks to this:2/16/2007

Estimated Probability of Competing in Athletics Beyond the High School Interscholastic Level

Men’s Basketball

• Less than one in 35, or approximately 3.0 percent, of high school
  senior boys playing interscholastic basketball will go on to play men’s
  basketball at a NCAA member institution.
• Less than one in 75, or approximately 1.2 percent, of NCAA male
  senior basketball players will get drafted by a National Basketball
  Association (NBA) team.
• Approximately three in 10,000, or approximately 0.03 percent of
  high school senior boys playing interscholastic basketball will
  eventually be drafted by an NBA team.

Women’s Basketball

• About 3.3 percent, or approximately three in 100, of high school
  senior girls interscholastic basketball players will go on to play
  women’s basketball at a NCAA member institution.
• About one in 100, or approximately 1.0 percent, of NCAA female
  senior basketball players will get drafted by a Women’s National
  Basketball Association (WNBA) team.
• Approximately one in 5,000, or approximately 0.02 percent of high
  school senior girls playing interscholastic basketball will eventually
  be drafted by a WNBA team.

Football

• About 5.7 percent, or approximately one in 17, of all high school
  senior boys playing interscholastic football will go on to play
  football at a NCAA member institution.
• About 1.8 percent, or approximately one in 50, of NCAA senior
  football players will get drafted by a National Football League (NFL)
  team.
• Approximately eight in 10,000, or approximately 0.08 percent of
  high school senior boys playing interscholastic football will
  eventually be drafted by an NFL team.

Baseball

• Approximately three in 50, or about 6.1 percent, of high school
  senior boys interscholastic baseball players will go on to play men’s
  baseball at a NCAA member institution.
• Less than ten in 100, or about 9.4 percent, of NCAA senior male
  baseball players will get drafted by a Major League Baseball (MLB) team.
• Approximately one in 200, or approximately 0.45 percent of high
  school senior boys playing interscholastic baseball will eventually be
  drafted by an MLB team.

Men’s Ice Hockey

• Approximately 11 in 100, or about 11 percent, of high school senior
  boys interscholastic ice hockey players will go on to play men’s ice
  hockey at a NCAA member institution.
• Less than 1 in 27, or about 3.7 percent, of NCAA senior male ice
  hockey players will get drafted by a National Hockey League (NHL) team.
  
• Less than one in 300, or approximately 0.32 percent of high school
  senior boys playing interscholastic ice hockey will eventually be
  drafted by an NHL team.

Men’s Soccer

• Less than three in 50, or about 5.5 percent, of high school senior
  boys interscholastic soccer players will go on to play men’s soccer at
  a NCAA member institution.
• Less than one in 50, or about 1.7 percent, of NCAA senior male
  soccer players will be drafted by a Major League Soccer (MLS) team.
• Approximately one in 1,250, or approximately 0.07 percent of high
  school senior boys playing interscholastic soccer will eventually be
  drafted by an MLS team.