• banquetBanquet Table With Grass Centerpieces on Plates image by NorthEnder from Fotolia.com
  
  Basketball banquets typically include a either a buffet or a formal dinner where players and their families remain seated during the course of the meal. Banquets have a variety of functions, but typically the purpose of the banquet is to celebrate the end or beginning of a milestone. Your banquet theme can be formal and decor focused, or activities focused to encourage guests at different table to interact.
  
  

Nostalgia

• Reminisce over the team's history with a nostalgic tribute to the coaches, players and parents. Order photo confetti of all the players, including their childhood photos, where they are involved in basketball. Sprinkle the photo confetti along the center of the banquet tables. Atop the tables, place picture frames with team photos and family photos contributed by friends and parents of the team. Create a slideshow or video of stock footage from years past to remind players of the team's history.
  
  

Under the Sea

• Try an under the sea theme idea for your basketball banquet. Serve a variety of seafoods in the appetizer, entree and sides catering to the need for protein in the athletes' diets. Use fish bowls with blue water and tropical fish as centerpieces on top of an aqua colored table cloth. Sprinkle sea shells around the dining tables and at the registration table where guests check in. Choose a playlist of sea themed music of a variety of tempos. If you are not able to download music, play ambient sounds of the ocean throughout the event.
  
  

Casino Night

• Casino nights are a fun idea for college basketball team banquets. The players have likely worked hard during the season and will enjoy the opportunity to celebrate with games. Hire Vegas style event entertainment such as can-can dancers, circus performers and live bands to keep the energy high. The waitstaff should also be in costume with bright colors, sequins or feathers to create a flamboyant look. Instead of long rectangular tables, have guests eat at round gambling tables with decks of cards or other tabletop casino games in the center. Alternate table cloths throughout the room with red, black and white. Remember that, in most states, players and their guests must be over 18 to gamble. To be safe, avoid monetary compensation.