The Hoop Dream Classic had a great display of young talent form around the Midwest. There were programs from Missouri, Texas, Arkansas, Kansas, and Oklahoma competing for the championship crown. The event was well organized and supported by various programs from the state of Oklahoma. There were many national level teams participating in the event who raised the level of play for other teams who experienced new level of higher competition. 

There were some great match ups to watch, in particular in the boys 13U AET Elite went in double overtime to defeat the Mighty Kings from Dallas Texas, who is also considered the number one team in the metro area of Dallas. Then in the semifinals it was the second ranked Tulsa All Stars vs the third ranked team AET Elite according to our (Gym Time Hoops) rankings. It was a classic. The coaches adjusting to the other team style of play throughout the game and asking players to raise their level of play. Some of the state’s top players in the class such as Trey Alexander and Delante Shannon willed their way to lead AET to victory. On the other side Ian “Bubba” Golden and BJ Armstrong was not to be undone with their effort on the other side of the ball. But in the end it came down to free throws and turnovers for this game. AET eventually won the 13U age group.

The 2027 OK Chaos, Maybe another special group of teams coming out of the state to be viewed as one of the nation’s best. Yes it’s early, but the OK Chaos team led by AKA “Coach Q” has done a stellar job with his team. Their floor spacing, team defense, and skill level with the ball is impressive. The younger of the Gilstrap brothers, De’Mari Gilstrap brothers is just a beast in his age group. He is skilled and physical. OK Chaos defeated a very talented Gulf Coast Blue Chips team from the Houston area. Another young 2027 team to watch from the Tulsa is da’ Next Level, they have good size and skill. For that group is just a matter of playing games and being familiar with the speed of the game.

In the 5th grade (2023) division, most know about the great work OK Chaos have being doing for the past few years on the national level, however I was impressed with the work the Ball Time Dynasty have put in over the weekend. Coach Myron has those boys playing some good ball and notched a big win over St. Louis Knights a national elite team.

Robert Meacham Elite the tournament host, always tough and represents the state really well around the country lost in the semifinals to a tough Kansas Players. The 4th (2024) grade division was won by an impressive Kansas players group, who defeated a tough minded Edmund Shield group. Kansas Players defended the ball well were skilled offensively and executed in transition. In the second grade (2026) division Gulf Coast Blue Chips from Houston took home the championship crown. The Oklahoma finest one of the premiere teams in this region went down with a fight. The finest have an impressive looking team and paly by the name of Sean King. The young fellow can play! Oklahoma United in the 3rd grade (2025) division took home the crown. MWOB a Tulsa based program made it to the final four and represented the state of Oklahoma well. MWOB also has a good looking player with a high skill set and basketball IQ in David Castillo.

This was a great environment for the kids and coaches to develop. I hope each coach and player use these type of events to improve your teams IQ and skill level. Be mindful to take it one tournament at a time, every team is in a different place, but a positive outlook, consistent good work in the gym, and sportsmanship lends itself to a great experience for everyone. I enjoyed watching all the talent and look forward to covering the event next year with more depth and analysis.