High school basketball season is finally here! Many teams in and around the Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex kick off their season this Friday, with numerous showcases and games going on throughout the area.
The summer and fall gave us competitive matchups, providing a picture of what the 2024-2025 has in store.
In my first installment of the HoopDFW 20, Dynamic Prep comes in at number 1 overall. Before you start the TCAL vs TAPPS vs UIL vs Prep school debate save it. All classification lines have been crossed and every team has lost to greater or lesser opponents, except Dynamic Prep.
Jermaine O’neal Sr’s team is ready to go and after their showing at The Border League in Las Vegas and The First Look, they look poised for a legit run at the Chipotle National Championship. Toombs, O’neal Jr., Kelly, Spears and company are a handful to deal with. Allen is our number 1 overall public school team. The Eagles have depth, defensive intensity, and have been shooting the cover off of the ball as of late. Not unrealistic to expect to see them playing in the state’s final four tournament. Duncanville is Duncanville. Excellent guard play led by Kayden ‘Bugg’ Edwards, Beckham Black, and ‘Deuce’ Hunt should have them atop their loaded district which now includes former 5A powerhouse Lancaster. Faith Family and iSchool round out the early top 5. Some tough and unexpected losses during the fall league season should help both teams work on chemistry and schematics. The complete HoopDFW 20 list is below.
| Rank | Team | Classification |
| 1 | Dynamic Prep | TCAL 6A |
| 2 | Allen | UIL 6A |
| 3 | Duncanville | UIL 6A |
| 4 | Faith Family | UIL 5A |
| 5 | iSchool | Prep |
| 6 | The Colony | UIL 5A |
| 7 | Kimball | UIL 4A |
| 8 | Lancaster | UIL 6A |
| 9 | Crowley | UIL 6A |
| 10 | St. Mark’s | SPC |
| 11 | Parish Episcopal | TAPPS 6A |
| 12 | Dallas Carter | UIL 4A |
| 13 | North Crowley | UIL 6A |
| 14 | Lewisville | UIL 6A |
| 15 | Dallas W.T. White | UIL 5A |
| 16 | South Grand Prairie | UIL 6A |
| 17 | Keller | UIL 6A |
| 18 | Denton Guyer | UIL 6A |
| 19 | RWG Stem | SWAIC |
| 20 | Texas Storm | Homeschool |
It’s said the Dallas-Ft. Worth Metroplex has become the new Mecca of basketball and it’s an argument that will never be settled, however the claim isn’t far fetched. DFW has a plethora of talent, so much so that I would need another post (might be a good idea) to cover a good chunk of what I’ve seen. Below you can find a few players that have stood out this summer/fall heading in to the season.
| Name | School | Graduating Class | College Interest |
| Jermaine O’neal Jr. | Dynamic Prep | 2025 | SMU commit |
| Jaden Toombs | Dynamic Prep | 2025 | SMU commit |
| Leroy Kelly | Dynamic Prep | 2025 | ORU commit |
| Amari Reed | Dynamic Prep | 2025 | UTA commit |
| Marcus Spears | Dynamic Prep | 2027 | LSU, Texas |
| Tre Nunn | Waxahachie | 2026 | Oklahoma St, Drake, Harvard |
| Beckham Black | Duncanville | 2027 | FAMU, Oklahoma St, Mississippi St, SMU, USC, TCU |
| Kayden Edwards | Duncanville | 2025 | TCU commit |
| Christopher ‘Deuce’ Hunt | Duncanville | 2027 | Texas St. Texas A&M Commerce, Sam Houston St |
| Davion Adkins | Faith Family | 2026 | Oregon, Arizona St., Rutgers, Oklahoma St, LSU, SMU |
| Anthony Spencer | Faith Family | 2026 | Eastern Michigan, Tennessee, San Jose St |
| David Iweze | iSchool | 2025 | Utah St commit |
| Jaylen Lawal | iSchool | 2025 | Tulsa commit |
| Dakari Spear | The Colony | 2026 | Miami, Syracuse, Mississippi St, Oklahoma St, Alabama, Arizona St |
| Lance Carr | Kimball | 2025 | UAB commit |
| Jaylon Dean-Vines | Kimball | 2025 | Vanderbilt commit |
| Marri Wesley | Kimball | 2027 | Grambling, SMU, Oklahoma, Mississippi St |
| Cameron Paul | Desoto | 2025 | Mississippi St commit |
| Austin Goosby | Melissa | 2026 | Arizona St, TCU, Duke, Vanderbilt, SMU, Baylor, North Texas |
| Trey Edwards | Melissa | 2028 | North Texas, Mississippi St |
| Desmeon Jones | Lancaster | 2025 | Lamar, Texas A&M Corpus Christi, UTA, George Mason, ORU |
| Devon Pearson Jr. | Lancaster | 2025 | Texas A&M Corpus Christi commit |
| Kam McGilveary | Crowley | 2026 | TCU, SMU, UTA, Nebraska, FIU, LSU |
| Steve McLeod | Grand Prairie | 2027 | Tennessee, Auburn |
| Dawson Battie | St. Marks | 2027 | Nebraska, Oklahoma St, Temple, SMU, TCU, |
| Luke Laczkowski | St. Marks | 2025 | St. Louis commit |
| Isaak Hayes | North Crowley | 2027 | TCU, Kansas St, Cal St. Bakersfield |
November and December offer us a look at early non-district matchups and visits from out of state ranked and nationally ranked programs.
| Tournament Name | Date |
| Cowtown Tip-Off | November 8-9 North Crowley High School |
| Dallas Tip-Off | November 8-9 Waxahachie High School |
| Phil McNeely Classic | November 9 Duncanville High School |
| Jimmy Gales Showcase | November 9 DISD gym locations |
| Champions Classic | November 12 Ellis Davis Fieldhouse |
| Noble Classic | November 14-16 The Colony |
| Mavs Fall Classic | November 14-16 Frisco ISD Gyms |
| Thanksgiving Hoopfest | November 29-30 Duncanville High School |
| Spring Creek Classic | December 5-7 Mansfield ISD |
| Allen In and Out Holiday Invitational | December 26-28 Allen High School |
