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Jacob Seliga gives his thoughts from the boys weekend of Section 7 and what stood out to him about the event.

Jacob Seliga previews every Arizona high school boys basketball team competing in the upcoming 2026 Section 7 showcase

One of the top prospects in Arizona’s 2028 class is on the move. On Thursday via Instagram, it was announced that guard Maurice Carter II would be transferring from Willow Canyon high school in Surprise to Millennium high school in Goodyear for his junior year. This comes following a fantastic sophomore season which saw Carter average 23.6 points, 6.3 assists, and 5.3 rebounds per contest as he led the Wildcats to the 5A conference semifinal following a second consecutive ope

Daily transfer postings, 8th graders having top school listings on where they are going to HS and breaking social media postings. This has definitely changed “June Ball” in the state of Arizona. Just these past couple of weeks I’ve noticed coaches are taking two different paths. Is one better than the other, I don’t know, but am curious what you all think. The first approach: the more traditional method is to play the entire roster you bring to the game/event. Develop your

This is the first ever Hoopers Club Podcast exclusively on NextUpAZ hosted By Aaron Villa This week’s episode goes over new coaching hires, transfers, incoming freshman, offers, and June ball. Tune in every week to hear what’s going on in the Arizona basketball scene. Time stamps Introduction 00:00-01:01 New Coaches 01:01-03:03 Transfers 03:03-07:03 Incoming Freshman 07:03-08:58 Offers 08:58-10:24 June Ball 10:24-12:16 Wrap Up 12:16-13:16

As the "High School Transfer Portal" begins to really get going we already have some kids making the move to a new school to start a new journey. With tons of rumors flying around we expect to see major movement this offseason. Certain Teams will reload with talent and look to make a big run once again for a state championship. Arizona is a hot bed for talent and not just in the AIA but on the Prep scene as well. we have had top kids come from out of state to join Prep Power

As the end of the 2025-26 school year looms near, job openings are filling up quickly and with that comes new beginnings for some of the top programs in the state. Canyon View’s job was viewed by many as one of the top jobs in Arizona this coaching cycle with relatively new facilities and a quality talent pool at the school and within the neighborhoods of north Buckeye and Waddell. The Jaguars went out of state for their hiring as they pulled Cory Duke from Democracy Prep out

There’s a new leader in Waddell. Canyon View announced on Wednesday evening that Cory Duke from Democracy Prep (NV) will be the fifth head basketball coach in program history. Duke, comes to Canyon View with an exceptional track record following seven years as the head coach of Democracy Prep. The new Jaguar coach amassed a 108-55 record during his tenure which included back-to-back state championship victories in 2022 and 2023. 2025-26 saw tough challenges as the school of u

Arguably the biggest job opening of the 2026 coaching cycle has been filled by a familiar name. As first reported by NextUpAZ’s Spencer Goldberg, David Grace has accepted the position to be the next head basketball coach at Higley High School in Gilbert. This comes following a month-long plus search following the resignation of former head coach Kenneth Drake. Grace last coached at Campbell Hall (CA) before separating ways in October of 2025. From 2013-2018, Grace was an assi

The 15U–17U divisions were loaded with talent, but these players separated themselves with their consistency and overall impact throughout the showcase. Here are the First Team selections from the Nothing But Net Spring Showcase. All-Showcase First Team Selections Below 15U — First Team Selections Linus Turner - Compton Magic | 6'1 Hermann Kone - Compton Magic | 6'11 Cameron Johnson - Compton Magic | 6'2 Sterling Willardson - Compton Magic | 6'8 Corey Roberts - Phx United

On Saturday morning in Gilbert, former Higley high school head basketball coach Kenneth Drake was arrested by the Gilbert Police Department for unlawfully distributing nude images over text. A violation of Arizona Revised Statute 13-1425. Drake spent the last seven seasons as head coach of the Knights before resigning on March 18th to “pursue new professional opportunities” On March 30th, Drake was announced on social media by members of the media as the recommendation for hi

First Quarter Pleasant surprise as the members of the University of Arizona Basketball team is in attendance. Lj Diamond has the ball and drives the lane for the basket. The Badgers first possession is a miss by Patrick Flores rebounded by Dane Montague. LJ Diamond again with the bucket. Pumas lead 4-0. Tavion Okougbo with a three off the pass from Jaykan Knight. Pumas miss by Dane Montague rebounded by Nitai Buchler going the other way. Malaki Cunnigham-Hiadzi with the layu

As you may know The Hoopers Club post Dunks of the Week every week to showcase the elite talent and athletic ability in the state of Arizona. With the year coming to an end and all that is left is the championship games i would like to put it up for vote for who you think has the Dunk of the Year. I have hand selected the top 14 dunks from this year that i think can have a shot of being number 1. All you have to do is watch all the dunks then vote for who you think has the be

Column For someone who covers basketball as much as I do, no day excites me quite as much as championship Saturday for the small schools at the coliseum. It is the experience you see in movies or read in books, a small town traveling for hours on end to a cathedral where one team gives hope for the future with its present success. Tribes traveled from different corners of the state to Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum to cheer on Window Rock, Page, and Tuba City. While frequent sma

Following a special executive board meeting on Wednesday afternoon, the Arizona Interscholastic Association executive board has voted to kick the Coolidge Bears out of the 3A boys basketball postseason and placed the athletic department on probation according to sources. This comes following the Bears quarterfinal victory over Chinle high school on February 20th where reports surfaced that Chinle players were called racially abusive names and were spat on by Coolidge fans aft

Tony Bayigamba #9 in PPG With the regular season all wrapped up i would like to acknowledge the top 10 stat leaders in each major stat category in each major conference. Now unfortunately not all teams put in stats so this will be based of teams that have stats entered in Maxpreps. I would like to congratulate all the young men who had great years and are featured on this list. Stats are not everything and do not tell the whole story but they do give a good insight on a playe

These award winners were selected by the NextUpAZ team of Delon Bowen, Spencer Goldberg, Gregg Rosenberg, Aaron Villa, John Millyard, Cedric Cobb Sr., and Jacob Seliga. The players selected were ultimately nominated by the NextUp team at the end of January and beginning of February through the final regular season contests on February 12. The awards are strictly based off regular season performance and postseason recognition will take place following the state championships.

With the regular season all wrapped up i would like to acknowledge the top 10 stat leaders in each major stat category in each major conference. Now unfortunately not all teams put in stats so this will be based of teams that have stats entered in Maxpreps. I would like to congratulate all the young women who had great years and are featured on this list. Stats are not everything and do not tell the whole story but they do give a good insight on a player and what they are cap

Andrew Evans Stat Leader in PPG #8 RPG #3 DD #1 With the regular season all wrapped up i would like to acknowledge the top 10 stat leaders in each major stat category in each major conference. Now unfortunately not all teams put in stats so this will be based of teams that have stats entered in Maxpreps. I would like to congratulate all the young men who had great years and are featured on this list. Stats are not everything and do not tell the whole story but they do give a

With the regular season all wrapped up i would like to acknowledge the top 10 stat leaders in each major stat category in each major conference. Now unfortunately not all teams put in stats so this will be based of teams that have stats entered in Maxpreps. I would like to congratulate all the young women who had greats years and are featured on this list. Stats are not everything and do not tell the whole story but they do give a good insight on a player and what they are ca