The Thanksgiving Hoopfest is famous for attracting the top high school basketball players in the country on a yearly basis, with Cooper Flagg, Trae Young, De’Aaron Fox, Julius Randle, Cade Cunningham, Tyrese Maxey and Cason Wallace among those who participated before they became NBA stars.
When Bronny James, the son of NBA legend LeBron James, and Cunningham took part in 2019, tickets sold out in 48 minutes. Some games had to be moved from Duncanville High School to a larger venue — American Airlines Center — to accommodate the huge crowds that year.
There will once again be plenty of star power for the 17th edition of the Thanksgiving Hoopfest, especially on the girls side. Games at Duncanville High School on Friday and Saturday will feature five of the top 15 teams in the ESPN preseason national rankings — No. 1 Ontario Christian (Calif.), No. 3 St. James Performance Academy (Va.), No. 7 IMG Academy (Fla.), No. 11 Legion Prep Academy and No. 14 Kingdom Collegiate Academy.
Ontario Christian is led by Kaleena Smith, a five-star junior point guard who is the nation’s No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2027. Ontario Christian will play Lancaster — a 2025 state semifinalist that is ranked No. 5 in Texas in Class 6A this season — at 5 p.m. Friday at Sandra Meadows Arena and then face defending Class 5A Division I state champion Denton Ryan at 5 p.m. Saturday at Sandra Meadows.
High School Sports
Five-star junior point guard Jezelle Banks from St. James Performance Academy, the nation’s fourth-ranked recruit in the Class of 2027, has a showdown with Legion Prep at 9:30 a.m. Saturday. Legion Prep has the No. 1 recruit in Texas in the Class of 2026 — five-star Notre Dame signee Jacy Abii — along with nationally ranked recruits Kamora Pruitt (North Carolina State signee), Rieyan DeSouze (Texas A&M signee) and five-star junior wing Jemini Mitchell, the No. 1 recruit in Texas in the Class of 2027.
Florida’s IMG Academy, which won last season’s Chipotle Nationals, will play defending Class 4A Division II state champion Lincoln at noon Saturday at Sandra Meadows Arena’s Red Gym. Lincoln, which finished No. 24 in the MaxPreps national ranking last season, returns Old Dominion signee Ar’Jayla Elder and Lanae Dallas (the all-area newcomer of the year last season) and added North Texas signee Bralyah Miller, a transfer from Tyler High School.
Lincoln’s Lanae Dallas (12) passes the ball as Panther Creek’s Senese Rainey (15), left, and Panther Creek’s Dany Anguiano-Lopez (14) look on during the second half of a Class 4A Division II area-round high school playoff basketball game at Carrollton Newman Smith High School, Friday, Feb. 14, 2025, in Carrollton.
Chitose Suzuki / Staff Photographer
Kingdom Collegiate Academy, which has a girls basketball team for the first time and had five college signees earlier this month, will play Houston Christian at 10:40 a.m. Saturday in the Red Gym. Kingdom Collegiate Academy has two nationally ranked recruits in the Class of 2026 — four-star Notre Dame signee Amari Byles and four-star Texas Tech signee Gianna Jordan.
Teams from seven states will take part in the Thanksgiving Hoopfest on the girls side. The field will include 5A state No. 1-ranked Argyle, 6A No. 4-ranked North Crowley, 12-time state champion Duncanville and 2025 Chipotle Nationals semifinalist Oak Cliff Faith Family.
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