Deep Water Prep freshman River Thomas is photographed at the Link Event and Recreation Center, where Deep Water Prep students study and train, in North Richland Hills, Texas, on Tuesday, April 14, 2026.
Charles Baggarly
Star-Telegram
NORTH RICHLAND HILLS
Fort Worth native Ray Thomas wants his son, River, to follow his dreams.
Specifically, that dream is to become one of the 0.03% of high schoolers to play professional basketball.
“He tells his mom, he has no plan B,” Ray said. “He wants to just play basketball. So, public school really didn’t do it for him.”
But first, River will need to become one of the 1% of high school basketball players who play for Division I colleges. That led Ray to explore options, and he discovered an untraditional path at Deep Water Prep, a basketball academy in its inaugural school year that operates out of the Link Event and Recreation Center in North Richland Hills.
The school is a part of Texas Sports Academy, a group of specialized schools with locations popping up across the state. Most schools focus on specific sports, including martial arts, baseball and basketball.
The big draw is that students, directed by an AI program, spend just two hours a day on core academic subjects but still place in the top 2% of standardized testers, according to the school.
“It’s more fun than public school, in my opinion, because AI – it helps you more, and it can tell you stuff that teachers normally wouldn’t,” River said.
Students spend two total hours total on the AI program to start the day, with some breaks in between. After lunch, the kids have basketball training and work on life skills like public speaking and financial literacy.
The school tries to get the kids excited about life skills by framing it as “speaking in a postgame press conference” or “negotiating an NIL contract.”
The students spend about four hours a day practicing basketball, which includes after-school activity.
Basketball is the priority
Before landing a spot at Deep Water Prep, River had to try out. He ended up making the team and reclassified to the class of 2029, which are the current freshmen.
Head coach Michael Crowell, a 6-foot-7 former basketball player who played professionally overseas, said they only accept athletes, mostly middle schoolers, who he says have the potential and mentality to play Division I.
Deep Water Prep head coach Michael Crowell is photographed April 14 at the Link Event and Recreation Center, where Deep Water Prep students study and train, in North Richland Hills. Charles Baggarly Star-Telegram
Crowell said it’s less about height and more about heart.
“Nothing is guaranteed in life,” Crowell said. ”But at the same time, I think if they have that vision, they have the work ethic, and they have the heart to overcome everything, all the life tribulations, then I believe every kid here has a chance.”
Deep Water Prep head coach Michael Crowell and freshman River Thomas at the Link Event and Recreation Center, where Deep Water Prep students study and train, in North Richland Hills. Charles Baggarly Star-Telegram
The average height for an NBA player is approximately 6-foot-7, according to the NBA. That makes the odds of making it to the league even more absurd, but Deep Water Prep doesn’t shy away from it, highlighting how rare it is on its website.
The school also said there are “999,999 reasons not to believe in yourself” and only “one reason to be great.”
Could it be the Fort Worth-area’s Dynamic Prep?
Deep Water Prep is still fresh on the scene, and likely won’t be able to field a high school team to play for another season. They have fewer than 10 total students, only three high schoolers. Students currently range from sixth to ninth grade.
For now, Deep Water Prep freshman athletes are relying on AAU to get exposure.
“Our main focus is getting these kids ready for the AAU circuit, the Nike circuit, the elite Adidas circuit — where you’re playing against the best players in the country,” Crowell said. “You can show that you are on that level, and that’s where you get most of your recruitment as an athlete.”
The Texas Sports Academy system has seen some success with its Carrollton location, Dynamic Prep. It was founded in 2022 by former NBA All-Star Jermaine O’Neal, who also serves as the head coach.
All Texas Sports Academy schools are accredited by Cognia, which is widely accepted for university admissions.
Dynamic Prep, which plays a national schedule instead of competing in a Texas league, boasts a starting lineup packed with three-, four-, and five-star prospects. That includes the class of 2027’s No. 1 recruit nationwide, Marcus Spears Jr.
Five of 247Sports’ top 25 class of 2026 recruits in Texas attend Dynamic Prep, which has become an all-star team filled with standout players from all over Dallas-Fort Worth.
ESPN ranks the team as the No. 5 squad nationwide and No. 1 team in Texas. North Crowley, the UIL’s Class 6A Division I state champion, made ESPN’s list at No. 25, albeit facing geographic restrictions that private schools don’t.
According to Texas Sports Academy, all Dynamic Prep athletes will play Division I basketball.
Deep Water Prep has that same ability to attract top athletes without geographic boundaries, but without a team, it’s still early in the process. Ray Thomas said Deep Water Prep still has a better environment for training than public school.
“This is a program that me and my wife seen that he can basically isolate himself away from the distractions and get right to his learning and right to his basketball,” Ray Thomas said.
What does Deep Water Prep cost?
Deep Water Prep uses the same academic technology as Alpha Schools, some of the most expensive private schools in Texas. The Alpha Schools, which has a K-8 location on Bryant Irvin Road in Fort Worth, have tuitions ranging from $40,000 to $50,000.
A Texas Sports Academy spokesperson said tuition for athletics academies ranges from $10,000 to $25,000 per year, depending on locations, and said a higher-tier option that includes boarding is being worked on.
With the help of the Texas Education Freedom Account program, families can potentially receive approximately $10,000 per year to use on private school tuition, starting in the 2026-27 school year.
A Deep Water Prep spokesperson said “Texas Sports Academy is committed to ensuring cost is not a barrier to participation for qualified student-athletes.” Scholarships and financial aid are available.
“It’s worth it,” Ray Thomas said. “Seeing that my son loves to go to school and loves to train. He loves his coach. … Seeing him get that much closer to achieving his goals is incredible. And Texas helps us out with the tuition. … Tuition really wasn’t a problem.”
The trade-off with going all-in
There are potential issues with AI-led education, with students not receiving traditional instruction and feedback from teachers. Students need to be self-motivated and dedicated, though a parent or supervisor can always check progress and help ensure participation.
There will be some aspects of traditional public school basketball that River Thomas will ultimately miss out on at Deep Water Prep. One of those experiences is representing your community.
Birdville boys basketball head coach Anthony Holman isn’t allowed to recruit athletes. However, he does play a role in kids choosing to stay in the public school system. Part of that is cultivating an environment for kids to be part of something bigger than themselves.
Holman said he has seen how community-oriented athletics, and having local pride, can make an impact.
“[Kids] are in the stands watching and dreaming of one day being part of it,” Holman said of public school athletics. “They work to grow up — to work into the system so that they can represent their school the same way they saw when they were younger.
“The community followed us regardless of whether they had kids on the team, or even at the school, because [Birdville basketball] is a representation of this area. A representation of this city.”
Holman also said public education, with sometimes thousands of students with different cultures, religions, ways of life and socioeconomic backgrounds, prepares you for life, regardless of if your basketball career takes off, and added that it helps kids navigate adversity.
“[Public school] is preparing kids for real life and the real world,” Holman said. “…. The social aspect is just huge. It allows us to prepare kids for the most realistic way — for when they step on that college campus or step in that office — to be successful.”
Dr. Daniel Schiff, the co-director of the Governance and Responsible AI Lab at Purdue University, said the two-hour accelerated learning day is still experimental. He referenced a potential loss of social-emotional dynamics and said outside motivation plays a role in student growth, whether it’s receiving praise from a teacher or learning to bounce back after a public embarrassment.
“These social, emotional skills are found to be very important consistently by employers and universities,” Schiff said. “… We’re relatively early in what kinds of model, teaching approaches and tools are going to actually help students thrive in the long term versus the short term. A program like [Alpha Schools], especially with a really short school day, is quite experimental.”
There are still tons of success stories in public high school basketball, which includes Frisco Heritage five-star Duke signee Bryson Howard. The majority of Division I recruits still come from traditional schools.
River said he loves training at Deep Water Prep but mentioned that he misses his friends at his old school, Fort Worth Southwest.
Athletes having a vastly smaller everyday social circle is a downside Crowell admits to.
Considering all the pros and cons, River and Ray said attending Deep Water Prep is a trade-off they are enthusiastic about and willing to make. That’s how badly they want him to take his game to another level.
“I don’t get burned out,” River said. “It’s really fun. I wake up — I don’t want to go to school. I want to go train. I want to get better.”
The school and Ray Thomas said River’s basketball progress has been outstanding. River said he hopes to land a Division I offer heading into his sophomore season.
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Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Charles Baggarly is a high school sports editor and reporter for the Fort Worth Star Telegram. He graduated from TCU in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and served as TCU 360’s sports editor. Connect with Charles on Twitter or via email.