New High School Basketball National Championship Event To Launch In 2023 Supported By NBA Players Association

A new high school basketball national championship event called The Throne will take place March 29-April 1, 2023 at Morehouse College in Atlanta. The event is being rolled out by Gold Level Sports & Entertainment and the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA).

As a four-day single-elimination basketball tournament, The Throne says it will bring together 16 of the top high school boys’ basketball teams in the country to compete for an unofficial national championship.

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“It’s such an incredible opportunity for the best high school teams across the country to meet on the court and put on a show,” said Harrison Barnes, NBPA Executive Committee Member. “I’m grateful for my high school career successes which were the catalyst to my NBA career. Additionally, these athletes are fortunate to have various platforms available to build and capitalize their brands. I’m excited for them to showcase their skills, but also develop leadership and business principles.”

In addition to Barnes, several other current and former NBA players are involved in promoting the event, including Dwight Howard, Danny Green, Fred VanVleet and Rudy Gay.

“Lately there’s been a craving from a lot of these NBA guys to get back into the grassroots space and have an influence and an impact and be able to give these kids their resources,” Darren Duncan, CEO of Gold Level Sports, said in a phone interview. “So this platform partnering with the NBPA is a great avenue for them to be able to do that.”

He added: “They’ll curate the vision, they’re kind of leading the charge on what they want to see.”

Duncan said eight states or districts — Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Utah, Arizona, Washington, Nevada and Washington D.C — do not allow their public and Catholic school teams to compete in postseason tournaments, but that academies and independent schools from any state are allowed to compete. In New Jersey, for example, The Patrick School, St. Benedict’s Prep and Blair Academy, would be permitted to compete, while schools like Southern California Academy from California would also be permitted. Sierra Canyon in Los Angeles, which features Bronny James, would not currently be permitted due to state rules.

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No schools have yet been determined for the The Throne. A committee will meet beginning in January to begin assessing teams, and the field will be unveiled between late February and late March, Duncan said.

“What we’re looking to create is a March Madness style event and it’s impossible for us to have teams committed because we don’t know how they’re going to play during the season,” Duncan said. “We’ll see who’s playing well in January and February, and then get them to commit.”

The new event will be competing with various other high-profile end-of-year events, including the GEICO High School Nationals, which last year were held in Sarasota, Fla. March 31-April 2. That event typically features many of the top schools and academies that compete in the National Interscholastic Basketball Conference such as Montverde (FL) Academy, Oak Hill (VA) Academy, La Lumiere (IN), Sunrise Christian (KS) and others. Those schools are unlikely to compete in The Throne.

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“Our whole thing is to build the best platform possible and once we do that, we’re confident we’ll get participation from everyone,” Duncan said.

Overtime Elite, a quasi-professional league based in Atlanta, will also hold its postseason tournament starting Feb. 17 with finals beginning March 3, but its three high school teams — Our Saviour Lutheran (N.Y.), Word of God (N.C.) and Hillcrest Prep (AZ) — would be permitted to compete in another event, an Overtime spokesman said.

“As players we experienced a lot of what these players are going through,” said Green, now with the Memphis Grizzlies. “That’s in-large part why we created The Throne, to give these players great exposure, but more importantly we’re giving them our resources to help them become successful both on and off the court.”