Arizona's grassroots exodus: 39 AZ kids in the 2027-2030 classes are playing for out-of-state clubs — here's the full map

PHOENIX — **Kyi Kyi Miles**, the 6'3" 2028 point guard out of [**Mesa High**](/high-schools/mesa-high), announced this week that he is joining **Paul George Elite** on the Nike EYBL circuit — leaving **Arizona Unity**, the local program he ran with last cycle. It is also the latest Arizona kid logging in with an out-of-state program. This is not an isolated thing. Run the rosters of the major out-of-state shoe-circuit teams and you find Arizona license plates everywhere — Compton, Las Vegas, the Bay, Detroit, Toronto. Across the four classes from 2027 to 2030, **39 AZ-tied players** are wearing out-of-state grassroots logos this spring. That is more than the entire Nike EYBL roster of Arizona Unity, the state's lone EYBL team — and roughly equal to the **combined** in-state shoe-circuit headcount of Unity and **Arizona Select** on UAA. ## The exodus at a glance **By circuit (out-of-state, 2027–2030):** Nike EYBL — 20 (51%) · Adidas 3SSB — 17 (44%) · UA Association — 2 (5%). **By club (out-of-state, 2027–2030):** Oakland Soldiers (Nike) — 8 · Compton Magic (Adidas) — 8 · Vegas Elite (Nike) — 8 · Dream Vision (Adidas) — 8 · Paul George Elite (Nike) — 2 · All In Elite (UA) — 2 · Team WhyNot (Nike) — 1 · UPlay Canada (Nike) — 1 · Power 5 Hoops (Adidas) — 1. **By class:** 2028 — 18 · 2027 — 12 · 2030 — 5 · 2029 — 4. The 2028 class is the bulge — nearly half of Arizona's entire OOS-grassroots count is in one graduating year. That class hits the live period this June with more national-tier talent than Arizona has produced in any single cycle this decade. Almost none of it will play in front of college coaches in an Arizona uniform. ## Why the road fills up Three major shoe-circuit options exist for a 17U kid in this country: **Nike EYBL**, **Adidas 3SSB**, and the **Under Armour Association**. Arizona has two of the three covered. **Arizona Unity**, based in Glendale and led by **BJ Letcher** with **Mike George**, is the state's Nike EYBL program. **Arizona Select**, founded in 2014 by **John Ortega** and tied to the **Powerhouse Hoops / PHHacility** ecosystem in Phoenix, is the state's UAA program — both Select boys teams reached the UAA Championship Game in 2024. **Adidas 3SSB has zero Arizona-based programs.** That single gap explains the largest single chunk of the 39 — every Compton Magic, Dream Vision and Power 5 Hoops kid in this article had to leave the state to play 3SSB. Even on the two circuits Arizona does have, supply outpaces seats. Unity rosters roughly 12-15 kids per age group on EYBL. Select rosters roughly 12-15 per age group on UAA. That is roughly 80 in-state grassroots seats total at the marquee 15U/16U/17U levels — across four high school classes — for a state currently producing more than 130 247-tracked 2027-2030 prospects. The math doesn't work, and the kids you'd most want to keep are the ones with the best out-of-state offers waiting. Phoenix to Las Vegas is a five-hour drive. Phoenix to Los Angeles is six. **Vegas Elite**, **Compton Magic**, **Dream Vision**, **Oakland Soldiers**, **Team WhyNot**, **Paul George Elite** — all sit one drive or one short flight from a Phoenix freeway. They have effectively become regional teams. **Section 7** — the marquee summer team-camp event in Phoenix, founded in 2019 by the Arizona Basketball Coaches Association, now hosted at Arizona Athletic Grounds in Mesa — partly closed the gap. It brings 800-plus college coaches to Mesa during the June live period. But Section 7 is a scholastic team event. It does not replace **Peach Jam**, the **3SSB Championship**, or **UAA Finals** — the events where the next two years of recruiting actually get sorted. To be on a Peach Jam or 3SSB Championship roster, you have to play for an eligible team. Arizona has Unity on EYBL and Select on UAA. Adidas — nothing. So the 2027-30 kid who wants the 3SSB look gets in a car, and even some of the kids who could play in-state on Unity or Select are choosing the OOS pull. ## Compton Magic — the Adidas 3SSB pipeline The clearest cluster on a single OOS roster sits with **Compton Magic** on Adidas 3SSB. Recent precedent runs through **Koa Peat** (2025, [**Perry**](/high-schools/perry) → Arizona) and current 2026 alums **Cameron Williams** (6'11", [**St. Mary's Catholic**](/high-schools/st-marys-catholic), Duke commit) and **Bruce Branch III** (Perry, reclassified from 2027). For the 2027-30 window, eight: **Darius Wabbington** — 2027, 6'11" C, [**Sunnyslope**](/high-schools/sunnyslope) (Phoenix). Top-15 nationally per 247Sports. Arizona, Texas, Louisville, Indiana, Purdue, USC and Washington all in. **Javon Bardwell** — 2027, 6'6" SG, **PHH Prep** (Phoenix), Scottsdale native. Kansas commit (October 2025). **Tre Terry** — 2028, 6'4" CG, [**Hamilton**](/high-schools/hamilton) (Chandler). **Donovan Palmer** — 2028, 6'8" C, [**Chandler**](/high-schools/chandler). **Marcus Isaac** — 2028, 6'8" PF, [**Mountain Pointe**](/high-schools/mountain-pointe) (Phoenix). **Bentley Elrod** — 2028, 6'5" SF, Sunnyslope (Phoenix). **Maurice Carter II** — 2028, 5'10" PG, [**Willow Canyon**](/high-schools/willow-canyon) (Surprise). 5A Northwest Valley Player of the Year. **Linus Turner** — 2029, 6'1" CG, Sunnyslope (Phoenix). The 2028 cluster — Isaac, Elrod, Carter II, Palmer, Terry — is one of the most concentrated single-class groupings any out-of-state grassroots program has had from a single state in recent memory. **Sunnyslope alone has three Phoenix kids on the Compton Magic roster.** ## Dream Vision — the Adidas 3SSB West Coast complement Clayton Williams's LA-based 3SSB program runs a parallel pull, and they have built the deepest 2030 class of any OOS program with AZ ties: **LJ Diamond** — 2027, 6'3" PG/CG, Perry (Gilbert). **Kaden Jackson** — 2027, [**Hillcrest Prep**](/high-schools/hillcrest-prep) (Phoenix), 17U. **Carter Bagley** — 2028, 6'4" SG, St. Mary's Catholic (Phoenix). **Trevin Davis** — 2029, 6'6" SF, [**Liberty**](/high-schools/liberty) (Peoria). **Tresor Childress** — 2030, 6'6" SF, Arizona (15U). **Obatayo Adigun** — 2030, 6'6" SF/PF, Arizona (15U). **Myles Scott** — 2030, 5'10" CG, recently relocated to Arizona (15U). **CJ Johnson** — 2030, Arizona (15U). Plus a 2026 alum bridge: **Daniel Simon**, the 6'11" Hillcrest Prep center, finished his prep year on Dream Vision. **Four 2030s on a single OOS roster** — Childress, Adigun, Scott, Johnson — is the highest count any out-of-state program holds in Arizona's youngest tracked class. The next-class fingerprint of Arizona basketball is being painted in a different city. ## Oakland Soldiers — the Nike EYBL Bay pull If Compton Magic is the Adidas hub, **Oakland Soldiers** has been the Nike EYBL hub. Recent precedent: **Mookie Cook** (2023, AZ Compass → Oregon/USF) ran with the Soldiers. Eight current AZ-tied 2027-30 players: **Jalen White** — 2027, 6'6" SF, [**CIA-Bella Vista**](/high-schools/cia-bella-vista) (Phoenix). **Malachi Jordan** — 2027, 6'6" SF, [**Dream City Christian**](/high-schools/dream-city-christian) (Glendale). **Kendyn Grant** — 2027, 6'0" PG, Dream City Christian (Glendale). **Kingston Montague** — 2028, 6'1" CG/PG, [**Basha**](/high-schools/basha) (Chandler). 6A Premier Region Player of the Year. Canadian-born. **Jaydon Hayes** — 2028, 6'2" CG/PG, Willow Canyon (Surprise). 5A Northwest Valley Offensive POY. **Lleyton Leonard** — 2028, 6'4" SF, Basha (Chandler). **Malachi Kaffey** — 2028, 6'1" PG, [**AZ Compass Prep**](/high-schools/az-compass-prep) (Chandler) — son of Compass program director **Pete Kaffey**. **Mateen Cleaves Jr.** — 2028, 6'4" SG/PG, Dream City Christian (Glendale). Father, NCAA champion **Mateen Cleaves Sr.**, joined the Phoenix Suns staff in 2025. The **Dream City Christian → Oakland Soldiers** triangle stands out — Jordan, Grant, Cleaves Jr. — three of the program's eight AZ-tied kids all play their prep ball at the same Glendale school. So does Basha, with both Montague and Leonard on the Soldiers. ## Vegas Elite — the Millennium HS pipeline Nike EYBL, Las Vegas, the most regionally adjacent of all OOS programs — and the most concentrated single-school AZ pipeline anywhere on the map: **four current 2027-29 Vegas Elite players come out of [Millennium](/high-schools/millennium) HS in Goodyear.** **DJ Spencer** — 2027, 6'4" SF, Millennium (Goodyear). On Vegas Elite since middle school. **Adrian Higuera** — 2027, 6'0" PG, Millennium (Goodyear). **Kur Lual** — 2027, 6'7" SF, **Elite Prep AZ**. **Demarcus Henry** — 2027, 6'7" wing, AZ Compass Prep (Chandler). Five-star; son of the late NFL WR **Chris Henry**. Won 15U Peach Jam previously with Team WhyNot. **Adan Diggs** — 2028, 6'5" CG/PG, Millennium (Goodyear). 2024-25 MaxPreps National Sophomore of the Year. Top-five nationally in 2028. Arizona offer in. **Trey McKinney III** — 2028, 6'6" SF, Millennium (Goodyear). **Jacobi Thompson II** — 2029, 6'5" SF, [**Arcadia**](/high-schools/arcadia) (Phoenix). Led Arcadia to the 4A state championship as a freshman. **Azariah Reetz** — 2029, 6'7" PF, Phoenix Prep Hood. When you ask which Arizona public school is best wired into the OOS grassroots circuit, you are looking at Millennium — with Arcadia emerging as a second pipeline through Thompson. ## Paul George Elite — the new pull This is where this week's news lands. **Paul George Elite**, Nike EYBL, Southern California. Until this week, one current AZ-tied kid: **Martray Bagley** (2028, 6'5" SG, Dream City Christian, Tempe native — younger brother of NBA player **Marvin Bagley III**). As of this week, two. **Kyi Kyi Miles** is the second. The 6'3" Mesa HS guard leaves Arizona Unity — the state's only Nike EYBL team — for the SoCal program his second cycle in a row. Per program sources, he is joining the PGE 16U (the 2028 class). PGE has won EYBL and is a Peach Jam fixture; for Miles, who already holds offers from Arizona State, Texas Tech, Texas, Stanford, GCU, San Francisco, Boise State and Florida A&M, it is a different look — and a different city — heading into the live period. ## All In Elite — the OOS UAA pull Arizona has a UAA program in **Arizona Select**. Two AZ 2028 wings still went out-of-state for their UAA spring. **Pierce Harrington** (2028, [**Saguaro**](/high-schools/saguaro), Scottsdale) joined **All In Elite** at 16U, and **Viktor Babic** (2028, 6'7" SF, **Perry**) just moved over to All In Elite as well. Two kids who could have run the in-state UAA path through Select chose a different roster on the same circuit. ## Team WhyNot — the early read on 2030 Russell Westbrook's SoCal Nike EYBL program has historically pulled AZ talent — **Kylan Boswell** (2022 reclass, AZ Compass → Arizona/Illinois) won 16U Peach Jam there, and Demarcus Henry won 15U Peach Jam there before moving to Vegas Elite. The current AZ tie: **Tyler Dwyer** — 2030, Team WhyNot. One of Arizona's earliest 2030 commits to the OOS shoe-circuit pathway. ## UPlay Canada and Power 5 — single-roster ties **UPlay Canada** (Nike EYBL, Toronto) — **Liam Mitakaro**, 2028, 6'4" CG, CIA-Bella Vista (Phoenix). Born in Calgary; plays for Canada U16 in FIBA competition. The international-prep-to-Canadian-EYBL pathway is rarer but real. **Power 5 Hoops** (Adidas 3SSB) — **Chris King**, 2027, 6'3" SG, **PHH Prep** (Phoenix). Plus a 2026 alum bridge: **Andre Tyler** (6'5" SG/SF, [**Higley**](/high-schools/higley), Chicago native who relocated to Gilbert). PHH Prep is now feeding two OOS rosters at once — Bardwell to Compton Magic, King to Power 5. **The Family** (Nike EYBL, Detroit) — Mateen Cleaves Jr.'s family ties to Detroit give him a dual look there in addition to Oakland Soldiers, a reflection of his father's roots more than a primary affiliation. ## The math It is not a story about Arizona Unity or Arizona Select. Both are real programs with real rosters — Unity has 2026 No. 2-overall **Brandon McCoy Jr.**, who came to Arizona to play for them; Select had both UAA teams in the Championship Game last summer. It is a story about supply. With Adidas 3SSB completely absent from the state, just one Nike EYBL team in Arizona Unity, and one UAA team in Arizona Select carrying the load, Arizona still produces vastly more high-major-tier 2027-30 talent than the in-state grassroots can absorb. The overflow drives a half-day west. **39 players. Nine out-of-state programs. Nine Arizona high schools — Dream City Christian, Millennium, Sunnyslope, Basha, AZ Compass Prep, Hillcrest Prep, PHH Prep, CIA-Bella Vista, Willow Canyon — sending multiple kids each to OOS rosters this spring.** Several of those schools (Bella Vista, PHH Prep, Phoenix Prep) feed Arizona Select directly through the Powerhouse Hoops ecosystem — but their top out-of-state-tilting kids still chose the road. That is not a leakage problem. It is a pipeline. ## What to watch this spring First, **Peach Jam and the Adidas 3SSB championship in July**. The Compton Magic 2028 cluster — Isaac, Elrod, Carter II, Palmer, Terry — will share a roster on the year's biggest stage. So will the Vegas Elite 17U Millennium pipeline. How those two groupings finish will, more than any in-state event, set Arizona's recruiting ceiling for 2026-27. Second, the **Oakland Soldiers Dream City triangle** — Jordan, Grant, Cleaves Jr. — and how that prep-to-club bridge translates to scholarship offers. If three Dream City juniors come off Peach Jam with high-major commits, other AZ prep schools will copy the model. Third, **what PGE looks like with Kyi Kyi Miles**. He will see a wave of Pac-12 / Big 12 evaluators on the very first PGE EYBL stop. The path from Mesa HS to a top-50 national ranking goes through that gym in early June. Fourth, **the Dream Vision 2030 four-pack** — Childress, Adigun, Scott, Johnson. Three years from college signing day, the early read on Arizona's youngest tracked class will be written in LA, not Phoenix. The road keeps filling up. The map is just getting clearer. — off szn

Arizona's grassroots exodus: 39 AZ kids in the 2027-2030 classes are playing for out-of-state clubs — here's the full map

Sign in to keep reading.

Sources & references

More from OFF SZN Staff

Keep Reading