High School Sports Conferences: Headed In A New Direction

BREAKING: A new league is forming this 2025-2026 high school season that will feature some of the best public and traditional national high school programs — NO PREP SCHOOLS — across the country from Nevada, California, Georgia, Florida, and more — teams will be announced soon.

— Samad Hines (@Samad_Hines) June 2, 2025

(6-3-25) The continuing of ‘basketball schools‘ raiding talent from public and private schools continues to increase every year. Most of the ‘recruiting is ‘poaching’ of the top players in the country, depleting the talent for the schools losing the players.

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Word comes from a ‘Tweet’ (see above) by Samad Hines that new a national high school basketball league is set to start next season. What will the impact be? It just adds to what is already happening.

Chipotle High School Basketball Nationals continues to grow and helps support those ‘basketball schools’ with a season ending tournament that is aired on ESPN.

Paul Biancardi, ESPN National Recruiting Director

“Chipotle Nationals is the premier high school basketball tournament in the nation. With an exceptional showcase of talent, it serves as a platform for the country’s most elite teams to compete for a championship. The tournament’s rosters are filled with future college stars and potential NBA draft lottery picks. This year’s field of teams does not have a clear-cut favorite which will certainly add major drama to the championship game. The intensity and excitement surrounding Chipotle Nationals make it the ultimate destination for fans to witness the crowning of a champion among the nation’s best teams.”

So after years of failing to compete with the basketball and prep schools, state athletic associations are now opening the doors to compete…both on the floor and with retaining players.

With the new Indiana ‘first-time‘ transfer rule in place in Indiana it now will allow for a very active transfer portal….one that was already taking place as transfers rules every year were bent in favor of the student-athlete.

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• A LETTER FROM THE IHSAA COMMISSIONER…On One-Time Transfer Rule

Although many state associations have transfer rules…each year new loopholes are placed in the rule-book to allow about any transfer.

From the Ohio High School Athletic Associaiton (OHSAA)-

Will the ‘open transfer’ rules end up doing to high school sports like NIL’s (“Name, Image and Likeness“) have done to college sports. Keep any eye on it….

RELATED: High School Athletic Conference Barometer