Okay, so yesterday I dove headfirst into trying to figure out the best AAU teams ever. It was a wild ride, lemme tell ya.
First things first: I hit up Google, right? Started searching for “best AAU teams ever,” “top AAU programs,” stuff like that. Got a bunch of lists, rankings, and forum discussions. It was kinda overwhelming at first, ’cause everyone’s got their own opinion, ya know?
Then I started making a list of teams that kept popping up. Like, the usual suspects: Boo Williams, Oakland Soldiers, Team Final, Meanstreets, and some others. I wanted to dig deeper than just names, though.
Next, I went to YouTube. Seriously, YouTube is a goldmine. Searched for documentaries, highlight reels, old game footage, anything I could find on these teams. Watched a bunch of stuff on the early Boo Williams teams with guys like Allen Iverson. Seeing those dudes play back then was insane.
Here’s where it got tricky: trying to compare teams across different eras. The game changes, the rules change, the competition changes. How do you really stack up a team from the early 90s against a team from the 2010s? It’s tough.
I started looking at the guys who came through these programs. Like, how many NBA players did they produce? How many college stars? That seemed like a decent way to gauge the overall impact of a program.
- Boo Williams: Crazy amount of NBA talent. AI, TMac, all kinds of dudes.
- Oakland Soldiers: Same deal. Lebron, obviously. But also a ton of other guys who had solid college and pro careers.
- Team Final: Always a powerhouse. Constantly churning out top recruits.
I also tried to find info on their tournament records. Like, how many Peach Jams did they win? How often did they make it to the Final Four of big tournaments? That stuff matters.
Then I kinda got lost in the rabbit hole: I started watching old interviews with coaches, players, and analysts. Reading articles on recruiting scandals, AAU controversies, the whole nine yards. It’s a whole world, man.
Finally, after hours of research, I started to form my own (very subjective) list. It’s impossible to say definitively who the “best” is, but I definitely have a clearer picture of which programs have been consistently elite over the years.
It was a fun project, honestly. A lot of nostalgia, a lot of “wow” moments watching old highlights. Plus, I learned a lot about the history of AAU basketball. Definitely worth the time.
