February 18th was no ordinary tryout day for Team Trae Young. For the first time, as players competed to get their chance to join TTY’s 15U, 16U and 17U boys teams, they did so in Team Trae’s new home base, the brand new Young Family Athletic Center in Norman.
One day later, the YFAC officially opened its doors by way of a ribbon cutting with city dignitaries on hand to mark the occasion.
“Being able to have this facility where any kid can be who they want to be is going to be extremely important,” Trae Young said.
The OU Daily recently released an article about the new state of the art athletic center and Young Family Athletic Center is already drawing rave reviews from Team Trae’s players. Keeley Parks, a top 20 ranked girls player in the Class of 2025 who will be completing her final go around with Team Trae Young this summer,
“It’s nice and definitely looks like it’s a million dollars,” Parks told OU Daily. “It’s really convenient. It’s going to be home for me.”
The facility features eight basketball courts that will be used for youth basketball leagues, Team Trae practices, and upcoming events.
“There’s gonna be big-time tournaments here,” Rayford Young said. “The big-time coaches will have to come here and you’re gonna see them sitting around watching players like Keeley Parks and the people she’s competing with. That’s the whole thing this is about.”
Among tournaments already scheduled for the YFAC over the next several months, there are already some big ones. The Circuit’s Border Battle tips things off on March 15th. A week later, the center will host a Jr 3SSB Boys tournament March 23-24th. Later this summer a 3SSB Girls Gold tournament is scheduled for May 15-17th at Young Family Athletic Center, and a Battle of the Brands tournament this summer with Adidas, Puma and Under Armor sponsored AAU teams set to face off will be announced soon.
“It’s beyond awesome because something like this can change a kid’s life,” Rayford told the OU Daily. “This facility is one of the best in the nation — not just in Oklahoma and in the region — it’s one of the best in the nation. Kids have the confidence to know that they can come in here any day, every day and work on their games. These are NBA-level basketball courts. Man, I wish Trae could’ve had that.
Trae didn’t but thanks to the Young Family and the city’s Norman Forward program, Team Trae Young does and that makes the future in Norman look even brighter.