Some grassroots basketball programs take decades to become nationally relevant.
AB Elite didn't need decades.
Established in North Texas in 2024, AB Elite has quickly developed into a recognizable name on the Nike EYBL circuit with one of the NBA's rising young guards behind the organization and one of the country's best high school prospects leading it on the floor.
The names tell much of the story.
Anthony Black.
Beckham Black.
One is an Orlando Magic guard and former NBA lottery pick.
The other is his younger brother and one of the premier prospects in the Class of 2027.
Together, their family has helped turn AB Elite into one of the more intriguing young programs in grassroots basketball.
But AB Elite wasn't created simply to build a team around Beckham.
The organization is attempting to build something that lasts well beyond one recruiting class.
Anthony Black Comes Home to Build
Anthony Black knows exactly what elite grassroots basketball can provide.
Before becoming the No. 6 overall selection in the 2023 NBA Draft, Black developed in Texas, became a McDonald's All-American, played college basketball at Arkansas and ultimately reached the NBA.
Travel basketball was an important part of that development.
When Black helped create AB Elite, he specifically pointed to those experiences.
"Travel team basketball helped set my basketball foundation," Black said while explaining the purpose behind the organization.
That experience became part of the vision for AB Elite.
The program was established in 2024 as a North Texas basketball organization designed to develop players from the youth level through high school.
Basketball development is part of the mission.
But according to the organization, so are family values, sportsmanship, integrity, personal responsibility and helping athletes navigate the recruiting process.
For Black, the program represents an opportunity to take what basketball provided his family and put it back into the next generation.
This Is a Family Operation
Anthony may be the NBA name attached to AB Elite, but the organizational structure goes deeper.
His mother, Jennifer Black, serves as AB Elite's program director.
The program has separate coaches throughout its age groups, with James Stafford leading the 2027 team and additional coaches overseeing younger teams.
Anthony remains heavily involved.
At the 2026 Nike EYBL Peach Jam, NBA.com reported that Black was on the sideline for every one of younger brother Beckham's games.
That involvement is significant.
There are plenty of grassroots programs carrying the name of an NBA player.
AB Elite has something different when its NBA connection is actually in the gym.
Anthony isn't simply a logo.
He is watching.
Teaching.
Supporting.
Evaluating.
And helping build the program.
Then There Is Beckham Black
If Anthony Black provides AB Elite with NBA credibility, Beckham Black has helped provide the program with national high school relevance.
Beckham entered the summer of 2026 as one of America's premier prospects.
By Peach Jam, NBA.com identified him as the newly minted No. 1 player in the Class of 2027.
And he played like it.
Against MeanStreets at Peach Jam, Beckham exploded for 37 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals in an 86-69 AB Elite victory.
He followed that performance with 24 points and six assists against Brad Beal Elite.
Those weren't empty numbers against average competition.
They came at Peach Jam against programs filled with Division I prospects.
Across the event, Beckham finished as one of Peach Jam's leading scorers at 24.2 points per game while also averaging 5.3 assists, placing him among the event leaders in both categories.
For a player carrying the pressure of a No. 1 national ranking while playing for a program carrying his family's identity, the production mattered.
Beckham Is More Than Anthony Black's Younger Brother
The comparison is unavoidable.
Anthony is 6-foot-7 with unusual size and versatility for a guard.
Beckham is building his own reputation as a big lead guard with the ability to score and create.
But Beckham's recruitment and development have reached a point where he no longer needs his brother's NBA résumé to generate attention.
He has created his own.
He played with USA Basketball during the 2026 FIBA U17 World Cup and helped the United States win gold.
He led Team USA in assists.
He continued that momentum into the Nike EYBL season.
And by July, he had climbed to the top of national recruiting rankings.
His recruitment reflects that status.
Programs including Texas, Duke, USC, Georgetown, Michigan and Kansas were among the schools connected to his recruitment during Peach Jam.
By August, additional programs including North Carolina, Miami, Arkansas and BYU were also in the conversation.
For AB Elite, having one of America's most heavily recruited players running the point gives a young program immediate national visibility.
But Beckham isn't doing it alone.
AB Elite Is Building More Than One Player
That distinction matters.
AB Elite's 2027 roster includes additional college prospects and high-level players around Beckham.
At Peach Jam, Isaiah Santos delivered 17 points and 13 rebounds against MeanStreets.
Marri Wesley contributed 11 points in the same victory.
Steven McLeod added 10.
Against Brad Beal Elite, Santos scored another 16 points with six rebounds while Wesley added 10.
The supporting talent has allowed AB Elite to become more than a showcase vehicle for one highly ranked prospect.
It has become a legitimate EYBL team.
From Startup to Peach Jam
The speed of AB Elite's rise might be the most impressive part of the story.
The organization officially dates its establishment to 2024.
Two years later, its 17U team was playing meaningful basketball at Peach Jam.
AB Elite advanced through the 2026 Peach Jam field before meeting Nightrydas in the quarterfinals.
The game came down to a single possession.
Nightrydas escaped with a 55-54 victory, ending AB Elite's championship run.
One point separated the young program from advancing deeper into America's most prestigious grassroots tournament.
That is significant progress for an organization still establishing its identity.
The Nike EYBL Connection Changes Everything
Becoming part of Nike EYBL gives AB Elite access to one of the most powerful platforms in grassroots basketball.
The circuit brings together many of America's most recognizable programs and highly recruited prospects.
Peach Jam is the centerpiece.
For AB Elite, joining that environment means the program doesn't have to manufacture exposure.
The competition creates it.
Beckham can line up against other nationally ranked players.
AB Elite can face organizations such as MeanStreets, Brad Beal Elite, Nightrydas, Mokan Elite and PSA Cardinals.
College coaches know where the players are.
National media knows where the players are.
NBA scouts increasingly know where the players are.
And the NBA itself now streams and covers many of the biggest EYBL matchups.
That is the environment AB Elite has entered only a short time after its creation.
An NBA Trend With a Different Twist
AB Elite is also part of a larger shift happening in grassroots basketball.
NBA players are becoming increasingly involved in youth programs.
Chris Paul has Team CP3.
Bradley Beal has Brad Beal Elite.
Paul George has PG Elite.
Other current and former NBA players have programs, sponsorship relationships or coaching roles throughout grassroots basketball.
At the 2026 Peach Jam, NBA players weren't simply watching from courtside.
NBA.com reported Chris Paul coaching Team CP3, Bradley Beal coaching his program and Jamal Crawford coaching his son JJ's NW Rotary team.
Anthony Black was there supporting and helping with AB Elite.
The difference is that Black is still relatively early in his own NBA career.
He was drafted in 2023.
AB Elite was established the following year.
Instead of waiting until the end of his playing career to build something, Black started almost immediately.
The Program Goes Below 17U
That may become the most important part of the story.
AB Elite isn't only a 17U team constructed around Beckham.
The organization has teams extending into younger age groups.
AB Elite lists teams for the Classes of 2027, 2028, 2029, 2030 and younger, with several of those teams participating in Nike Jr. EYBL events and other national competitions.
The organization also lists girls basketball within its developmental structure.
That creates the possibility of an actual pipeline.
A young North Texas player doesn't necessarily have to join AB Elite at 16 or 17 years old.
The relationship can begin years earlier.
If the program can identify players young, develop them, retain them and eventually move them onto the EYBL stage, AB Elite can become sustainable long after Beckham graduates.
Anthony Black Has a Unique Recruiting Tool
There is also something AB Elite can offer that very few grassroots programs can duplicate.
Direct proximity to an active NBA guard.
Young players can watch Anthony Black play for Orlando and then potentially see him standing on their sideline during the summer.
They can hear directly from someone who recently went through the exact progression they are trying to navigate.
High school basketball.
National recruiting.
College basketball.
The NBA Draft.
The NBA.
That experience gives Black credibility when discussing development and recruiting because his journey isn't ancient history.
He just went through it.
And his younger brother is going through the recruiting process right now.
Beckham Is Chapter One, Not the Entire Book
It would be easy to look at AB Elite and call it the Black family's basketball team.
Anthony created the program.
Jennifer Black directs it.
Beckham is its biggest high school star.
There is obviously a family foundation underneath the organization.
But what happens after Beckham leaves will determine what AB Elite ultimately becomes.
If the younger teams continue developing, if the program remains inside the Nike ecosystem and if future national prospects emerge wearing AB Elite uniforms, then 2026 may eventually be remembered as the beginning rather than the peak.
That is the challenge.
Elite grassroots basketball is filled with programs that were powerful for one recruiting cycle.
Building something sustainable is much harder.
From the NBA Back to North Texas
Anthony Black could have simply continued focusing on his NBA career.
Instead, only a year after being drafted sixth overall, his family launched a grassroots basketball organization back home in North Texas.
Two years later, AB Elite was at Peach Jam.
His younger brother had become the No. 1 player in the 2027 class.
The program was competing against some of the biggest names in grassroots basketball.
And younger AB Elite teams were already developing behind them.
That is a remarkably fast rise.
Now comes the harder part.
Building the next Beckham Black.
And then another.
And another.
Because if Anthony Black's vision works, AB Elite won't ultimately be defined by having an NBA player behind the program or a No. 1 prospect playing point guard.
It will be defined by how many young players come through the organization and eventually create their own basketball stories.
Anthony Black reached the NBA.
Beckham Black is trying to follow him.
AB Elite is being built to make sure they aren't the last.
