Built for Growth: How DYSports Is Redefining Youth Basketball Development

By Jake Sands- January 28, 2026

DYSports was founded 8 years ago by John Verduin. One of his high school basketball coaches was running a program and asked him to coach a 5th-grade boys team. They were a very developing team and would struggle in tournaments against higher-level competition. That’s when he thought of the idea of a tournament for developing youth teams. After the COVID-19 pandemic, the demand for youth sports increased drastically, and it allowed DYSports to cater to that level of athletics and expand quickly. A key rule they implemented is man-to-man defense only for the 5th grade and below. Recently, DYSports finished a weekend with 240 teams across 4 different events. 

John Verduin- Founder of DYSports

Their mission is to create a level playing field for developing teams, ensuring competitive games, and a focus on skill acquisition. Verduin believes that skill development for youth teams is more important than winning. The man-to-man defense rule eliminates the need for coaches to prepare for complex defensive schemes, freeing up practice time to work on core fundamental skills like passing, dribbling, and shooting. This model has worked well, as teams that start with basic skills often develop to a point where they are encouraged to move on to more competitive events.  

Verduin then went on to discuss the growth of DYSports over the years. The company started in Seattle and then expanded north of Seattle to Marysville/Arlington. Once they started to succeed there, he saw other cities that lacked opportunities for developing teams and looked to expand there. Some of these cities included Portland, Phoenix, Spokane, and Franklin, Wisconsin. In April of this year, they will be exploring new markets in San Jose, California, and Chicago, Illinois. They hire local staff in each market to build a strong sense of community. In 2025, DYSports hosted 3,800 teams, and Verduin’s long-term goal is for them to host 200,000 teams in a year. He also hopes to add more basketball clinics and camps, work with well-known trainers, and potentially expand into other sports to foster sustained growth for the company.

Spotlight Article Provided By: Momentiv Media