Historic Meeting at Montgomery: Avance at L'Attitude Classic preview

San Diego has had some big time basketball players showcase their talents in America's finest city: NBA legends Stephon Marbury and Kyrie Irving each put on shows at the Torrey Pines Holiday Tournament.

The late Bill Walton, former Foothills Christian standouts TJ Leaf and Jaylen Hands, former Sierra Canyon standout and current Los Angeles Laker Bronny James and San Ysidro star Mikey Williams each have packed San Diego area gyms during their respective prep careers.

This weekend, an eight-team tournament hosted at Montgomery High School has a chance to rival the star power of all of these names combined.

The Avance at L'Attitude Classic, being held by the namesake conference, brings the nation's top two prospects - 2025 Utah Prep F AJ Dybantsa and 2025 Columbus (FL) F Cameron Boozer - to San Diego, along with three other members of the Team USA U17 national team and a host of three-star and four-star prospects.

The field features Utah Prep, Columbus, Los Angeles powerhouse programs Harvard Westlake and Sierra Canyon, LA-based Veritas Prep, which plays on the Nike EYBL Scholastic Circuit, tn NBA Academy's Latin American team, Spain-based program The Embassy and local power Montgomery, which is widely held as the favorite to win this year's Open Division championship.

Beyond Dybantsa and Boozer, the field is loaded: Haarvard Westlake's Nikolas Khamenia, Utah Prep's JJ Mandaquit and Columbus G Cayden Boozer all played on the Gold Medal U17 National Team.

Sierra Canyon features 6-9 four-star prospect Chris Nwuli and three-star prospects Gavin Hightower and Bryce James - the youngest son of NBA superstar LeBron James. Harvard Westlake features three-star junior guard Joe Sterling and is the reigning CIF State Open Division champion. Veritas, NBA Academy and The Embassy feature dozens of international prospects that would likely be three-star or four-star prospects domestically.

The eight-team bracket style tournament kicks off 3 p.m. Friday with Veritas facing NBA Academy as the first of four games on Opening Night. The tournament consolation and championship semifinals take place Saturday starting at 10 a.m. and the seventh, fifth, third and championship games will take place Sunday. beginning at 10 a.m.

All games will take place inside the main gym at Montgomery High School, 3250 Palm Ave, San Diego, CA 92154. Tickets for the event can be purchased at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/avance-at-lattitude-basketball-classic-tickets-984494037167 and range in price from $5 (for students with their school ID) to $150 for VIP seating.