25 Best Youth Basketball Programs for New York City Kids

Designed to teach to and test each player’s abilities, each class at Aviator’s Youth Developmental Basketball Program focuses on conditioning, hand-eye coordination, shooting, passing, and court awareness. With high-standards and a passion for the game, coaches welcome kids from age 5 to 15 onto the court. At Aviator, programs are taught by coaches who play the game and have a passion for it. This summer your child has the opportunity to take part in one of their 4 age-group divided classes this May!

Neighborhood: Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn

Learn More: aviatorsports.com

The Youth Basketball League (YBL) is excited for what the summer has in store for them. With 7 weeks of summer camp, Skills Development Clinics, and Basketball League practices coming up, there’s so much going on at YBL! Accepting players as young as 5 and as old as 14 years-old, YBL has coaches who are excited about what they’re doing and with drills, train kids in the skills and concepts of the game.

Neighborhood: Citywide

Learn More: yblbasketball.com

Perhaps this summer doesn’t want to just learn how to shoot a basketball through a hoop. Perhaps he or she wants to learn how to shoot a basketball through a hoop like the New York Knicks! Well, if that’s the case, the Junior Knicks Summer Sessions are for them! With Knicks Coaches and possibly some Knicks players, your little basketball player will easily be finding his or her way around the court before the summer’s done! With multiple locations in New York and New Jersey, bring your little NBA players down to the basketball courts to get grounded in the basketball basics, learn offensive and defensive skills, and leave with a new appreciation for what team means with the Junior Knicks!

Neighborhood: Citywide

Learn More: nba.com

At Gateway Sports Club your little basketball players can find upcoming summer sessions for kids 6 – 16 years-old. So, whether your child has been around the sun more times than you can count on two hands or not, there’s a place for your basketball player at Gateway Sports Club. With fun games, interactive coaches, and sessions for advanced players and those who’ve just begun, Gateway Sports Club is the perfect way for your child to spend a bit of their summer break!

Neighborhood: College Point, Queens

Learn More: gatewaysportsclub.com

With one of the largest recreational basketball programs in Queens, DePhillips Athletic Club is known to have over 450 children from ages 5 – 17 enrolled in its programs! Though their winter season is over, the summer session is just around the corner. Come check out DePhillips Athletic Club to see why so many children call its courts home and have fun making new friends while shooting hoops!

Neighborhood: Wakefield, Bronx

Learn More: dacsports.com

Teaching kids with all different skill levels, Artistic Stitch Complex is a small training program that limits the amount of players in order to offer quality instruction. With clinics all year long, the basketball coaches strives to focus on different aspects of the game to give the players a well-rounded understanding of what it takes to play. Developing skills like defense, footwork, shooting, offense, and ball-handling, the Artistic Stitch Complex welcomes your athletes ages 6 – 12 to come out learn the tricks of the trade at one of their many seasonal clinics!

Neighborhood: Forest Hills, Queens

Learn More: artisticstitchsportscomplex.com

Aiming to offer the best youth sports programs in all of New York City, 78 Youth Sports exists to teach skills and create community while also having fun! Though they offer a few different sports programs, basketball is what they call “the ultimate city sport.” With Basketball Fundamentals and Rec’ Basketball, your young athlete can learn to shine on the court with 78 Youth Sports. Here, they will learn mental strategies, essential techniques, and practice ways to play the game among their peers while having fun!

Neighborhood: Citywide

Learn More: 78youthsports.org

With summer camps, coaches, and regularly scheduled basketball sessions, bring your child out to the Bronx House! Here, your child can learn valuable skills that they can carry with them throughout their life. On the court they will build self-confidence, learn to follow a game plan and to play on a team, things your child can use no matter how old. So whether your child is young or getting taller and taller, the Bronx House is a great place for them to start out on the basketball court!

Neighborhood: Pelham Bay Park, Bronx

Learn More: bronxhouse.org

Whether your child is a pro basketball player or a novice, A-Game Sports has them covered. Here, your child can gain a fundamental understanding of the game or build upon what they already know with coaches that encourage both teamspirit and competition. At A-Game Sports, pick the program that fits your child best and give your athlete an experience with basketball that they won’t want to have anywhere else!

Neighborhood: New Rochelle, Bronx

Learn More: agamesports.net

Explore all sorts of sports at The Little Gym in Brooklyn! Though The Little Gym has multiple locations with a wide range of activities, your child will love The Little Gym in Brooklyn! With a sport dedicated to each camp day and a rotating roundup of calendar events each month, The Little Gym gives kids a taste of Basketball without the weeklong time on the Basketball court. So, whether your child is 3 years-old or 8, The Little Gym’s Sports of All Sorts Camp and other interactive programs may be just right for your little one.

Neighborhood: Bay Ridge-Bensonhurst, Brooklyn

Learn More: thelittlegym.com

Basketball is more than just a sport about being tall and shooting hoops, it’s a sport about teamwork, accountability, and responsibility. Elite Skills knows that. As a training league and camp for kids ages 3+, Elite Skills is a program that prides itself on developing the skill and character of its members. With constructive coaches and a slew of programs to choose from, your child can dribble his or her way through the summer!

Neighborhood: Bayside, Queens

Learn More: eliteskills.org

Chelsea Piers offers a wide variety of sports programs, camps and leagues, but basketball, by far, is a crowd favorite. Whether your athlete is a little tike just learning how to grip the ball or a natural basketball player ready to play on a competitive team, Chelsea Piers is the place for you. With CP Travel Basketball, Youth Basketball Classes, Little Athletes Basketball, and supportive coaches, your child will come home not only knowing how to play basketball but, come home loving it too.

Neighborhood: Chelsea, Manhattan

Learn More: chelseapiers.com

With youth basketball leagues in the spring, winter, fall, and camps in the summer, Breakaway Hoops encourages young basketball players to pursue their love for the sport all year long. With camps leagues divided by the skills they focus on and the ages of the kids, your child is sure to have a blast bouncing off the walls of the City College or Dempsey Gymnasium chasing after that round, orange basketball. Whether your child is 5 or 15 they are welcome to come, play, and advance their game with Breakaway Hoops intermediate, advanced, and beginner programs.

Neighborhood: Citywide

Learn More: breakawayhoops.com

Dedicated to helping locals in New York City live a healthy and happy lifestyle, Asphalt Green is a non-profit organization that shares the changing power of fitness through youth programs. So, whether your kids want to hone their mad basketball skills or simply dribble a basketball down the court, Asphalt Green has the basketball program for you! They have a Rookies Basketball Academy for 3 – 4 year-olds, a Youth League Developmental Academy for youngsters ages 5 – 8, as well as a competitive Travel League for kids 10 – 12 years-old! At Asphalt Green there’s a place for everyone on the court!

Neighborhood: Citywide 

Learn More: asphaltgreen.org

Providing a variety of sports programs all year long, the YMCA is proud to also support a basketball program spring, summer, fall, and winter for kids of all abilities to participate in. Catering to kids ranging from ages 5 to 18, the Y’s basketball programs teach technique and teamspirit, two skills that children of all ages can appreciate. With their range of sports programs and their number of locations, the YMCA is a New York Family’s best bet of finding a quality, easygoing program for their children!

Neighborhood: Citywide

Learn More: ymcanyc.org

Mo Motion, a dedicated non-profit, provides basketball programs throughout the city for boys and girls from grades 4 – 8. With enthusiastic coaches, Mo Motion hops from one neighborhood to the next, basketball court to basketball court, in order to teach young athletes all throughout New York City basketball. With seasonal programs, a basketball league, and private lessons, Mo Motion is an organization that understands the value of sports and strives to bring them to city kids all year long!

Neighborhood: Citywide

Learn More: momotion.com

First Shot Basketball School boasts to be the premier program in both Queens and New York. With classes for all different levels taught by coaches who care, your child is given the tools and teaching to succeed here! By building their basketball skills, kids build their confidence and consequently, leave the court feeling like they’ve learned something. For ages 3 – 15, your child has the opportunity to lay the foundation for the basketball knowledge or brush up on their technique in a fun environment with First Shot Basketball.

Neighborhood: Citywide

Learn More: firstshotbasketball.com

Kick off your child’s basketball journey with King Hoops Basketball Camp! Laying a foundation that will set your kid up for success, Kids in the Game focuses on developing core skills that the sport requires like shooting, ball-handling, and defense. By instilling the basketball basics in your child, Kids in the Game allows your athlete to be calm and confident on the court.

Neighborhood: Citywide

Learn More: kidsinthegame.com

The Yorkville Youth Athletic Association (YYAA) has a staff dedicated to the future of your young athlete. Though they offer programs all year long, the YYAA has a strong recreational basketball team open to boys and girls of any age who want to play the game. Bringing passion and skill to the game of basketball, the YYAA coaches instill a love for the sport in their team and players come back season after season ready for more!

Neighborhood: Upper East Side, Manhattan

Learn More: yyaa.org

For the past 21 years, the Manhattan Youth Basketball League has been instilling players with the technical skills and principles of teamwork to excel. With the high-level coaching by Manhattan Youth’s staff, players are able to cultivate individual and team-based basketball skills. During pre-season athletes are evaluated by their skill and during the season, the team competes against other teams once a week, putting their skills to the test. While Manhattan Youth Basketball League does only have two seasons, they also offer clinics on selected weekends which allow players to develop their skills.

Neighborhood: TriBeCa, Manhattan

Learn more: manhattanyouth.org

Does your kid want to develop a skill, get active, and have fun too? Than NYC Basketball League may just be your child’s best shot at an enjoyable summer camp experience. For kids 4 to 17 years-old, NYC Basketball Kids Programs offer Spring Skills Classes and NBA Player Camps for kids of every level. Here, your child can learn to dribble with drills and taught to shoot hoops with coaches that believe in them and peers that encourage them! Whether it’s this spring or summer, your child has the opportunity to push themselves to the next level with  NYC Basketball Kids.

Neighborhood: Citywide

Learn More: nycbasketballleague.com

Though the spring programs are already nearing their end, Fastbreak Sports has fun, skill building summer camps just on the horizon! Whether your kid wants to learn the mechanics of shooting hoops or take part in some organized game play, Fastbreak Sports has you covered. Kids from ages 7 to 15 years old can refine their understanding of the game with Fastbreak Sports’ FUNdamentals Basketball Camp while kids from Middle School to 12th grade can work on improving their strength and speed with their City Skills Basketball Academy! With options to go for a day, week, or full season, kids of all ages can excel at their own pace with Fastbreak Sports!

Neighborhood: Upper East Side, Manhattan

Learn More: fastbreaksports.com

Does your child like basketball? Does he or she want to develop their dribbling skills or refine their basketball shot? Well, then Dribbl Basketball’s programs may be for them! With the aim to get kids running, jumping, and sliding around on the court, Dribbl Basketball offers fun programs for kids ages 4 – 14 years-old. With coaches and drills that will get your passing, moving, and shooting hoops, your kids will leave with their basketball skills refined and a desire to play more!

Neighborhood: Citywide

Learn More: dribbl.com

Basketball City’s Camps instill the fundamental values of the game in each and every camper.  With the top summer basketball staff in the city and camp every single day of the week, Basketball City sets the bar high so that campers feel pushed to excel. Basketball City’s Camps are “designed to teach kids the skills they need to be a better basketball player.” Through drills, station work, and full-court games, Basketball City’s Camp will make basketball players of your kids!

Neighborhood: Lower East Side, Manhattan

Learn More: basketballcity.com

With programs for children from 6 -14 years-old, there’s a basketball program every child, small or tall, at the 14th Street Y! Does your child play basketball? Yes! No! Maybe? Well, whether your child has never held a basketball in their life or not, the 14th Street Y has a program for your kid! With instructional programs to start your kid off or others that will develop their skill for the game, the 14th Street Y provides a non-competitive and supportive environment where kids of all levels can thrive.

Neighborhood: East Village, Manhattan

Learn More: 14streety.org