Today we’d like to introduce you to Tony Machi.
Tony, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Back in 2021, kids were still struggling with the aftereffects of the COVID lockdown. My household was no different. My girlfriend’s son is a big basketball fan, She decided to sign Ethan up for the YMCA basketball program. The team did not have a coach, and the YMCA asked me if I would volunteer. I had never coached a team before but thought it would be fun. When I commit to something, I go all in!
What a great experience it turned out to be. We won first place and had a great group of kids and parents. The parents enjoyed the team so much, they asked me if I would be willing to start and coach a select team for their the boys. Of course, I said yes! That’s when ElevaTE U Basketball was born.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The hardest part was in the beginning few trying to get “new recruits” and parents to buy into what we are doing. AAU basketball is very competitive. We had to differentiate ourselves by having a more personal approach. We care about our players, we go the extra mile to make sure they get the training and exposure needed to play at high level and eventually college.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about ElevaTE U Basketball?
Nonprofit sports organization that focuses on developing student/athletes on and off the court.
We have built the #1 independent AAU basketball organization in Texas from the ground up.
With humble beginnings from the YMCA, ElevaTE U is now a known brand in the Texas youth basketball scene.
We have beaten all the high end “shoe” teams through hard work and working as a team.
We have produced our first group of college scholarship players this year.
ElevaTE U basketball in 2025 had over 5 million views on Instagram and our website www.elevateubasketball.com.
ElevaTE U now offers 7th-12th grade teams.
ElevaTE U has expanded from DFW to the Austin market; we are now having tryouts for our teams that start in mid Feb.
Catch all the ElevaTE U highlights on our partners Dallas Hoop Scene Instagram site.
ElevaTE U welcomes sponsors and donations to this great of helping student/athletes reach their dreams.
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
I would like to thank my other coach Andrew Parker for doing all hard work of coaching and recruiting. There’s no ElevaTE U without Andrew Parker. He loves the game of basketball and mentoring our student/athletes.
Big shout out to Bryson Nickerson, he’s been with the team since day 1 and helped build up our roster and brand awareness.
Jacoby Lovings for being the face of the organization and helping us play to a high standard.
Dallas Hoop Scene for believing in our organization and giving us coverage when nobody knew who we were.
Will Korioth for helping me see the big picture and keeping the dream alive.
Otto Wolter, my uncle and Grandfather for helping inspire me with the love of sports and how it relates to life; there’s no substitute for hard work and passion.
Finally, my mom, Catherine, she went to every one of my games growing up and was my biggest fan. She always made me believe that I could do something special.
Pricing:
- ElevaTE U group training $30
- ElevaTE U personal training $50
- ElevaTE U team fees $300 per month (March-July)
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.elevateubasketball.com
- Instagram: elevateubasketball
- Twitter: @Tony_Mach1
