Haley Smith Basketball, also known as Herndon Optimist Youth House Basketball (HOYHB), is a recreational/developmental youth sports program organized under the Optimist Club of Herndon Virginia. Our youth basketball program is for youth who want a friendly fun basketball experience playing other teams within our program. Skills development, equitable participation, teamwork, and sportsmanship are our priorities.

HOYHB offers a separate program called Buddy Basketball for youth with physical or developmental disabilities and who need one-on-one assistance to play basketball - click HERE to learn more about our Buddy Basketball program.

Participant Eligibility

• All boys and girls in grades 1 thru 12 are eligible to participate in the HOYHB program; participants are grouped into divisions based on their gender and school grade
• There are no geographic or school attendance boundaries.
• A participant who is a member of a high school basketball team, Herndon Optimist Youth Travel Basketball (HOYTB) team, or another team in the Fairfax County Youth Basketball League (FCYBL) is not eligible to participate in the HOYHB program.

Coach and Team Assistant Eligibility

Coaching and assisting a team are volunteer positions. For grade 1-8 teams, Head Coaches must be at least 19 years old and Assistant Coaches and Team Assistants must be at least 14 years old. For grade 9-12 teams, Head Coaches, Assistant Coaches, and Team Assistants must be at least 21 years old.

Head Coaches are provided with coaching supplies and receive one free registration for the child on their team (game jersey fee is still required).​

All adult volunteers must complete a background check and a youth abuse prevention online training course and exam before leading or assisting in any HOYHB activities.

In addition, Head Coaches and Assistant Coaches must:

• Complete the Fairfax County Volunteer Building Director (VBD) online training course and exam
• Enforce our Code of Conduct with your team members, parents, and spectators
• Implement and enforce Fairfax County/HOYHB health and safety protocols
• Complete team administrative tasks by the deadlines given by the league
• Attend required coaches meetings and training/clinics
• Assist with program special events (e.g., Skills Evaluations, All Stars Events)

Referee and Scorekeeper Eligibility

Basketball players and coaches are eligible to be a game referee and/or scorekeeper which are paid positions.  Youth referees/scorekeepers must be at least 12 years of age and in grade 7 or higher as of December 1.

All adult referees/scorekeepers must complete a background check and a youth abuse prevention online training course and exam before participating in any HOYHB games.

Referees and scorekeepers are expected to provide their availability information weekly by the deadlines specified by the game officials manager.

Referees officiate grade 1-8 division games. Referees are expected to know the game rules, be on time for their assigned games, and dress appropriately. Referees are provided one game official shirt and whistle. Referees must provide their own black shorts/sweatpants and athletic shoes, all of which must be in good condition. 

Both new and returning referees must complete the mandatory training held in mid-late November through early December and pass a floor evaluation in early December before being paid to referee a game. The training varies from 2-4 nights depending on whether the referee is a new or returning referee. The floor evaluation will be held during a Saturday team scrimmage and will be used to set pay grade based on referee skill level demonstrated: Candidate $15/game; Junior $25/game; Senior $35/game; Director $45/game.

Scorekeepers officiate grade 1-12 division games. Scorekeepers are expected to be on time for their assigned games, bring a pencil to the game, and dress appropriately. Successful completion of the scorekeeper training and evaluation session is mandatory prior to being paid to scorekeep at games.

Both new and returning scorekeepers must complete the mandatory training held in mid-late November through early December and pass an evaluation  in early December before being paid to scorekeep a game. The training varies from 1-2 nights depending on whether the scorekeeper is a new or returning scorekeeper. The evaluation will be held during a Saturday team scrimmage and will be used to set pay grade based on scorekeeping skill level demonstrated: Candidate $10/game; Junior $15/game; Senior $20/game; Director $30/game.

Season Schedule

• Skills evaluations are held by gender and school grade; grades 1-8 in late October-early November and grades 9-12 in mid-November. All registered participants who attend their skills evaluation session will be placed on a team; the evaluation is for the purpose of ensuring evenly distributed skills/experience across the teams in the division. If a participant does not attend their skills evaluation session, the participant will be wait-listed and the Commissioner will determine if the participant will be evaluated and assigned to a team.
• Team drafts are held early-mid November; Head Coaches are provided the results of the skills evaluation to aid in player selection, select their practice location, night, and time, and receive their coaching supplies. After the team drafts complete, Head Coaches contact their player parents/guardians to provide practice information.
• A free skills development clinic is provided in mid-November for younger division participants
• Practices begin mid-late November and are held one night a week for 1.5 hours in a local school gym between the hours of 5:30-10pm (indicate during the registration process the nights your child is available to practice). We try to schedule the younger kids for earlier practices and the older kids for later practices. The specific practice day, time, and location for each team will be determined at the team draft based on the availability of coaches and our gym allocations from Fairfax County.
• Regular season games begin in early December and are approximately one hour long; elementary and middle school grade division games are held on Saturdays between 8am-8pm; high school grade division games are held on Sundays between 11am-8pm; games are held at local school gyms.
• We take a break during the FCPS winter break period, then resume games in early January.
• All Stars are selected by Head Coaches the end of January and the All Star Game is held in early February.
• Playoff and championship games are held on Sundays in mid-late February for high school grade divisions and on Saturdays and Sundays in early to mid-March for elementary and middle school grade divisions. 

Fees

• Registration Fee: $140
• Game Jersey Fee: $30
• Game Shorts Fee (optional): $10
• Participant must provide own game socks, sneakers, and water bottle
• Coaches may request participants bring a basketball to practice; no basketballs should be brought to the gyms on game days

Registration Fees cover the cost of program equipment, school gym use fees, game official fees and supplies, and sports program insurance. All the HOYHB coaches and program managers are unpaid volunteers, so please treat them with respect and appreciation for volunteering their time.

Payment Options

• Credit/Debit Card
• Electronic Check/Funds Transfer (ACH)

Discounts / Financial Aid

• Family Multi-Participant Discounts: Each additional family member receives a $10 discount.
• Athletic Scholarship: Fairfax County residents only; Request financial aid and provide supporting documentation during the registration process; Payment for game jersey is still required.
• Head Coach Discount: Registration Fee is waived for one child per Head Coach; Request head coach discount during the registration process; Payment for game jersey is still required.

Refunds

• If a participant is selected for a travel or high school basketball team and the HOYHB Registrar is notified prior to the HOYHB team draft, the Registration and Game Jersey/Shorts Fees will be refunded.
• If a participant is wait-listed and not placed on a HOYHB team prior to the first HOYHB regular season game in December, the Registration and Game Jersey/Shorts Fees will be refunded.
• If a participant withdraws and notifies the HOYHB Registrar prior to the first HOYHB regular season game in December, the Registration Fee will be refunded; if the game jersey/shorts are promptly returned clean and in good condition, the Game Jersey/Shorts Fees will also be refunded.
• If a participant or family is removed from the program for refusing to adhere to the HOYHB Code of Conduct or Fairfax County/HOYHB health and safety protocols, no fees will be refunded.
• If Fairfax County cancels our access to FCPS gym space, the amount of fees refunded, if any, will depend on the costs already incurred by the program.

Registration for the Winter 2024-2025 season opens July 1st.

Note: Regrettably we had to increase our registration fee for the upcoming season because the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors significantly raised the cost of school gym use fees.

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Skills evaluations for grades 1-8 start the week of October 21st. Skills evaluations for grades 9-12 are the week of November 18th. Check the Basketball Event Calendar in early October for the specific location, date, and time assigned to your child's gender and school grade.

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Our FREE skills development clinic is Saturday November 16th for participants registered in grade 1-8 divisions. Check the Basketball Event Calendar in early November for the specific location and time assigned to your child's division.

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Grade 1-8 division coaches training is Saturday November 16th. Coach training is mandatory and held immediately following the division's skills development clinic.

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Team practices for grade 1-8 divisions start the week of November 18th and for grade 9-12 divisions the week of December 2nd, provided there are a sufficient number of adults who volunteer to coach in your child's division.

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Referee and scorekeeper training is Sunday November 17th and Saturday-Sunday November 23rd-24th. Additional referee and scorekeeper training may be held the week of December 2nd if needed.

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There are no team practices or games during FCPS Thanksgiving Break from November 27th through December 1st.

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Regular season games start Saturday December 7th for grade 1-8 divisions. Regular season games start Sunday December 8th for grade 9-12 divisions. 

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Games are held on Saturday-Sunday December 21st-22nd.

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No team practices or games during the FCPS Winter Break from December 23rd through January 5th.

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Playoff and championship games for grade 9-12 divisions are Sunday February 23rd.

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Playoff games for grade 1-8 divisions begin Saturday-Sunday March 1st-2nd and conclude Saturday-Sunday March 8th-9th.