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Son of Hoopfest champ Plays in tournament for the first time

8-year-old Jonah Hieb has been waiting his whole life to make his mark on the game because not only does he enjoy hooping, but his dad won 27 years ago.

SPOKANE, Wash. — Basketball of course is the focus this weekend, but Hoopfest is about much more than 3-on-3 basketball - it's about community and tradition.

Hoopfest is fun no matter how young or old you are, but unfortunately you have to be going into the third grade to sign up a team. As you can imagine, there are a lot of young people waiting for their chance to play.

8-year-old Jonah Hieb has been waiting his whole life to make his mark on the game because not only does he enjoy hooping, but so does his dad.


Their team name was 'Full Force,' it was 1992 and they won their first Hoopfest, then they did it again in 1993! Adam Hieb was on that team, now 27 years later he's checking in for Hoopfest in a new position.

"I think it's going to be really fun and my dad is the coach so it's going to be really fun," Jonah said.

This year he won't be watching on the sidelines cheering on his dad or his brother, instead they'll be rooting for him.

"When he couldn't play he was super bummed because he would come down and I would be playing or Jackson would be playing and he just had to wait, but now he can play. He's super excited," Adam said.

For many Spokane families, the 3-on-3 tournament has been a life long tradition. Jonah's brother Jackson isn't playing this year, but he knows first hand how exciting it is to play in your first Hoopfest after waiting for so many years.

"Yeah, we've been down here watching our dad play since we were babies," Jackson said.

Jonah has been preparing for this weekend his whole life and his team put in extra hours practicing in scrimmages and of course, a lot of drills.

"We've been shooting like hoops and practicing our drills," Jonah said.

He has a love for the game, and is confident the skills his pops taught him will help the team win.

"Probably shooting, team work and hustling," Jonah explained.

There's not a lot that will come close to the feeling of winning Hoopfest nearly three decades ago, but watching his sons follow his foot steps might 'Just Do It.'

"Just to see my kids play, it's just awesome to see that generational thing, the community coming together, it's just an amazing event," Adam proudly said.

Jonah's team is made up of his close friends. They cleverly named the team, "The Giants," and while they may not be playing with the 6-foot-teams, they say they are pretty tall for third graders.

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