For the 23rd year, Lake Area basketball fans will get a chance to watch some of the top pro-am basketball teams at the annual Tournament of Stars Basketball Classic.

“If you love basketball, you will love this weekend coming up,” Tournament of the Stars Chief Executive Officer and founder Harold McReynolds said.

About 30 teams, some from as far away as Kentucky, are expected to play in Basketball Classic, which will start at 9 a.m. Saturday with games at Barbe High School and the Ward 3 Recreation Complex on La. 14. All of Sunday’s game will be played at Barbe with the championship game starting about 3 p.m., McReynolds said.

McReynolds said part of what has kept fans coming back is the allure of possibly seeing current or former NBA, college or overseas players.

A few years ago, current Houston Rocket James Harden played in the tournament. Other former NBA players who made the trip to Lake Charles in the past include Stephen Jackson, Monta Ellis and Penny Hardaway.

But even McReynolds said he is never sure who might show up.

“Overall the years we have had 40 to 50 NBA guys that have played in it,” McReynolds said. “I don’t know until they get here.

“The guys don’t like to tell who they are bringing so they like to get it close to the chest. People ask us every year who is coming, but we have to wait and see like everyone else. I think that is part of the draw, not knowing that you might meet someone. When Penny Hardaway came I had no idea, someone had to tell me that he was here.”

Men’s teams are playing for a $10,000 prize this year and, for the first time in several years, there will be a women’s bracket.

The tournament regularly draws larger crowds than ones played in larger cities such as Dallas and Miami, McReynolds said.

“I travel around and we have quite a few tournaments,” McReynolds said. “Our fan base in Lake Charles is probably the biggest fan base in pro-am right now.

“I travel to Dallas and Miami and they are not quite as big as us and they don’t get the fan base. They are jealous of us and ask how we get the fans down here.”

McReynolds started the tournament in 1995 to raise money for college scholarships for area students. The annual banquet was held last month and 22 scholarships, totaling $25,000, were awarded.

“When you see the big smiles on their faces and their parents come up to thank you, that is what keeps us going,” McReynolds. “We want to grow those numbers and help more people in the community.”

McReynolds said the popularity of pro-am tournaments has risen lately and ESPN covers The Basketball Tournament which has a $2 million purse for the champion.