One coach.
Two decades.
One standard.
Matt Paul has been building Philadelphia-area basketball players for 22 years — long enough that the kids he coached at the start are now bringing their kids to MP.
From Springfield, for Springfield.
Matt Paul grew up in Springfield Township, learned the game on Philadelphia courts, and never left. In 2004, he started coaching kids in the same gyms he'd played in — small clinics, weekend pickup, a summer camp at Saint Philip Neri that's now in its second decade.
What started as one camp became four programs: MP Academy summer camps, the Oreland Summer League at McKelvie Park, MP AAU's sixteen fall club teams, and the MP Fall Outdoor League. Same coach. Same standards. Just a bigger gym.
The work hasn't been outsourced. Every program is founder-led — Matt's at the gym, on the sideline, in the parents' inboxes. 22 years in, that hasn't changed. If your kid plays in an MP program, the coach who built the curriculum is the coach who's running practice.
The result is a basketball ecosystem with deep roots in one zip code. Players who started in MP Academy at 7 are now playing AAU at 14. Parents who registered their first kid for the summer league in 2019 are bringing their second kid in 2026. That's the goal.
Three words. In order.
"Develop. Compete. Lead." isn't a marketing tagline — it's a sequence. Players who skip the first step never become the third. Here's what each one means at MP.
Fundamentals first, every age, no exceptions. Footwork before crossovers. Good shots before fancy shots. The unsexy stuff that makes the sexy stuff work.
At MP, a 9-year-old learns the same triple threat we teach high schoolers — just with smaller hands and bigger smiles. Get the foundation right and the rest takes care of itself.
Real competition, age-appropriate stakes. Skills don't transfer until they're tested. That's why the summer league plays 4v4 outdoors, why AAU plays in three regional fall tournaments, and why every camp ends with structured games.
Competing isn't winning at all costs. It's putting the work to the test, losing sometimes, and showing up the next day to fix it.
Character on the floor, character off it. Eye contact when a coach is talking. Helping a teammate up. Owning a turnover instead of blaming a ref. The stuff that makes a player worth keeping on the team.
The kids who internalize this don't just become better basketball players. They become the kind of teenagers parents are glad they raised.
22 years shows up.
Longevity isn't a stat. It's the ground that everything else stands on.
If you're still reading, here's the truth.
I started coaching in 2004 because I loved the game and figured I had something to give back. I didn't plan on building four programs, sixteen AAU teams, or a brand. I planned on running good practices.
That's still the goal. Every camp, every league night, every tryout — the question I'm asking is the same: did the kids leave better than they showed up? If yes, we did our job. If no, we figure out what to fix.
If you're a parent looking at MP for your kid, I want you to know two things. First: I'm at the gym. Not behind a desk. Not delegating to a coordinator. If you've got questions about your kid's development, you can ask me directly.
Second: Philadelphia has a lot of good basketball options. If MP isn't the right fit, I'll tell you. But if it is — we're in this together for the long haul.
See you in the gym.
Real questions get real answers.
Want to talk about your player's development? Curious whether AAU's the right fit? Got a tournament referral, a sponsorship pitch, or just want to say hey?
Email goes straight to Matt. Most messages get a reply within 24 hours, often the same day.
— Reach Matt Directly
See you in the gym.
Four programs, year-round. Pick the one that fits your player.
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