The Nations # 1 highschool basketball tournament. December 1973, the City of Palms Classic began, like so many events, as a simple, local Christmas basketball tournament — the brainchild of legendary Edison Community College head coach Hugh Thimlar and a small group of high school coaches and administrators. Over the years, the City of Palms Classic has grown and expanded its scope to include many of the nation’s finest players and teams, setting the standard during the past quarter-century by which all other holiday basketball tournaments are compared.