Awesome article on Streetball..picked it up a webby from gerald....Liked the last phrase "Without the love, streetball has no value. The reason streetball is so powerful on and off the court, all comes back to one aspect, the one love all ballers share. No matter if you are black, white, big, small, male, female, short or tall. You could come from a totally different culture, community or society, but when it's time to step onto the court, nothing else matters.
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....haha..pretty much sums up my life..


Streetball
Street basketball, the back-bone of what basketball stands for today. "Streetball is more than just a game, it's a glimpse of heaven on earth." For those of you who don't know what streetball is all about, there is no word to describe what you're missing out on. It's all about freedom. Streetball is the most open-minded and free flowing game in the world. It gives kids, teenagers and adults the opportunity to test their creativity, stretch their limits and boundaries, and most importantly, lets them be themselves on the court without being told what to do. "Streetball is definately about respect," said Shane from the AND1 team. "This is Respect, this is tradition, and this is what I stand for," said Hannibal, court announcer from Rucker Park. "Without respect for the game, there is no game." -said a streetball league player.

RULES

The rules for streetball are simple. There are no set rules, the only rule is to respect the game. Meaning you must respect foul calls or non-foul calls when they are made. Those players who have a weak game and can't rely on their talent and willpower to win, they tend to make bad foul calls which earns them disrespect on and off the court. Disrespecting the free flowing streetball style is disrespecting the game. Fouls, travelling, double-dribble and out of bounds are usually not a big issue when it comes to pick-up basketball. The game relies more on earning the ball instead of saying, "Your toe was out of bounds, my ball." It's all about earning the ball, playing good D, pulling down a board or making a big block. Defense is your only weapon to getting the ball back. On Offense you are in total control of what happens next. There's no coach saying pass and screen away, there's no player saying you ain't meant to be handling the rock and there's no clock saying you got 24 seconds to do something. It's all about freedom right here. You make the next move, left, right, pass or shoot. This is what gives the strugglers the opportunity to achieve, the quiet players become out spoken players and the weak players become the strong players.

RESPECT

Streetball and basketball are two different games. Basketball is organised by referees, rules and boundaries kids must abide by. Where as streetball is almost the opposite. Streetball lets players test their creativity and has no set boundaries to what they must and must not do on the court. 'Respect' is the biggest aspect that keeps streetball going. "Respect is what streetball is all about."- Shane from the AND1 team says. "This is Respect, this is tradition and this is what i stand for." said a Rucker Park court announcer in New York City. Players learn to respect each other's games, each other's foul calls and each other's beliefs. That's what MSF wants to get across to every player in the country.

LOVE FOR THE GAME

Without the love, streetball has no value. The reason streetball is so powerful on and off the court, all comes back to one aspect, the one love all ballers share. No matter if you are black, white, big, small, male, female, short or tall. You could come from a totally different culture, community or society, but when it's time to step onto the court, nothing else matters.



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