The streetlights turn on, and the neighbourhoods are packed at every park, it a nostalgic feeling to most, this is NYC hoops at it's purest form. Every summer, the top NYC hoopers look to hone their new skills on the blacktops throughout the Tri-State; NYC hoops has bridged the gap between culture and the community. The beauty of this is that local communities have the opportunity to watch high-level talent in their own backyard; it doesn't get more authentic than this! Surprisingly, this has planted a seed, which has rendered the culture for NYC hoops. Legendary hoopers— from Lance Stephenson, Sebastian Telfair, Chris Mullin, Bernard King, & Stephen Marbury all made their names on NYC blacktops. One thing for certain that playing on the mean streets of NYC helps you develop toughness, grit, and swagger. For decades NYC has been the home of some iconic basketball players who've contributed to the Mecca, now NYC has been publicly acknowledge as the epicenter for streetball.
Photo by: The Source
On summer days there is no place you would rather be than a park in NYC. All parks throughout the city hold an entertaining atmosphere; here basketball is more than a game it’s a soul of the culture. This summer, Nike has provided a great platform, which brings forth the top high school kids to play for their respective communities in hopes for the ultimate bragging rights. NY vs. NY features the six iconic NYC Parks: Dyckman (Manhattan), Lincoln Park (Queens), Gersh (Brooklyn), Tri-State (Manhattan), Watson (Bronx), and West 4th (Manhattan). The vision for Nike's NY vs. NY is to highlight the best talent in NYC by unifying the Tri-State elites under one umbrella.
“New York City basketball is the lynchpin between Culture & the community”
Photo by: SLAM
“Our goal was to hand pick the best players from the tristate area to highlight their skills to NYC neigbourhoods where it matters most”
From June through August each park will host games in hopes to compete for the trophy. Here's what makes this interesting, each park will have it’s sacred rules and regulations that cannot be changed until the playoffs, during the playoffs games will be followed by high-school regulations. Nike’s NY vs. NY will attract various players and celebrities in attendance each week, as well as provide skills camps for various inner city kids to develop their skills. It's always about helping out the local community and fostering positive habits for the kids to inherit towards their future.
Photo by: Nia Simone (@l0verebel)
“Through NY vs. NY we are empowering the high school basketball player and giving them a platform to showcase their skills. ”
In 2017, Gersh was crowned the NY vs. NY Champs; lets see if they can defend their title. As a new chapter for NY vs. NY begins, after 6 weeks another team will be crowned and that park will win the ultimate bragging rights. NYC Will always remain the mecca of basketball. Here are game recaps from week 1 below:
Team Gersh 65 Team Dyckman 62
Team Lincoln 70 Team Tri-State 59
Team Watson 72 Team West 4th 58
Photo by: @nikenyc
Special Thanks: @nikenyc, @slam_hs , @dyckmanbasketball
Josh Benedek- Nike Media Relation Director
Photography: Nia Simone (@l0verebel), @nikenyc