Streetball is a less formal variant of
basketball, played on
playgrounds and in
gymnasiums
around the world. Often only one half of the court is used, but
otherwise the rules of the game are very similar to those of
basketball. The number of participants in a game, or a
run, may range from one defender and one person on offense
(known as
one on one) to two full teams of five each as in
professional or collegiate basketball. It is common to hear player
arriving at streetball game to call out "next" indicating they are
claiming the right to play in the next game.
Streetball is a very popular game worldwide, and some cities in the
United States have organized streetball programs, such as
midnight basketball. Many cities also
host their own weekend-long streetball tournaments. Hoop-It-Up and
the
Houston Rockets' Blacktop Battle
are two of the most popular. In recent years, streetball has seen
an increase in media exposure through television shows such as
ESPN's "Streetball" and "
City Slam", as well as traveling exhibitions such
as the
AND1 Mixtape Tour and
Ball4Real.
Rules and features
Kids playing streetball in Paris,
France, in winter
While the rules of Streetball are generally the same as in more
formal basketball leagues, Streetball places a higher emphasis on
one-on-one matchups between the offensive player with possession of
the ball and that player's defender. Often the attacker will
perform numerous flashy moves while attempting to dribble or
"drive" to the basket, including
crossovers, jab steps, and other fake-out
tricks. Streetball often features spectacular
dunks and
alley
oops, impressive
ball handling,
and
trash talking.
Rules vary widely from court to court. Almost invariably a "call
your own foul" rule is in effect, and a player who believes he has
been fouled, simply needs to call out "Foul!" or "Ball!", and play
will be stopped, with the ball awarded to the fouled player's team.
A common misconception is that saying "And 1" is synonymous with
calling "foul." It is not. The phrase is commonly employed as a
form of trash talk. For example, when a player knows they are going
to make a shot and they think they are getting fouled as they are
shooting will say "And 1", to let their defender know, "You can't
even stop me even when you foul me." In reality, and as the rules
that follow indicate, there is no such thing as a traditional "And
1" in Streetball.
When a player calls a foul while taking a shot, and makes that
shot, the basket does not count. The fouled player's team gets the
ball back, hence calling "ball" when a foul occurs. This rule is
designed to have players call as few fouls as possible ensuring
speedier game play and shorter waiting times for the next game.
Also, the rule helps to ensure that nobody gets hurt. As a player
can not foul-out in Streetball and since the duration of the game
is dictated by the score, teams will often employ the intentional
foul as a last resort on defense. If defensive players had to
concern themselves with fouling the offensive player hard enough so
that there was no chance they could make a shot it would certainly
lead to unnecessary injury and probably a couple extra fights on
the court. It goes without saying, calling fouls in Streetball is
disfavored. The etiquette of what rightly constitutes a foul, as
well as the permissible amount of protestation against such a call,
are the products of individual groups, and of the seriousness of a
particular game. Another common variation to the contest is the
"skunk" rule. This merely means that if a player reaches a certain
point without the other player scoring, the game is over. The skunk
rule limit can varies but is often used at the score 7 to 0.
A common feature to Streetball is the 'pick up game'. To
participate in most streetball games around the world one simply
goes to an outdoor court where people are playing, indicates a wish
to participate, and once all the players
who were at the court
before you have played you will get to pick your team out of
the players available and play a game. Many games play up to 7, 11,
15 or 21 points with all baskets counting as one point (sometimes
shots beyond the 3 point arc count as 2 points). Players often play
'win by 2' which, as in
tennis, means that
the team has to win by a margin of at least 2 points. Sometimes a
local "dead end" limit applies; for instance a game may be played
to 7, win by 2, with a 9 point dead end, which would mean scores of
7-5, 8-6, 9-7, or 9-8, would all be final; while with scores of 7-6
or 8-7, play would continue. The most common streetball game is 3
on 3 played half court though often 5 on 5 full court can be
found.
Sometimes in a half-court game, a "
make it, take it" rule
is followed. This means that if a team scores, they get the ball
again on offense. So one team could end up never getting the ball
on offense if the "winners" score on every possession. Full court
basketball is not played with these rules. But in most instances,
the winning team gets to choose which basketball and usually which
direction (which basket) they get to use.
An unusual streetball feature is having an "MC" call the game. The
MC is on the court during the game and is often very close to the
players (but makes an effort to not interfere with the game) and
uses a microphone to provide game commentary for the fans.
Variations
A popular
variation of street basketball is 21, also known as "Hustle," "American,"
"St. Mary's
," a "V," or "Crunch." 21 is played most
often with 3-5 players on a half court, typically when not enough
players have arrived at the playground to "run 3's" (play 3-on-3).
However it is possible to play "21" with only two players, or more
than 5. Further, in some forms, players can freely enter the game
after it has begun, starting at zero points or being "spotted" the
same number as the player with the lowest score. "21" is an "every
player for himself" game, with highly variable rules. The rules of
"21" are usually agreed by the players at the beginning of the
game.
The typical rules of "21" are:
- one player "breaks" to begin the game by shooting from 3 point
range. Sometimes players agree that the "break" must not be a
successful shot, in order to give every player an equal chance at
rebounding to gain the 1st possession of the game
- the normal foul rule is in effect
- baskets are scored as 2's and 3's (as opposed to 1's and 2's
like Streetball)
- after a successful shot, the shooter can take up to three
1-point free-throws, but as soon as he misses, the ball may be
rebounded by anyone; conversely, if he makes all three free throw
shots, he then gets to keep the ball and "check up" or start play
again at the top of the arc
- after any change of possession, the ball should be cleared past
the 3 point line (or at times just out of the key)
- in order to win, a player must make exactly 21 points; if he
goes over then he restarts back at either 15, 13 or 11 points,
depending on the rules in use
- whoever wins the game starts with the ball at the beginning of
the next game
- only serious fouls are called (commonly referred to as "No
blood, No foul")
- other typical basketball rules, such as out-of-bounds are also
frequently ignored in the game "21"; this is to avoid confusion on
possession of the ball
Common additional rules include:
- a player can attempt a 3-pointer in lieu of attempting three
free-throws
- if a missed shot is "tipped in" to the basket by another player
without their feet touching the ground, then the shooter's score
reverts to zero (or thirteen if their score was over thirteen);
this rule may not apply on free-throws
- if a player who has 13 points misses their next shot,
regardless of whether it is a free-throw, then their points revert
to zero. This is referred to as "poison points"
- whoever wins the game must shoot a three-pointer in order to
start with the ball at the beginning of the next game; if he makes
it, he gets the three points, but doesn't have to take free-throws,
and starts with the ball
- players with less than 13 points at the end of a game keep
their points into the next game (a sort of handicap system for when
there is a wide variation in skill amongst the players)
"21" is considered a very challenging game, especially because the
offensive player must possibly go up against several defenders at
the same time. For this reason, it is exceedingly difficult to
"drive to the hole" and make lay-ups in "21." Therefore, and also
because of the emphasis on free-throws, "21" is very much a
shooter's game, and because a successful shot means you keep the
ball, it is possible for there to be come-backs when a player
recovers from a large deficit by not missing any shots (this can
also result in failure when they miss their final free-throw at 20
points and revert back to 13 or 15 etc.).
"21" is popular because it allows an odd number of people to play,
unlike regular basketball or other variants.
Another less common streetball variant, often referred to as
"Boston," results in essentially a one-on-one (or sometimes
two-on-two) tournament between any number of players. Each match is
played following normal one-on-one rules, including violations
(such as fouls and out-of-bounds) to just one point. The winner
remains on the court and gets to take the ball out while the loser
returns to the end of the line of players waiting to step on the
court. The first player to win a set number of matches (usually 7
or 11) wins the game.
Major organized streetball crews
Streetball is often generalized as a "pick-up game", where players
may or may not know one another, and is for the most part
recreational. But recent years has seen the rise of organized
streetball crews, such as AND1. With AND1 setting the precedent,
many crews train as a team specifically for streetball and often
play in exhibitions. Some crews present slickly produced videos and
DVDs for sale or available online displaying highlights, dunks, and
tricks. Streetball teams like Ruff Ryders, Terror Squad, and others
which compete in summer leagues, such as EBC, tend to play a more
"serious" game with less tricks, as the games are not
exhibitions.
Famous streetballers
the black widow
Streetball in popular media
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