And1 Mixtape Team History - The Mix Tape series and the tour it spawned are the result of a collection of random events that, taken separately, wouldn't have amounted to much-and almost didn't. But accidents happen, and those that produce positive results are given the gloss of serendipity. Thank God for it. The origin of the AND1 Mix Tape collection came in the guise of a lowly videotape given to AND1 in late 1998 by Ron Naclerio, the coach of New York's Cardoza High School team who spent his summers coaching AAU kids, including Rafer Alston, whom AND1 would soon sign the first basketball shoe endorser to get a deal without a contract from the NBA. The tape was home-video quality--jerky camera moves, poor resolution and nearly indecipherable audio-showing young Alston on the playgrounds and hardwood in and around New York doing, among a host of insane moves, his own signature move from which he earned his nickname "Skip to My Lou". ..read more..
The Notic - Kirk Thomas and Jeremy Schaulin-Rioux: Vancouver film students, hip-hop heads and basketball players (well, Kirk is at least) inspired by the And1 mixtapes to document the streetball scene in their hometown of Vancouver BC. They are constantly amazed at the talent, creativity and determination of these players. The first notic was shot on a digital camcorder from Nov. 2000 to Aug. 2001, edited in two weeks of all night sessions in September and finally released.
YPA - In the year 2000, YPA was founded by a group of young ballers from Oakland, California who grew up with a passion for basketball. They formed a group called YPA (Young Players Association), a group that represents basketball to the fullest. This passion led them to grow a company that focused on showcasing basketball as a whole. They showed up at local tournaments selling t-shirts and sponsoring teams. They provide performance apparel, team uniforms, streetball products and services, basketball events, basketball camps, scouting services as well as basketball accessories. YPA represents Heart, Game and Mentality. There are about 10 million in the U.S. alone that love basketball enough to play on a regular basis. 450 of these get to make it to the NBA. YPA embraces everyone. Whether you play at the Y or in the league, if you have passion for basketball like they do, you are part of YPA already.
The EBC - In 1982, Mr. Greg Marius, a former rapper, founded the E.B.C. as a league where rap groups could play each other. He began inviting good pro and amateur players. The EBC is what has kept Rucker Park alive for years after the original Rucker tournament and various leagues shut down. All the famous stuff you've heard happen at Rucker Park from the 1980's up through the present, that's the EBC. The EBC hosts 2,000 fans a night. The tournament runs from mid-July to mid-August and lines for admission, which is free, begin forming as early as noon for games that start in the early evening. Fans sit in concrete bleachers, stand six or seven deep around the court or climb fences and trees for views. Others lean out of windows from the Polo Grounds Houses across Eighth Avenue. Everyone who plays at Rucker Park is given a nickname by the game announcers. Mr. Rucker's league became a model of sorts for others around the country, including Philadelphia's famous Baker League. Rucker has long had the highest profile and deepest legend of all of New York's famous street-ball playgrounds, including the West Fourth Street Cage in Greenwich Village and the Garden in Coney Island.
Streetball Fanatics - Streetball Fanatics are a group of guys that are mainly from Nassau Bahamas, and was all founded by Kendall Butler a.k.a "Breathe Eazy" and a close friend of his Romeo Culmer a.k.a "Holla Back". They became close friends after meeting each other in tournament that they both were playing in. O.T.B "Out Tha Building" was a highschool friend of B Eazy and Holla Back was playing on his team. After they both seemed to have the same style of play on the court they all started playing together embarrasing guys from court to court over here. After so many months they decided to get a camera and tape the games because people would always have to hear about what happened on the court rather than be able to see it if they were'nt there. ..read more..
SBA - The Street Basketball Association was established in 2001 with a mission to create a professional street basketball league and a forum for talented players to showcase their innovative and unique skills in front of television viewers and live audiences around the globe.
Dime was founded in the spring of 1999, by Todd Miller (T Mill)and Adeyemi Adegbesan (Ayo). It began as a clothing line which became a success in a local city in Canada. Soon after they later developed into a successful website. Dime began as a small free-based site and has now developed into one of the biggest streetball based sites on the internet. In 2001 Dime introduced a player by the name of Tru Baller who locates from Florida. With the popularity of Tru they began a team called "Team Dime." Now dime has added players to the team representing the United States and Canada. Today Dime is an organization dedicated in promoting today's urban culture, whether it be by clothing or basketball. They are providing a way for young and unseen talent to showcase their skills to a broader audience. Through this Dime is helping today's youth to have a positive impact and pursue their goals.
Flip Ballaz: Ni'no Ventura, John Lazo, Earl Real and Joshua Geco, were all basketball players before, but getting a hold of the AND1 Mix Tapes inspired them to put a little flair into their game. Pretty soon the group expanded to include J.V. Kapunan, Decky Decano, Dedick Manansala, Miguel Aragon, Francis Gacho and J.M. Paat. It was just a matter of time before they began shooting footage of themselves and distributing it to friends and anyone who showed any interest. In a roundabout way, the Flip Ballaz are themselves responsible for bringing the AND1 Mix Tape players over to the Phillippines. Their footage eventually ended up with he Philippine distributor of AND1, who promptly sent it to America, which then convinced them that sending the Mix Tape players over to Manila might not be such a bad idea after all. The Flip Ballaz are not just indulging a passing fancy "they take the sport very seriously and have even acquired nicknames of their own, very much like the Mix Tape players themselves. If they become as successful as their idols" not as unlikely a possibility as one might think, seeing that they have been invited to perform in PBA and PBL events and at charity games" they may become known not only by their real names but with such monikers as Ni'no "Dynomite" Ventura, John "Smily" Lazo, Earl "the Pearl" Real, Joshua "H2O" Gueco, J.V. "Shimmer" Kapunan, Decky "Nice Try" Decano, Dedick "D2D" Manansala, Miguel "Peewee" Aragon, Francis "Cartwheel" Gacho and J.M. "Predator" Paat.
NoLimitzStreetBall - During the summer of 2004, NoLimitzStreetball made its first appearance in Quebec Canada. At first, the crew was composed of a couple of players who shared the same passion for streetball. With a drive of motivation the team decided to expand their horizons. It was from that moment on that NolimitzStreetBall contacted two players from France. Already well known in France, they joined the crew and soon NoLimitzStreetBall became more popular. Yet, this wasn’t enough for the team, it wasn't until NoLimitzStreetBall met Bruno ‘‘oktopus’’ Rathbote, the owner of an urban art boutique (www.oktoshop.com) which specializes in graffiti and airbrushed clothing. It was thanks to him that an association would bring NoLimitzStreetBall & Oktoshop together. Bruno Rathbote supported the crew by creating clothes for the players. A week later more great news hit the crew. Sibo Leblanc, an agent for artists and the owner of SiboSteps (www.sibosteps.net). gave the team a chance to raise travel funds, participate in tournaments and also have a variety of accessories. Motivation was there, members of the crew recruited many other players from the Montreal region. From there the crew grew to have an excellent reputation and this made the team proud. NoLimitzStreetBall continues to grow with many members being young athletes from different high schools and colleges. To view some of the video clips visit their website at www.nolimitzstreetball.com. Thanks to the encouragement from people all around the crew will grow to know the game of streetball.
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