(AllHipHop News) The legendary tradition of New York City street ball is headed to TV. The Entertainer’s Basketball Classic (EBC), known for its star-studded summer tournaments at Rucker Park, is teaming with ESPN to air eight half-hour episodes of highlights from this year’s competition.
Fans will also have access to the 2014 Summer Tournament via the web with live streaming of two games taking place once a week on the EBC website. This announcement comes in conjunction with EBC revealing it has secured corporate sponsorships with Reebok Classic, Monster Energy Drink, New Era and The Ultimate Fan (T.U.F.).
“With the support of our new sponsors, we are able to take the EBC at Rucker Park to new heights,” says EBC Founder Greg Marius. “Over the last 30 years, we have continued to make improvements and evolve the game of street ball, while still remaining authentic and true to its core, which are both beneficial to our players and basketball fans. These most recent improvements allow us to enhance the excitement and experience the community have when they visit the EBC at Rucker Park.”
The court at West 155th Street and Frederick Douglass Boulevard’s Rucker Parker is no longer topped with asphalt. Players will now ball on a NBA-style outdoor wood floor. The new floor will feature images of celebrated EBC players that have passed away- Malik Sealy, John “Big Strick” Strickland, Troy “Escalade” Jackson and Tyrone “Alimoe” Evans. In addition, new bleachers and a digital scoreboard have been added to the park.
The 2014 EBC Summer Basketball Tournament kicked off on June 16th. A Men’s division, Women’s division, Tri-state High School division, and several Youth divisions will all take place. Special celebrity coaches from music and the NBA are expected to participate as well. Last year saw professional ballers like Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and Shaquille O’Neal and Hip Hop stars like Rick Ross, 2 Chainz, and Fat Joe make appearances.
Watch video of Kevin Durant dropping 66 points at The Rucker in 2011.