“Ballaholic”, “Escalade”, “The Professor”, “The Best Kept Secret”, “Half Man, Half Amazing”, and “Swee’ Pea” are just a few of the nicknames of famous streetballers. Being given a nickname in streetball is a great honor, and players never come up with their own nickname. A player must be highly respected to get a nickname.

Streetball is all about honor and respect. Although it’s a rough sport with its trash talk and harsh competition, streetball players share pride in and a great passion for the game. 

NYC is said to be the birthplace of streetball. The sport dates back to 1900 but first became famous in 1950 when Holcombe Rucker established the first tournament at Rucker Park in Harlem. Kobe Bryant, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, and many other famous players played at Rucker Park. 

Because of streetballers’ success stories, streetball got a reputation of making dreams come true. For some, the dream was to play in the highest leagues in the U.S. or abroad. For others, it was being accepted into college. For some, it was just having the opportunity to show off their talents to enthusiastic audiences on the streets of big cities like New York.  

NYC has always been a magnet for ambitious people with many different talents. The diversity of people living in NYC, New Yorkers’ love of extreme personalities, and the amazing institutions for the arts and education all contribute to make New York the “City of Dreams”. And those New Yorkers’ dreams range from having a safe place to live and support their families, to becoming a famous dancer, artist, or basketball player, to making millions on Wall Street. 

Although it might have become a lot harder to fulfilling dreams, each year new success stories strengthen New York’s reputation as The City of Dreams.