Nike unveiled Rivington Court to the streetball circuit Wendesday night on the Lower East Side (Robert Cole)
There is nothing like the original when it comes to Team Nike.
On a night when the sports apparel giant unveiled its newest summer ball all-star team and its plush new home, last year’s squad reaffirmed its dominance of the New York City circuit. Team Nike I used a big second half to beat Team Nike II, 87-77, in front of more than 700 people at the newly created Rivington Court on the Lower East Side Wednesday night.
“Of course, there is only one original team,” Nike I guard Antwan (Antifreeze) Dobie said. “But no knock on team two. They are a solid team. They just have to take some time to gel.”
Nike II led 47-40 at the half, but went cold and fell victim to the stingy defense and inside presence of a revamped Nike I squad, last year’s Tournament of Champions winner. B.J. (The Beast) McFarland led all scorers with 18 points, new addition Mike Campbell had 16, Al Sheppard 14 and Greg Plummer, the reigning Nike Streetball Player of the Year, added 11 in his first game with his new team. Christ the King alum Erving Walker tallied 18 points, NBA Draft hopeful Tu Holloway of Xavier tallied 15 points and Kavon (Happy Feet) Lytch-Jones added 14 for Nike II.
“Those guys are kind of young so most of their goals are individually oriented,” Campbell said. “We have already been there, [done] that. We have our eyes on the ‘W’ at the end. They want the crowd.”
Added Nike I coach Maxwell (Bingo) Cole: “It was an ego check”
This is the last New York City will see of Team Nike I for awhile. The squad is scheduled to fly to London Thursday for the first stop on a World Basketball Festival tour that also includes Paris to take on fellow all-star teams. They return to the states to play in the U.S. World Basketball Festival in Washington D.C. in a four-team tournament against all-star teams from Chicago, Los Angeles and D.C. The summer ends with a rematch against Nike II and Ooh-Way, the on team to knock off Nike I at Dyckman last year.
“I think we proved what we needed to prove in New York City and now it’s time to see what we can do in the road,” Cole said.
It is a move that will take some of New York City’s top streetball players off the local circuit for a good portion of the summer. Going abroad takes them away from their families, who many of them come back to around this time every year after playing overseas. They all said it is a sacrifice they are willing to make. Seven of the squad’s players play on Bingo’s All-Stars in multiple leagues. Cole has confidence in his remaining guys and joked he told them just to make sure they qualify for the playoffs.
“A lot of the family, the wives and the kids were mad, but they understand this is part of being a brand,” Dobie said. “It’s almost bigger than basketball.”
In their absence, Team Nike II will call the brand new Rivington Court home. It will not play in a league, but instead take on select teams every Wednesday night. A full schedule is expected next week.
The facility features a hardwood floor placed in the middle of the school yard at Lower East Side Prep, two sets of stands and VIP seating around the court. While the lighting is dim, it features a giant scoreboard and video board that allows for in-game replays. Nike will also use it for the Battle of the Boroughs, Tournament of Champions and other events throughout the summer.
“Nike sure knows how to keep things sexy,” Cole said.
The new squad, coached by Raheem (Rah) Wiggins, features Walker, Lytch-Jones, Corsley Edwards, Frank Elegar, New Jersey Nets guard Sundiata Gaines, former Providence star Geoff McDermott, Marvin Roberts and Chris (Stixx) Weyhe. Rashad Bell and Justin Burrell of St. John’s fame were both absent Wednesday. Walker, who just finished a standout career at the University of Florida, sees the team as a collection of the young guns on the city’s summer streetball circuit and knows nothing will come easy.
“That’s New York,” he said. “It’s always going to be a battle. It’s a great event, it’s an honor to be a part of it.”