The Notic: Uncut & Unreleased
And1 vs. ATL All-Stars| Rattling Rims - AND 1 at Minneapolis |
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| Written by Administrator | |
| Saturday, 08 July 2006 | |
 The main goal for a player showing up for the AND1 Mix Tape Tour tryout Thursday afternoon in downtown Minneapolis was to get a pink bracelet.
Forget about being fashionable. That was the only way you could get a shot at playing the AND1 streetball legends that night in Target Center.
AND1, a sports shoe and apparel company, began endorsing playground basketball nearly a decade ago, and now these streetball players have their own video games, shoe commercials and movies, and they travel the world like the Harlem Globetrotters.But becoming the next AND1 streetball legend might be as difficult as becoming the next LeBron James. As the tour travels to 25 cities entertaining fans across the country every summer, it also is on the lookout for one player who can make the team. The Mix Tape Tour has come to Minneapolis for three straight summers, but no player had made it onto the bus until Thursday night... Team AND1 defeated Minnesota 127-115, but the tour picked up Minneapolis Technical College student Cortez Wallace, who attended St. Louis Park High School but didn't play basketball there. After passing a background check, Wallace could join the tour in a week. "I think (Wallace) played basketball and competed," said AND1 coach Mike Ellis, who consults with current AND1 players at the end of the tour in August to determine who on the opposing team will get the next contract. "People think it's all highlights, but you need role players, guys who can play and finish." More than 100 players from the Twin Cities showcased their skills for two hours Thursday, but only five advanced. Terrell Cournoyea and Mike King were from St. Paul. Wallace, Frank Johnson and Robert Pierson were from Minneapolis. Cournoyea hadn't played organized ball since helping to lead Johnson Senior High School to the state tournament in 2004, but he was one of three players who made it into the building from last year. At 5 feet 9, he was the shortest among the local competitors and the only one with a puffy ponytail. Even if he wasn't a high-flying dunker, Cournoyea would be an instant fan favorite. But he brought the fans to their feet after entering the game in the first half against the AND1 legends. His double-clutch reverse slam could make the cut for ESPN's "Streetball" television show, which started its fifth season Thursday night. "I've been playing streetball my whole life," said Cournoyea, 20, a Minneapolis Technical College student. "I just go out there and do what comes natural. I've been dunking since my freshman year in high school. The atmosphere is nice. You just can't explain it." King was chosen to play at Target Center when AND1 first came to Minneapolis in 2004, but he embarrassed himself. "I started eating before the game and got sick," said King, 27, a regular pickup basketball player at Loring Park in Minneapolis. "But it was worth it. We need something like this for guys in the hood." In these games, anyone can get dunked on or be left reaching for air on a quick crossover dribble, but it doesn't happen as often as you might think. Nobody wants to be humiliated, but that's what made Johnson's dunk so special during the open run. A lanky 6-3 athlete in dreadlocks, Johnson made all the AND1 streetball players jump from their chairs with a two-handed slam between the outstretched arms of a defender. The play got him in the arena. "You don't get that many chances to show what you can do," said Johnson, who won a state championship with Minneapolis North in 2003. "The last time I missed the cut by just that much." Briefly: Teen R&B singer Chris Brown had a concert at Minneapolis Convention Center Thursday night, but he rushed over to the Target Center to play in the second half. MARCUS R. FULLER Pioneer Press - TwinCities.com |
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