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The Professor: On Signing w/ Salem Stampede |
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Written by Administrator
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Monday, 06 March 2006 |
 Grayson Boucher has appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated and played basketball throughout the world with the And1 streetball tour, and he is called "The Professor" because, he said, "I school people on the court." Known for his ballhandling skills, which include an assortment of spin moves, behind-the-back passes, dribbling between his legs and alley-oop passes that often result in dunks, Boucher has cultivated a lucrative career earning "six figures" annually on the And1 streetball tour, he says.
Boucher has become a celebrity playing a hip-hop brand of basketball in which style and showmanship are emphasized more than wins and losses. He recently returned from Los Angeles, where he shot the trailer for a movie in which he will appear called "Ball Don't Lie," is making the transition to organized basketball as a member of the first-year Salem Stampede in the International Basketball League...
A Salem Academy High School graduate who played one year for Chemeketa Community College, Boucher spoke about his opportunity with the Stampede and his life on the And1 streetball tour.
Question: The Salem Stampede opens its inaugural season March 18 with an exhibition game against Seattle at Woodburn High School. How did you get involved with this organization?
Answer: I went to them and tried out. I think they really didn't know what to expect.
Q: Will it be a major adjustment to go from streetball to organized basketball?
A: It is definitely going to be different. But for me, I love regular basketball. That's what I do when I work out. It's not like I practice just streetball. As far as an adjustment, I can say the style of play is totally different. But on one hand, I don't think it will be an adjustment just because I'm a basketball player and that's what I've always done before.
Q: What is your goal with the Stampede?
A: To improve as a basketball player and, like everybody else, use it as a steppingstone for organized basketball. It's about the experience of moving up. I'm just trying to go as high as I can.
Q: Will you continue to be part of the And1 streetball tour?
A: I'll always stay with And1 -- maybe not in the overseas tour, but I'll always try to do the summer tour. I'll always stay loyal to them because they're the first ones to put me on.
Q: Does it make it extra special that the Stampede is a Salem-based franchise?
A: I'm actually more excited than the (streetball) tour in a sense to play for this team because it's in Salem; it's pro basketball. I can't wait. It's bigger that it's here. I played here -- I played at Chemeketa, I played at Salem Academy.
Q: Will the International Basketball League season interfere with the summer streetball tour?
A: Unfortunately, I'm going to have to miss the last few games with the Stampede. But I want to try and make it so I can finish out the season.
Q: For those people not familiar with streetball, how would you describe it?
A: Streetball is the same as basketball, but it's way more entertaining. The difference in rules is they'll let a carry go if it has to do with style, if it looks good. Also, it's more physical. They don't call any fouls, man. You get away with a lot. I just try to keep the game up-tempo. I like to spin a lot. It's a lot of battles, one-on-one. It's more about putting on a show.
Streetball is like skateboarding. There's no league. There's teams and you go head-to-head, and it's all about pride and reputation.
Q: Are you surprised by the attention you've received since joining the And1 streetball tour in 2003?
A: Actually, yes. Before I got on the streetball tour, it was kind of, like, underground. It was beginning to catch popularity because it had its first season on ESPN. My first season was season two. It's kind of amazing how far it's come. It's come to the point where we have a video game, we've got volume nine (DVD), our latest DVD is going to come out this summer. When I was a fan, they only had two or three. We've been overseas six times to play ball.
Q: Have you learned a lot from being part of the And1 streetball tour?
A: Big-time. Being exposed to that type of limelight, you're exposed to all kinds of people, media and everything. I couldn't even talk in front of a crowd (before joining the tour). I didn't even like talking in front of my classroom. ... Now we go to clinics and talk to thousands of people, and it's not a problem to respond to media or anything like that. I've just learned a lot of life lessons.
Q: Do you play against organized teams on the tour, and are they trying to win?
A: It's not a league. It's supposedly the best streetballers from wherever we go. We lost five (games) last summer. It's been like three or four (losses) every summer. It's real competition. The teams we're playing try to beat us every game. Nothing's ever rehearsed or laid out.
When you're on the team, you've got to pull off moves, you've got to try and put on a show and try to win the game. So you've actually got two missions instead of one.
Q: Do you and your teammates feel like celebrities?
A: It's big-time, especially in Australia. Here, we're like celebrities. But I think we're probably below actors and rappers. Kind of like down here with reality-TV people. But in Australia, it's more mainstream. And1 rules the world of basketball internationally.
Q: How did you get involved with the And1 streetball tour?
A: Just being a fan. In 2003, I heard they were going to take some people on tour and have this contest (held in front of the Memorial Coliseum in Portland). I just went out and tried out. I was going out to have a good time, just to see a good game and hope to interact and participate a little bit. It turned out to be a career opportunity.
Q: You've gone from a junior-varsity player at McNary to the cover of Sports Illustrated. It's quite a story.
A: My whole life, people always doubted me because I was small. I had to prove people wrong in high school. I had to prove people wrong my senior year (at Salem Academy) playing varsity. I had to prove people wrong in college. Then I make it to the (And1) tour, now it's the IBL, same thing. A lot of people don't think I can play regular basketball. Little do they know I'm damn near one of the best players on the team.
Q: Did making the cover of Sports Illustrated provide validation for the And1 streetball tour?
A: Man, it kind of just showed how far it's all come. It was based on the whole history of streetball and how And1 has revolutionized the streetball game. That right there just symbolized how far it's come, from underground to the king of all sports magazines.
Source: GARY HOROWITZ
Statesman Journal
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