Locke Park, a place that makes new york people proud. It is located in Harlem155th Street, adjacent to Frydek Douglas Avenue. Locke is not a park in the general sense. For those who are obsessed with black culture, new york culture and even American culture, this is a must. ● Harlem has almost become synonymous with street basketball, but "rock basketball" is the most essential culture. This is the temple of street basketball. Even if an NBA superstar like Kobe Bryant comes to Locke Park, he should remain humble. Rock Park: Streetball Holy Land passes through the thick night in Harlem, new york from baseball to basketball. Turn right from 153 Street and enter 155 Street, where the former polo baseball field is located. That stadium has been the home of the New York Giants since 189 1. 19 1 1 year, its wooden stands caused a fire and the whole stadium was razed to the ground. Now stands a 17-story "Slum Building". You can guess what people call "Polo Stadium Apartment". There is no one over the terrace on the roof of the apartment, only the clothesline and TV antenna are sprawling. Looking down from this once holy place of baseball, you can see an asphalt basketball court painted with red and green paint, and some empty beer bottles in brown kraft paper bags have nowhere to hide under the pale street lights. That's another holy place: Locke Park. Since 60 years ago, Rock Park has been the holy land of streetball, as old as the history of NBA. From 65438 to 0946, Holcomb Locke, an employee of new york Park Bureau, decided to find some entertainment for the idle children in Harlem on a hot summer night, so he founded a summer basketball league. What makes the park a headache is that the net in Locke Park always falls apart in less than two days. In the end, the park manager simply didn't change the net, so until today, the bare iron ring is still the eye-catching symbol of the street court. The role of the Nets is to slow down the falling speed of basketball, and it is also an eye-catching sign when shooting from a distance. The direct result of the lack of net is that there are few long-range shots in early streetball. Players like to score points through dunks or layups, so they must pass the defenders first. The fancy style of streetball was born, but at that time, there was no dribbling under the legs, and the best players were only good at dribbling in different directions. In the 1960s, the political instability in the United States made many people, especially young people, feel desperate, which was more obvious in Rock Park. It was an era when street heroes came forth in large numbers. Legendary streetball superstars such as Hammond the Destroyer, Manigat the Goat and Piwei kirkland caused a sensation in Locke Park. They are called "street poets" or "gods on asphalt". The appearance of these legendary players made the Rock Park famous, and many people came here to watch them play. The hood parked next to the stadium is the best side seat, the bridge on155th Street is the balcony on the second floor, and the rooftops of tall buildings around the park are cheap seats. The best players in the NBA also come here to play against the streetball masters. Wilt chamberlain, Owen, Nate archibald, cowans and Qiao Ba are frequent visitors to Locke Park. "Those street heroes are never afraid of professional players," said Duke Tango, who has been a commentator in Rock Park for many years. "This makes them even greater. They regard professional players as ordinary people, but they are lucky enough to play in professional leagues. Outside the NBA, those professional players are no different from the poor boys in the surrounding communities. " The difference between fancy basketball and traditional basketball Traditional basketball and streetball only interpret basketball and culture in different forms, so both traditional basketball and streetball are part of basketball, and it doesn't matter whether they are formal or informal, because the rules are different. Conventional basketball: high efficiency, high speed, tactical coordination and strong antagonism; Streetball is the extreme embodiment of personal ability. When attacking, it attacks or passes it to the opposite friend with a big fake action to complete the ultimate goal. There are also confrontations, but the focus is on dribbling skills. It's a Monday night, and Locke Park is brightly lit. Williams, the "bone collector" of RBK team, used his amazing speed to get rid of defenders many times. He fooled the defender by crossing the dribble between his legs. His return pass was as accurate as his eyes, which made the fans scream desperately ... During the pause, the hot Hip-hop music sounded, the DJ was just sensational, and rapper's performance kept the fans in a high state. Several black boys couldn't hold back their excitement and rushed to the stadium to perform one of the most popular street dances in new york. No security guards went up to stop them. A lot of restless ass has been wriggling with these children. Mr. Holcomb Locke, the founder of street basketball in Locke Park, may only dream that his "works" will be greatly respected and sought after today. Forty years ago, the park that had not been rebuilt was a huge garbage dump. When the wind blows, the residents around can smell the stench of floating garbage. 1965, Locke, director of the municipal office of new york Park, moved his long-cherished street basketball league to the open space of this park. Although it has been renovated, it is still surrounded by abandoned buildings and the stadium is paved with asphalt. If it falls heavily in the collision, it will leave a trail of blood. But now, it is a paradise for street boys to pursue their dreams of freedom, and Locke Park has gradually established its status as the Mecca of world street basketball from new york's best street basketball field, the National Street Basketball Temple. It has the best reputation, the best players and the highest street culture, which is so high that the famous street baskets such as Greenwich Village's "Street Cage", Coney Island Garden and Philadelphia Baker are far behind. The first week of playing like Locke: At the beginning of the game, the players are ready to accept countless screams, cheers or boos and even abuse. The second week: In addition to normal games, some NBA stars will be invited to compete with league stars. Every player who participates in the event will be given a nickname by the event organizer, but Richardson, the Warrior invited last year, performed poorly and didn't get any name. Week 3: The competition entered the climax stage. Week 4: All-Star Game in Harlem. The winners are all street basketball players in this area, but NBA players are not excluded. For example, O 'Neal of Pacers, marino of Suns and Marbury were all selected for last year's All-Star Game. Week 5: At this time last year, Kobe Bryant "visited". Maybe there will be an NBA star this year, but I don't know if he will be humiliated again. Week 6: A week for defenders, especially point guards. Many NBA scouts will come here to watch the game, hoping to find a good defender, but only if the latter agrees. Week 7: The playoff time is also the climax of the "performance show". Week 8: The finals are coming. The two teams with the most basketball strength and performance talent will compete for the annual championship. Last year's winner was Terrorist Group. When it comes to streetball, we have to mention Harlem, new york, and when it comes to Harlem, we have to say that Lake Park, located on 155 Avenue, is regarded as a streetball temple by streetball players all over the world. Locke Park is not a park in the general sense, but a streetball shrine that combines American culture, black culture and basketball culture. Rock players make Kobe a joke. NBA stars also visit the Rock Park in their spare time. If you hear that any NBA star has played against a streetball player, it's probably in the Rock Park. "Jabbar" Jabbar, Chamberlain and Dr. J all played in Locke, and now NBA stars such as O 'Neill, Steve Marbury, Iverson, Mashburn, Marion, Kobe Bryant and Garnett have all played in Locke. Rock Park also has its own stars, all famous street players, whose influence is no worse than any star in NBA. To put it bluntly, the players and fans here are not even interested in a star like Kobe. Some people compare the Rock Park to Bermuda of the NBA, because many NBA stars will be "insulted" by the stars of the Rock Park when they visit the Rock Park in summer, but they still enjoy it and persist in appearing on the court of the Rock Park. In the summer of 2003, Kobe came to Locke Park and hinted that he wanted to break the record of 74 points in a streetball set by Homend (the street fighter nicknamed "Destroyer" in Locke Park) when he was 25 years old. But after fighting with local players, Kobe's wild words became a joke that quickly became popular in the park-he only got 14 points in the first half, and in the second half, up to now, he recalled that year in Locke Park. Rules of Rock Park Only when you stand under the green sign of Rock Park can you really feel that it is the holy land of streetball. Before you plan to go, you will certainly get all kinds of warnings, especially to outsiders: don't look at others easily, don't talk to people standing on the roadside easily; Never walk, drive; Take a gun and never come empty-handed. It's scary, but it's all true. Maybe your brand-name sneakers and camera will be taken away. Maybe you'll get beaten up for accidentally seeing those Harlem neighborhoods. But if you do come, it shows your respect for Locke's legend. You are worthy of respect, but you must be accompanied by the guys who grew up in Harlem and listen to them. This is a sacred place. ◆ Moss Wood Park: Located at the junction of MacArthur Street and Broadway in Oakland, it is one of the top ten most famous streetball venues in the United States. NBA superstars such as gary payton (Peyton News, Peyton said) and jason kidd all grew up here. Dome Stadium: Located in the center of Madison Square, Bedell East Street 1400, Baltimore, whenever summer comes, the best streetball players gather here to learn their skills, including sam cassell and steve francis. Franklin Park: Franklin Park is located at 4320, Chicago 15 block. As we all know, Chicago is a paradise for athletes, with Austin Park in the west, Foster Park and Fenwood Park in the south. Franklin Park is located in the southwest of the city, where there are many star players, including Hardaway, Billy and Harris (Harris News, let's talk about it). ◆ Rogers Park: The indoor basketball court located at 400 Riverside Avenue, Inglewood, California is open at 8: 00 every morning, and a few outdoor courts are only open to the public in the afternoon. The jungle law of survival of the fittest is advocated here, and paul davis, the "immortal bird", is the owner here. Venice Beach Stadium: Sunshine, beauty, beach ... Venice Beach Stadium, which is less than 100 meters away from the Pacific Ocean, is a streetball paradise that has just emerged recently. Every summer, many streetball fans often gather here. The atmosphere here is warm, and there will be a scream every 12 seconds. Of course, there are some big-name stars here. ◆ San Sisera Stadium: Located next to the San Sisera Church in Detroit, NBA players chris webber (Weber News, let's talk about it), "Magic" Johnson and derrick coleman all played here. ◆ Running course: Located in Atlanta, it is the home of legendary streetball star "Hot Material". The streetball style here is very fast, often full, and there is no free space even at two in the morning. In addition, there is a running field in Washington, D.C., where stockings and crotch dribbling are two major features.