Yahoo News 
UAE Streetball Championships underway with new faces looking to challenge the old guard
The 10th Annual UAE Streetball Championship got underway on Friday with almost 80 teams entering this year’s tournament across seven categories, including Men’s Elite, Men’s Open, Men 6’ and under, Women’s Elite, Women’s Open, Boys 16-18 and Boys 14-15.
They are all competing for a total prize pool of around Dhs75,000, with the winners of the main Men’s Elite competition taking home a cool Dhs10,000.
The winners of that title will likely be X Men, Beast Squad or Bone Collectors, according to tournament organiser Ziad Al Sharabi.
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Of course, of the three, X Men may be at a slight advantage as they have a former NBA player among their ranks in 27-year-old ex-Sacramento Kings small forward Donte Green.
Green was selected 28th overall in the 2008 NBA Draft by the Memphis Grizzlies before being traded to the Houston Rockets and then the Kings, where he played in a total of 253 NBA games.
Now living in the UAE and playing for Al Nasr, Green’s involvement is just another indication of the UAE Streetball Championship’s rising popularity.
“The caliber of players competing is rising and it shows that this tournament is growing rapidly. We’re going from strength to strength,” said Al Sharabi, who has been involved in running the last six versions and has seen the event grow from humble beginnings at Sharjah Golf and Shooting Club.
“It’s got so much bigger every year and it’s not just the same faces, we’re getting new players showing up. It’s an event people are starting to ask us about a few months before it is held, they’re seeking us out and they can’t wait for it.”
With the UAE itself approaching only its 44th birthday, many sporting tournaments held in the country are in their infancy.
The UAE Streetball Championship, however, is very much a fixed part of the sporting calendar, and is the longest standing three on three event in the region.
What started as a tournament played on one court with two baskets has evolved into an eight-court tournament, six of which are permanent.
“The club itself was established 10 years ago and the tournament has been around ever since,” said Al Sharabi.
“It’s a very well established tournament. It doesn’t make us any money but we want to keep it going because the roots of it and the club are intertwined.”
One thing that always proves to be a crowd pleaser is the Slam Dunk Competition, which has been won for the last three years by Syrian Amer Sati.
“Amer used to play for the American University of Dubai and he was also part of a recent Nike basketball campaign, while he is a former Syrian international too,” he said.
“There are lots of new faces though this year so he could face a bit of a challenge to defend his title from some pretty big guys.”
There is also a 3 point competition, with both of these held prior to the Men’s Elite final on Saturday.
