Streetball gets a bad wrap. After being exposed to the And1 Mixtape Tour, and occasional Rucker Park Tournament highlight, it’s easy to envision four guys standing around while one guy dribbles, each possession punctuated by a slam dunk with little or no defense.
But the Ball Up “Search for the Next” is completely different from its predecessors. It’s a 10-city tour looking for the best undiscovered player in the country that culminates in $100,000 and a roster spot for the tour’s winner.
“The Professor” aka Grayson Boucher is a streetball legend who converted a random tryout into a career as a professional basketball player.
While attending an And1 Mixtape Tour stop in Portland, Oregon in 2003, the 5’10” 155 pound 19-year-old Professor competed in an open run competition prior to that evening’s game and did well enough to get invited back that evening to square off against team And1.
After a solid performance in the game, he joined the team full-time and was suddenly getting paid to play basketball, literally overnight.