120 Days

Nike and Chicago-based boutique usher in the city’s public hoops league.

by Jeff Min

Last spring Nike and Chicago-based sneaker boutique, St. Alfred, teamed up to open a slick little retail space called Six Points. Six Points, tucked in the heart of Chicago’s Wicker Park (and referring to the intersection of Damen, North and Milwaukee Avenue), is a virtual crossroads where art, culture and sport take center stage.

In addition to selling exclusive and custom Nike gear, Six Points has taken a strong approach towards embracing the diehard athletes that occupy the world of sports. For the World Cup they held a screening of the documentary pelada, which chronicled the journey of Gwendolyn Oxenham and her attempt to embrace the universal language of soccer. For the Chicago Marathon they took much the same approach by revisiting the story of Phil Knight, Bill Bowerman and Geoff Hollister and the humble, yet ambitious, beginnings of Nike and the Athletics West Running Team.

“It’s organic as it’s a collaboration, so we work closely together,” says Nike PR manager Cindy Hamilton.  “We knew from the start that the retail focus and programming for the space would be based off the sports calendar in Chicago-summer/soccer/World Cup; fall/running/Chicago Marathon; winter/basketball.”

To usher in the beginning of the basketball season, Six Points, in similar fashion to previous events, held a celebration honoring eight teams from the Chicago Public Basketball League. Special guests that night included SLAM alum Scoop Jackson, educator and author Dr. Todd Boyd (aka the Notorious PhD) and hip-hop collective Cali Swag District.

The kickoff event, christened “120 Days: High School Hoops Madness,”  took place on an unseasonably mild evening at the Wicker Park Field House on November 12th. Representatives from the boys and girls basketball teams at Whitney Young, Crane, Farragut, Brooks, Simeon, Morgan Park, Marshall and Von Steuben filed in at around 6pm to get their pictures taken and to be interviewed by student run media outlet Hoops High. “Nike wanted to celebrate the beginning of the high school basketball season … it’s 120 days of hard work, intense competition and amazing experiences,” explains Hamilton. And celebrate they did.

As coaches and players entered the gymnasium they were instantly greeted by two projection screens rolling off highlights of previous CPL games. After the teams settled in their seats guest emcee Leon Rogers roused the crowd by holding an impromptu Dougie dance off . The students literally jumped at the opportunity to show off their moves, and truth be completely told, John Wall ain’t got nothing on these kids. The youthful vibrance projected by the students during the dance off truly captured the essence of friendly competition, and everybody in that gym (security included) couldn’t help but smile in admiration.

Shortly after the competition, where in my opinion Farragut took the prize, Scoop Jackson graced the stage with his always beaming personality. Jackson was in top form as he broke down the rare opportunities that the students had in front of them and the need to “multiply” those “blessings.”

“What I was trying to get across to the kids that attended the event was something that they could ‘apply’ to the game and their preparation for the upcoming season, but also something that they could hold on to when the season is over,” said Scoop after the event. “I believe that to some degree that 10, 15, 20 years from now basketball will still be a part of every kid in that rooms life. To some degree. Even if they are just watching games. To me, because of that, there are still lessons that they can learn from the game. Hell, I’m still learning. I’m still using the game to help me grow as a person.”

If Scoop served as the oracle for the endless possibilities guest speaker Dr. Boyd was the living proof. Dr. Boyd and Scoop bounced off each other like they were old buddies kickin’ it in the barbershop; revisiting how they met, talking basketball (Chicago vs. Detroit) and explaining that opportunities like this don’t come along very often, usually never. At one point Boyd, in straight Wu fashion, compared life to the Game of Death-with its various challenges and adversities.

“Basketball can be a design for life, if used properly,” explained Dr. Boyd via email. “In The Game of Death, Bruce Lee faces different challenges and has to adapt to the new styles of martial arts on every floor of the pagoda. It’s not one size fits all, it’s about constantly adapting to new challenges and then when he gets to the top he faces the biggest challenge in the giant Kareem Abdul Jabber. The point is the challenges get harder, not easier. It’s about mental preparation, mind over matter.”

As intense a presence as Dr. Boyd was that night the students seemed to understand exactly what was at stake. Many if not all of them have aspirations to make it the L, but the odds, as we all know, aren’t always in their favor. But harsh realities aside hope was the  message and both Jackson and Dr. Boyd are prime examples of what the game can offer outside the confines of the hardwood. After an understated goodbye, Inglewood natives Cali Swag District took the stage for an unannounced performance.

The students weren’t nearly as riled by the performance as one would imagine, considering they were dancing the Dougie just moments before.  And there’s not a doubt in my mind it had something to do with the impact of Dr. Boyd and Scoop’s words. Don’t get me wrong the students kept up with Cali Swag move for move and sometimes verse for verse, but the knowledge dropped by Scoop and Dr. Boyd was just a little too poignant to let go. As the event wrapped up Nike reps handed out gift bags to commemorate the night and the students slowly filed out taking pictures, laughing and doing their best to be kids in a very adult situation.

Truth is in 120 days a majority of these smiles will be replaced by the fierce look of competition. For the ballers there that evening the hardwood will be the ultimate test of desire and will, all of which will come to a climax come playoff time. If they’re lucky a select team will have the privilege of walking away with the ultimate prize: A State Championship. But no matter what the outcome, no matter if they make it to college or even to the elite world of professional basketball the messages brought to them by Scoop, Dr. Boyd and Six Points will always be there to remind them that progress is the name of the game.

Says Scoop, “Here’s why [the event] is meaningful. Last year, I sat down and did a Q&A with Derrick Rose. Now, I’ve known about Pooh since he was in 7th grade, but had only met him once. After the interview, he said to me, ‘You remember that night I met you when you spoke at the high school event with Coach Chaney?’ I said, ‘Yep, I sure do.’ He said to me, ‘I wanted to thank you for everything you said to us that night. I still remember everything you said and still tell myself a lot of the things you said to this day. It meant a lot.’ To me, that says it all. That’s why the event will always be meaningful.”

Jeff Min is avid sports and music fan, and splits his time between watching ball games and DJing on the radio for WDCB’s “Acid Jazz by Moonlight” in Chicago.