Street basketball tournament returns to Timmins
Basketball has returned to the streets of Timmins, with the ‘Blacktop 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament’ taking over part of the city’s downtown Saturday.
Back for the first time since pre-pandemic, dozens of players from around the region came together to compete for prizes and bragging rights.
Adam Presso, the event's organizer, said with the city's only outdoor basketball event returning for its 11th year, after two years away, he wanted to invite more ballers of all skill levels to compete.
"We have 28 teams this year, so it’s our biggest one yet and it’s just been a lot of fun,” said Presso, adding that more age groups were invited this year.
“We have age 10 to 12 division ... this is the youngest age division we’ve had yet. It’s nice to see the young people coming out.”
Teams of three put their skills and teamwork to the test, with many players appreciating being able to take on a variety of competitors outside a traditional indoor basketball court.
“It’s a different environment than we’re used to, especially in the off-season," said one player, fresh off a match with her fellow teammates.
"It gives us an opportunity to still work on our skills and work on our teamwork.”
There were over 80 players grouped in teams of three - each with a fierce or funny Team names, like the ‘High Flyers,’ the ‘Low Expectations’ or the ‘Blue Balls.’
Though some of the more than 80 basketball players felt they could have had better performances, Passo said the point is to have fun, improve your skills and come back next year to try again.
Some players just appreciated the social aspect of the event.
"With the two years that we had, it's fun to get out and see people," said one player, with his cousins, dubbing their team the ‘Blue Balls.’
Passo said he wants to keep growing the event and encourage more young people to develop their basketball skills and potentially follow in the footsteps of some of their favourite professional athletes.
"You kind of see the kids develop as the years go on," Passo said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
First court appearance for boy and girl charged in death of Halifax 16-year-old
A girl and a boy, both 14 years old, made their first appearance today in a Halifax courtroom, where they each face a second-degree murder charge in the stabbing death of a 16-year-old high school student.