“The hell is Fightball?” you ask.
A Hunger Games-style one-on-one basketball tournament staged in “a club setting” and contested by 16 of the best amateur basketball players in the country.
For $100,000.
While the event is invite-only, InsideHook has a handful of exclusive tickets to give away.
Want them? Enter here and we’ll pick two winners at random and hook them up with a pair of tickets to the March 10th championship.
FIGHTBALL The Set Up 0:30
The tourney begins on March 3rd and 4th, with two single-elimination tournaments pitting the full field of players against one another for a $10,000 cash prize. The top four finishers from each of these rounds will then advance to the final, where they’ll battle for a $100,000 grand prize.
Consider my interest piqued. But why’s it called “Fightball”? Because it’s a contact sport. “Think NBA in the ’80s, not today’s NBA,” warn the organizers.
We talking Rambis and Laimbeer swapping ‘bows or, like, fisticuffs and suplexes? The rules state that “a foul is only a foul if it’s flagrant.” Each player gets two fouls. On the third, their opponent goes to the line.
The free throw line? Eh, sort of. Fightball’s court is a little different. It’s 40 feet long with a two-foot-wide “two-point line” bisecting the court. That’s where you shoot free throws from.
Any other rule changes I should be aware of? Plenty. The rules of Fightball are designed to make the game ridiculously fast-paced, physical and high-scoring. For example, dunks are worth three points. Everything else is ones and twos (via aforementioned two-point line). Games last eight minutes, with two four-minute halves. Each player gets one timeout. Oh, and there’s an eight-second shot clock.
Eight seconds?! Yes, as in the same amount NBA players are allowed for crossing half court.
Sounds exhausting. It is. And the winner will have played three games by the time the night is over.
I’m in. Who’s playing? Don’t expect any NBA players. Not sure they’re cut out for this regardless. But some NYC street legends will be in attendance, along with former Fightball standouts. Like:
- Fightball 00 champion Mike Tuitt
- Returning Fightball 00 finalist Marvin Roberts, who won the tourney’s “Dunk of the Night” and has previously been named Nike’s NY Summer League Player of the Year
- Returning Fightball 00 finalist Chris Smith — aka J.R. Smith’s younger brother
- And returning Fightball 00 finalist William McFarlan. This will be McFarlan’s last big tournament, and he plans to go out with a bang.
FIGHTBALL UP CLOSEWilliam McFarlan2:42
The other competitors and location will be revealed in the coming weeks via short video features. Whether you’re one of the lucky fellas who wins entry to the event or simply a newfound fan of this no-holds-barred competition, you can follow the action and get the full scoop here.
This article was featured in the InsideHook NY newsletter. Sign up now for more from all five boroughs.
