During a regularly scheduled Wednesday evening of street basketball at the Holcombe Rucker Basketball Courts – referred to as Rucker Park by most native New Yorkers – a shooting broke out. Four men and a teenager were left hurt at Harlem’s famed Rucker Park.
Shots rang out from the stands shortly after 11 P.M. on Wednesday night, scattering hundreds of basketball fans present for the nightcap, including former New York Knicks guard Nate Robinson.
The packed crowd was gathered for the Entertainers Basketball Classic, which places the best of the best street ball players against each other from June through August.
Some say the occurrence was over a dispute amongst the crowd and a disagreement with a referee. The victims were shot in the ankle, leg or arm, and rushed to local hospitals, where they were in stable condition. Robinson was not injured.
Hot weather during the summer in major cities such as New York and Chicago normally warrants violence, especially in underprivileged areas.
No surprise here but an unfortunate event at Rucker Park nonetheless.
Joseph Turuseta | Elite.