Nice Little Article on TJ Ford

Ford razzles, dazzles and wins over tough Rucker crowd

By Dan Wetzel
SportsLine.com Senior Writer

http://cbs.sportsline.com/b/page/pressbox/0,1328,5521248,00.html

NEW YORK -- They brought the kid from Texas out onto court, amid the pulsating beats of the baseline DJ, the circus of the standing-room-only crowd and the towering housing projects that surround the park and form a cathedral to the game.

Rucker Park, up here on West 155th, is not the world's most famous arena -- that's 122 blocks south -- but it's the cultural epicenter of the city game. This is where every basketball player dreams of coming and showing, because the crowds that flock to the rickety old stands surrounding the simple, public court don't care much about reputations.


If he continues his stellar play, T.J. Ford (left) will likely be a first-team All-American next season.(Allsport)

Do what you want in the Big 12 or on ESPN or even in the NBA, but until you've done well here, on a perfect July night in Harlem like this one last Wednesday, then you just haven't done it.

"T.J. Ford," they announced to the crowd as the 5-foot-11 point guard first brought the ball up court. "Texas U. Led the nation in assists. Can't score."

Welcome to Rucker.

Ford knew all of that was coming, although he says he didn't hear the P.A. comments ("I probably would have just laughed"). He first dreamed of playing in the free-wheeling games back in high school when he got a hold of the original And One Mix Tape that showed the park, the crowds hanging from the fences and the wild action.

Since Ford was working as a counselor at the Adidas ABCD camp just over the George Washington Bridge in North Jersey last week, he found some free time and secured a coveted invite into a game.

The thing about the crowds and organizers at Rucker is they don't sugarcoat anything. They'll celebrate what you can do and crush you for what you can't. No apologies, no lies.

"That's the thing, you go in not knowing how they are going to treat you," said Ford. "You see how hard they get on other players, even pros. The crowd gets into it."

Ford knew he had to win them over, but his main obstacle is the way he plays the game. He is a tremendous talent, but he plays a fundamentally sound, team-first style. Making the smart pass or taking the easy layup on the break is fine with him.

At Rucker, however, they want the colorful dribble, the 360 jams and full flavor in every move. This is basketball, yes, but it's also performance art. The scene around the court is a carnival. There are crowds in the street, impromptu rap performances breaking out, even a couple of would-be comedians engaged in an insult contest in the second row.

So to stand out, you've got to stand out. And with a crowd ready to ridicule, especially when you are some college kid from Texas, you had better not show any weakness.

"I knew people were going to do a lot of trick dribbles and with my style of play I just wanted to come out and play and have a lot of fun."

So he won them over slowly. When Ford started the game with a brilliant, bullet pass through a mess of defenders and to a teammate for an easy dunk and rim hang, the crowd shouted their approval.

But then the announcer reminded, "They say he has no jump shot."

When he stuck a few deep Js soon after, lost some defenders with crossovers and got everyone going with whip-passes, Rucker started to become his. Since he hails from suburban Houston, where pickup games are played inside gyms, not on asphalt, he didn't arrive with street cred. But even the most skeptical soul quickly knew Ford had game.

He was a McDonald's All-American, won two Texas high school state titles and was coming off a strong freshman season in which he led the Longhorns to the Sweet 16 while averaging 10.8 points and 8.2 assists a game.

As a senior at Willowridge High, he led his team to the championship of the prestigious Slam Dunk to the Beach national tournament with the unreal line of 0 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists and 0 turnovers.

While that is the antithesis of playground ball, his court vision, timing and decision-making are impossible to ignore. His speed and handle allow him to shake nearly any defender, and no matter what the public address system said, he can shoot the ball.

"He's got more of a jumper than people think," said Texas coach Rick Barnes.

He enters his sophomore season at the helm of a team with Final Four aspirations and a realistic chance of being a first team All-American. This, everyone in attendance knew.

So while they were a little tough on him, the fact he was invited and was recognized as the main attraction of the late game says enough. Considering the night before that honor was bestowed on Rucker legend and current Milwaukee Buck Rafer "Skip 2 My Lou" Alston, and this week it's supposed to be about Kobe Bryant, well, you get the drift.

"Ford," shouted one throaty fan over and over, standing up to attract T.J.'s attention. "Ford. Do some (stuff) man. Do some (stuff)."

The guy was asking for some crossovers and no look dimes.

"I got to leave at halftime, man, do something, give me something."

Ford nodded.

This doesn't happen in Texas.

"He told me he was going over, and he was real excited," said Barnes, who knows the park from his days coaching in the Big East. "I said, 'You have to realize that this isn't Houston, this is the City.' And he said, 'Well, I am going to give him a little bit of Houston.'"

"The chance to play in that atmosphere?" said Ford. "Everybody wants to come and play in that environment. I was really excited."

An hour after the Texas kid walked onto the hallowed hoop grounds, he left having won over Harlem. He had showed them his, ahhh, (stuff).

"I'm just glad they didn't get on me too hard," he said. "If you can play, they let you know. It felt good that they were so supportive. It felt really good."