High Hoops

If you've never heard of Gary Smith, it's safe to say you probably don't hang out at local outdoor basketball courts much. The 23-year-old South Phoenix streetballer is something of a local legend, whose thunderous dunks can be seen being unleashed at playgrounds around the Valley or via numerous video...

By Benjamin Leatherman

August 25, 2011

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If you've never heard of Gary Smith, it's safe to say you probably don't hang out at local outdoor basketball courts much. The 23-year-old South Phoenix streetballer is something of a local legend, whose thunderous dunks can be seen being unleashed at playgrounds around the Valley or via numerous video clips on YouTube.

While it's unlikely that he'll ever sport an NBA championship ring (or even land a contract with basketball's big leagues), the 6-foot-6 jock has one claim to fame: He's the local champ of Red Bull King of the Rock. During last year's edition of the energy drink-sponsored one-on-one streetball tournament, Smith defeated 63 other Phoenix hoopsters and made it to the national finals on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco.

Smith will be back to defend his crown (and take another crack at the nationals) during the 2011 version of the event.

Sat., Aug. 27, 5 p.m., 2011

Benjamin Leatherman is a staff writer for Phoenix New Times where he focuses primarily on arts, culture, music and nightlife. He joined New Times in 2003. Prior to that, he contributed to magazines such as Tips & Tricks and The Wrestler. Benjamin has earned multiple awards from the Arizona Press Club including an award for sports enterprise reporting in 2009 and an award for statewide arts reporting in 2014. He holds a bachelor’s of arts in journalism from Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

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