RECREATION / SAN DIEGO : Pickup Basketball: Never Out of Season

Hot hoops in the summertime. Across most of America, it’s wonderful. The kind of pickup games that dreams are made of.

You’re always hearing about Pearl running the show on the playgrounds of New York. Want to guard him? Just throw your shoes on and get the next game.

Just off work in French Lick, Ind.? If all goes well, you can shed the tie, throw on a T-shirt and try to keep Larry Bird from throwing a few more through the hoop. Magic, Mark Aguirre and Reggie Theus have been known to take over an outdoor game in the streets of Chicago.

Now you wake up. . .and you’re in San Diego.

You say you’re just off work or have a free Saturday afternoon and want to play some outdoor basketball this summer? It may take a little more than some Magic.

The state of outdoor basketball in San Diego is probably more suited to the poor guy guarding Larry Bird than it is to Pearl Washington.

The games, if you can find one, can get ragged. Sure, there are some good players and some good places to play, but San Diego’s best basketball isn’t under the sun.

“Back in Detroit, where I’m from, the playgrounds are busy during the summer,” said Michael Brunker, San Diego State assistant basketball coach. “When I came out here, I still wanted to play some. I drove past Monte Vista High (in Spring Valley) one day and saw all these courts and said, ‘Man, I can’t wait till the weekend.’ So I got all fired up, got my ball out, went down there and there’s nobody there.

“You can find a game outside in San Diego, but you usually have to look around.”

So, let’s look. As mentioned earlier, there are some good places to play.

Ask most of the pickup game players in the country and they’ll mention Robb Field in Ocean Beach and the La Jolla Park and Recreation Center in La Jolla. San Diegans like the beach--especially at summertime--and there’s some good ball at South Mission Beach (near the South Mission Beach jetty).

Near San Diego State, Colina Del Sol Park and Clay Park (behind Tower Records off El Cajon Boulevard) are pretty well-populated.

“Certainly most of the outdoor basketball in the area is at an amateurish level,” Brunker said. “What sets some of the better places apart is the fact that you get a regular crowd. The players know each other and respect each others’ games.”

This is the case at Robb Field.

With two full courts, games start as early as 6:30 in the morning on weekends and run all day. During the week, the courts begin to get crowded about 3:30 p.m. There are lights, so play is almost continuous until about 10 p.m.

The five-on-five full-court games are played up to 16 points (by ones) and there are few arguments. Maybe the biggest problem is figuring out who called “next game.” Since the players know each other, play moves along pretty smoothly.

David Gonzalez, who lives nearby has been playing basketball at Robb Field for 13 years.

“You get a good variety of ballplayers here,” Gonzalez said. “Some are good, and some aren’t so good. I guess it’s like anywhere else. Some games you’re the best player out there, and some games you’re lucky to make a couple of baskets.

“I think the quality of play has improved over the years.”

The quality of play may have improved, but Gonzalez says that the quality of the courts sometimes isn’t good enough to keep up. There is room for improvement.

Gonzalez and a lot of the other players at Robb Field wish the park department would pay a little more attention to their courts.

At Robb Field, one of the rims on the main court has a fairly obvious problem. The back of the rim is 10 feet from the ground and the front of the rim is about 9 1/2 feet deep.

“It’s been like that for about three months,” Chris Pearson said. “They say they’ll put a new one up, but I’ll have to see it to believe it.”

Still, the players come to Robb Field, partially for the camaraderie.

“You don’t get the physical play like you do at other courts,” said Ronnie Noel, an assistant basketball coach at Patrick Henry High who frequents Robb Field. “All the players respect each other’s (foul) calls so there aren’t that many problems.”

In New York, where Noel used to play playground ball, they had a better method.

“The guys who had next game would grab a whistle and ref,” Noel said.

In some instances, this would probably be a good idea. At South Mission Beach, a laid-back territory, one thing that gets laid on a back burner is the rule book.

One player, after what seemed like 10 minutes of being posted up under the basket, finally asked about a three-second call. He drew a laugh.

“There’s no three seconds here,” he was told. “This is the beach.”

A couple of minutes later, a player took off from about half court and laid the ball in the hoop--without dribbling. Traveling?

“There’s no traveling at the beach,” the player said.

Chip Hasley, a regular at the La Jolla Park and Recreation Center, believes that this loose style of play is detrimental to pickup games.

“You combine a black asphalt court with a couple of players who don’t know what a low bridge is (hitting a player low while he’s up in the air) and you can understand why a lot of your better players go indoors,” Hasley said. “There’s always some characters. But I’ve been playing here for 12 years and it’s about the best I’ve seen right now.”

La Jolla, like Robb Field, is one of the better places to play in the county. During the week, games start around 4 p.m. and go until the center closes at around 10 p.m.

On weekends, the games get started about 9 in the morning and can get pretty good.

Former Clippers Jim Brogan, Rock Lee and Michael Brooks have been known to drop by the La Jolla courts.

“You get guys like that and it sure changes the games,” Hasley said. “We get good, regular players on the weekends. During the week, there’s different people all the time.”

Elsewhere in the county, that seems to be the case all of the time. Games can be good one day and not so good the next. It seems that the situations at Robb Field and La Jolla are exceptions rather than the rule. Most of the time, you just bring your ball and hope.

“It just seems that there are too many other things to do in San Diego,” Brunker said.

Many of the little-used courts remind you of a somewhat popular poster among hoop rats. The poster depicts a half court, nestled in among a couple of buildings. The court is run-down with a bent rim and no net.

There’s a solitary player, apparently done with a day’s workout, spinning a ball on his finger. Underneath the picture, it says, “Going Home.”

The message is clear. Apparently his friends in the neighborhood had spent the day at the beach.

WHERE TO PLAY

The top spots:

Robb Field (Ocean Beach)--Full-court five-on-five games run from about 4 to 9:30 p.m. weekdays and all day on weekends. Games on Saturday and Sunday begin as early as 6:30 a.m. There are two full courts (“One is the minor league court,” a local said) and lights that stay on until about 9:30. The players like the courts’ surfaces, which are similar to tennis courts.

La Jolla Park and Recreation Center (La Jolla)--The best games here are on the weekends. Play is continuous on two courts Saturdays and Sundays starting at about 9 a.m. During the week, one full-court game is usually going by 3:30 p.m. There are lights, but the best games are played during the day. “The lighting isn’t what you would call real great,” said a player.

Other spots:

Colina Del Sol Park (Near 54th and University, San Diego)--Another spot with two full courts, games here run from about 4 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. thanks to the lights. During the morning and afternoon, it’s pretty quiet. Games can get physical here, maybe a little more than some other courts in the area.

Clay Park (Corner of Seminole and Solita, behind Tower Records, College Area)--This one full court is popular because of a light high above center court that stays lit until about midnight. “Michael Cage used to go out there and practice by himself at night,” SDSU assistant basketball coach Michael Brunker said. Games start at 4 p.m. but get hotter as the night goes on.

South Mission Beach (Court right on beach, near parking lot)--Tired of the sun? This court is near the South Mission Beach jetty. Games run as long as it’s beach weather. With constantly changing crowds, there isn’t much consistency. Escondido’s Washington Park has pickup games during the week and weekends although sometimes it’s a hit-or-miss proposition. For weekenders interested in friendlier competition and a little less bulk, there are games at Presidio Park (near Old Towne) and at UC San Diego in La Jolla. Games begin about 9 a.m.

WHAT TO DO

Pickup games in San Diego, like anywhere else, tend to present a slight problem to newcomers. The established players in the area always seem to get on a team. For newcomers, the best method is to dress the part, approach a couple of guys on the sidelines and see who has next game. If the team waiting doesn’t yet have five guys, usually you are in.

Sometimes, when there are too many people, or a round of games is just starting, players will “shoot (free throws) for teams.” If you’re one of the first 10 players to make a free throw, you play. So practice.

WHAT TO WEAR

Shorts and a T-shirt will do, but it is a good idea to wear high-top shoes or at least low-tops. This will help prevent turned ankles. Don’t wear shoes with worn soles. A lot of the courts are slippery and falling on the asphalt hurts. In fact, that drives a lot of players indoors.

Also, there are going to be fouls--some pretty rough ones--and you have to be able to take a pounding to survive. There are no referees, so call your own fouls . . . and be ready to have some called on you.