Alex Barth had a simple objective last year for his 3-on-3 team at the first-ever ShoWare Shootout — have fun.
With the second-annual ShoWare Shootout slated for Saturday and Sunday, July 30-31, the stakes — and the roster — have raised considerably this summer for the 2009 Kentridge High graduate. Instead of fun, Barth wants to win.
And he wants to win it all. This year.
“We still want to have fun, but this year I’ve been playing a lot more,” said Barth, a 5-foot-7, 150-pound guard whose team posted a 1-2 record last year. “We definitely are going for more wins this year.”
With that in mind, Barth, who played soccer, cross country and track in high school, set out to assemble a roster for the 3-on-3 tournament that stands a chance not only to compete, but to leave a mark when the tournament comes to a close. The Kentridge High graduate, who now attends the University of Washington, first enlisted good friend Aaron Abrams, a 2010 Kentridge High graduate, track standout, and self-proclaimed gym rat. In addition, Barth recruited a pair of twin towers from his fraternity — Alex Fromm, a 6-foot-6 forward and 2008 Cedarcrest High graduate, and Taylor Cambell, a 6-foot-6 center and 2008 Mount Si High alum.
“We’re definitely trying to win it,” said Barth, whose team “Hood Swag” will compete in the Adult Division.
The 3-on-3 ShoWare Shootout follows the blueprint established by the Spokane Hoopfest, which take place at the end of June each year and draws more than 5,000 teams and 25,000 players from around the nation. In the inaugural year of the tournament, which was held last August, 160 teams comprised the 16-division format. Played out in the parking lot of the ShoWare Center, players from as far away as Yakima, Spokane, Everett and Marysville attended.
The ShoWare Shootout has not quite reached the level of Hoopfest, but it could be in the future.
“I played in Hoopfest this year for the first time,” said Barth, noting that his team was eliminated in three games by a combined total of six points. “ShoWare is a very young, small version of Hoopfest. I could see it expanding.”
Which is exactly the goal when the tournament arrives this weekend.
“I am hoping it grows by 20 teams to 170 this year,” said tournament promoter Steve Turcotte.
The tournament will include age divisions for men, women, seniors, kids and wheelchair participants. The participation fee is $75 per team (July 20 was the deadline). The entry fee will go toward a four-game guarantee and a T-shirt and a trophy (for the winning teams). Games will run throughout the day and into the night on 25 separate courts.
Barth and Abrams are hoping that their team is one of the few playing in the championship round.
“I think we could be unstoppable,” said Abrams, who also played basketball at Kentridge until his senior season. “With Fromm … he’s 6-6 and plays like a scoring forward. He can get it to the rim. Taylor is a post player who blocks shots, and gets a ton of rebounds. I’m primarily a shooter and distributor. Alex (Barth) is a lock-down defender. He may be 5-7, but you stick him on anybody, and he will make it tough on them.
“I think we could do a lot of damage.”
Which is music to Fromm’s ears. A 21-year-old with a physical game, Fromm anticipates mixing it up underneath the hoop.
“I have to be (a bruiser),” he said. “I think with the team we’ve got, we could go far. I think the one thing we will be good at is that we will play very well together.”
Hoopfest and the ShoWare Shootout offers current and former players an additional avenue in which to quench their basketball passion, which fits Abrams perfectly.
“Everything in high school basketball got too mechanical,” he said. “It wasn’t fun anymore. When the fun stops, that’s when you stop.”
And while Abrams is hoping to pull of a title on the last day of July, fun still remains part of the objective.
“With this team we have, the tournament is the highlight of my summer,” he said. “We have a solid chance of getting to the championship with the team we have now.”
SHOWARE SHOOTOUT: AT A GLANCE
• WHAT: South King County’s premier 3-on-3 basketball event featuring age divisions for men, women, seniors, kids, wheelchair. Anybody who likes to play basketball is invited to take part.
• WHEN: July 30-31
• WHERE: ShoWare Center parking lot
• WHO: Age and ability brackets are available for virtually anybody who wants to play
• TEAMS: Teams of all ages and sizes and genders are invited to take part. Courts will be set up in the parking lot at the ShoWare Center with games all day on Saturday and Sunday July 30-31. Teams playing for the division championship will compete at the end of the day Sunday for the titles.
• COST: Entry fee is $75 per team for any division. Entry fee includes a guarantee of four games, a T-Shirt, and extra T-shirt if your team wins the championship game of the division. Entry deadline was July 20. Schedules will be emailed 2-3 days before the first round of games and tournament brackets will be on site.
• FORMAT: Each division will play on its own court with a main court hosting the top divisions. The main court will be set up in the middle of the ShoWare parking lot.
• ON THE WEB: www.showareshootout.com
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