The Basketball Tournament, a single-elimination basketball tournament that has taken place the last two years, is back and this time the stakes are even higher. Last summer, teams played for $1 million. This year, they will be competing for a bigger prize, as TBT increased the reward to $2 million.
And with the prize pot being so large, TBT has gotten commitments from a number of former NBA players. Mike Bibby has said he will play again and will be playing on the same team as Jason Williams, the slick dribbling maestro that is still tearing it up in pickup games. The two former Sacramento Kings players will have some stiff competition as All-Star Josh Howard and defensive dynamo Larry Sanders will be suiting up for their respective teams. This will be the first time Sanders has really played televised organized basketball since he stepped away from the NBA and the Milwaukee Bucks last season.
No current NBA players will be playing in TBT but several will be "coaching" and helping out with some of the teams playing. The Morris brothers - Markieff Morris and Marcus Morris - are coaching a team based out of Philadelphia. Nets rookie Rondae Hollis-Jefferson is coaching a different team from Philadelphia. Dallas Mavericks players JaVale McGee and Wesley Matthews will also be coaching teams as well. Matthews is coaching a team made up of players from his alma mater, Marquette University.
Other NBA players like Kristaps Porzingis, CJ McCollum, John Wall and Chandler Parsons are acting as boosters, helping their friends put together a team and raise enough social media support so they qualify to play in TBT.
TBT's tournament field will be officially be announced on June 8 and the opening rounds will take place in various U.S. cities in early July.
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