The Unfinished Saga of Rafer Alston aka Skip To My Lou

On February 3, 2012, it was announced that Rafer Alston, also known by his legendary kid’s basketball nickname, Skip To My Lou, would be returning to the professional basketball scene. The NBA Development League team LA D-Fenders decided to add it to his roster. The story of Rafer, a former recreational basketball legend who helped And1 launch a streetball empire that defined a generation, begins in Queens, New York, with stops in Las Vegas, the NBA, China and every other city. , village or driveway with a basketball net.

Few basketball players today can compete with the incredible rise to stardom like Rafer Alston’s. Having first honed his talents in the eighth grade before beginning his epic career at Cardozo High School in Queens, New York, Rafer was soon seen on the famous courts of Rucker Park, breaking ankles and embarrassing boys twice his age. and size. He soon received the nickname “Skip To My Lou” after his patented jumping dance that he did while dribbling the ball around the court. Crowds of all ages went wild as they hung from tree branches, climbed onto rooftops, and elbow-fought the crowd just to watch the sleepy-eyed skinny kid playing basketball.

Rafer tried out the college basketball scene but was not very successful, after a year stint at Venura College, Fresno City College, and then Fresno State. Skip To My Lou was not the same when he faced off-court college competition and soon returned to the East Coast to follow his NBA dreams through other means. Rafer would soon be offered a stage on the international streetball scene, as promoted by trash-talking and direct basketball clothing brand And1. Rafer helped pioneer the And1 Mixtapes, a 6-part series that soon led to the And1 Mixtape Tour, an entertaining, action-packed showcase of elite streetball talent, slapstick and swagger.

Quickly becoming an international icon, Rafer was the first to be given the opportunity to perform in the NBA by the Milwaukee Bucks. Stubborn coach George Karl never gave him a real chance, Rafer would begin his NBA career jumping from team to team, like many other veterans. Rafer had brief stints in Toronto and Miami before settling on his first real acting opportunity with the Houston Rockets. An effective point guard who started a handful of games and played well alongside Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming, Rafer would prove his worth as a solid leader. He bounced from Houston to Orlando to New Jersey and finally back to Miami, where he was released after missing practice and a game.

Rafer tried his hand at the international scene in China, but now he returns to the NBA looking for a chance to come back as a 35-year veteran, still finding solace and staying out of trouble on the hardwood or asphalt floor of the NBA. basketball.