Ireland missed out on four tournaments, and Keane, Duff, Given and Dunne stuck at it, kept plugging away through the thin times, until finally arriving back at the glorious thick end with qualification to Euro 2012.
It all began last summer on the hot asphalt of two tournaments, the Goat Tournament on Amsterdam Avenue in Upper Manhattan and the Triborough Bridge Tournament in Queens.
Hillman died three days after Justin Baker died during a three-on-three tournament.
Ward and Houston are scheduled to participate in a three-on-three tournament earlier in the day.
He gained national prominence in August 2001, at the national finals of a Nike-sponsored three-on-three tournament in Shanghai.
One day, Girardi canceled practice and took the team on a field trip to a pool hall for a two-on-two tournament.
The old warrior is just an old player now, sometimes slogging downcourt as if his body is better suited for a three-on-three tournament.
Now, Fitzgerald spots basketball hoops all over Spokane, which plays host to the largest three-on-three tournament in the country at more than 2,500 teams.
This year no Knicks will take part in the Rookie All-Star Challenge, which pits first-year players against second-year pros; the 3-point competition; or the Hoop-It-Up three-on-three tournament.
The three-year 2-ball experiment, in which N.B.A. players teamed with Women's National Basketball Association players from the same cities in a shooting contest, gave way this season to a three-on-three tournament.
