The Westside Shootout has become such a fixture in the community that new people are hopping on board all the time just to make sure the tournament can be played.

“My brother, Bill, Mark Thomas, Lonnie Cooper, John Parks, who brings some kids over, have been helping to prepare and paint the court and clean up,” tournament director Mike Osborne said. “It’s great to have people in the community still concerned about the event.”

Osborne, already preparing the outdoor court at the old West Junior High for Saturday’s tournament, gets excited at the prospect of new people helping.

“(On Monday), some guy who was 75 or 80, his first name was Jimmy, I don’t know who he was, came over and helped rake and pick up trash,” Osborne said. “I was afraid he was going to die. It was really hot. He stayed out there with me all day. I told him to take a break or go home and come back, but he wouldn’t. He’s lives across the way and he’s been watching the tournament from his front porch for 30 years.

“He didn’t have anything else to do. I have this young lady named Bonita Brown that comes and cleans up over there every week and he said he sees her over there. That’s how much this tournament means to the community. He says he’s never come over to watch in 30 years, but he’s watched from his porch. Then he decided to come over yesterday. That makes me feel good. That excites me. I meet more people like that every year. Someone different in the community steps up every year.”

Even the city has jumped on board to help Osborne and his legion of volunteers make the Westside Shootout special.

“I want to say thank you to Dominic Iarocci and the city,” Osborne said. “I want to thank them very much. The last three or four years, they’ve helped out immensely. A lot of things I would I would have had to do myself, he sent over a crew to help with. Those guys have really helped out. I can’t thank them enough.”

Player signup for the tournament is at 8 a.m. with action beginning at 9.

Teams will be filled through a draft system with a captain able to take one player with him before the draft starts. The tournament is open to the first 90 players signed up. Players must be signed up before Saturday. Signup sites are at Brad’s Delicatessen on Station Avenue, Betty’s Beauty Shop on West Avenue or the Outdoor Army Navy Store on Main Avenue.

“When the shootout started, we took the tallest guys and told them all they’d be captains,” Osborne said. “That’s how we tried to keep everything equal. Now, we still pick the tallest as captains, but we let them bring one person with them. Then we put the captains out front and proceed with a draft. We’ve done that the last four or five years and it’s worked very well.”

The shootout has been successful for 30 years because it’s heritage has been passed from one generation to the next.

“Probably the biggest factor for the basketball tournament is the kids now that come back and play are the second generation,” Osborne said. “My grandchild is back playing. I played in it, my daughter grew up keeping score and now my grandchild is playing in it. There other parents and grandparents that had kids that grew up with the shootout and now those kids and grandkids are playing.

“It’s an event the entire community looks forward to having every year. You never know who’s going to be back or if you’re going To meet someone new. That happens a lot, meeting someone new. Even when I lived in D.C., I always came back to play or officiate. Every year for 13 years, I always came home. That was instilled in the kids playing now by their parents and grandparents.”

The court itself has been home to Osborne and thousands of others through the years and remains home to the shootout today. It’s part of what makes the event special.

“I hate to keep comparing eras and times, but when we grew up, we played basketball every day,” Osborne said. “Every day that (the outdoor court at West Junior High) was our meeting place. We called it The Cage. Every evening we met there, whether it was at the field to play football or on the court to play basketball or even just to socialize.

“We spent probably 75 percent of our time there on those courts. Some unbelievable basketball has been played there. Quite a few collegiate players have performed there. (The Westside Shootout) is a great day for basketball fans and anybody that wants to be affiliated with basketball.”

The Westside Shootout is a basketball fans dream. It’s a place to see great basketball played by the area’s finest.

“If they want to see good basketball, come on down to The Cage,” Osborne said. “Anybody that wants to be affiliated with basketball as a player, a fan or a volunteer, come on over. It’s really a special day. It might inspire some people to want to play next year. It’s a great place to meet new people and socialize with old friends.”

The tournament will also benefit the community as Osborne will give away some of the proceeds in the form of a scholarship or help for a family in need.

“At the end of the tournament, we’ll give away a couple hundred dollars in a scholarship or to a needy family,” Osborne said. “We started that four or five years ago. We want to give back to the community the best we can.”