PORTSMOUTH, VA (WTKR)- Since 1953, the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament has given up-and-coming players a chance to showcase their skills. The opportunity that today's players have is thanks in part to James "Booty" Baker.
Baker was a founder of the PIT and was one of the first coaches in the tournament. At 95 years old, he's sitting courtside at this year's event and taking it all in.
"The format is still the same," Baker said Thursday night. "They have eight teams and they select eight players on each team, so the format hasn't changed."
The long-time basketball organizer said it's wonderful to see how much the PIT has grown since its inception. The NBA's influence has helped the tournament take off, as it now features scouts from every NBA team and overseas clubs.
"The NBA has done a great job," he noted. "They've got NBA rules now, which is a big change, like the 24 second clock. We used to have a 30 second clock when we got a shot clock. For a long time we played the PIT, it didn't have a shot clock."
Even after all these years, Baker is still amazed at how big the tournament has become. He continues to attend and sit in the front row at Churchland High School, watching the event that he helped create.
"I shiver every time I think about it," he smiled. "It's still going on. It means so much to me and I'm glad that I had something to do with it and I enjoyed every minute of my 50-some years."
The Portsmouth Invitational Tournament continues through Saturday at Churchland.
