Kevin Hagen for News
Keith (Worthy) Nash makes gthe call for the West 4th St. Basketball League.On the court, West 4th's athletes are the attraction, wowing passersby with the brand of hypercompetitive, physical street basketball that has been the jump-off point for NBA superstars.
But at courtside, Keith (Worthy) Nash holds his own one-man show.
Nash is the wisecracking, megaphone-wielding announcer of the West 4th Street Basketball League, calling plays and dispensing wisdom just off center court on Sixth Avenue.
Since June 1, he has been at the court every day from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., announcing as many as seven games a day. He'll do this until the season ends August 26, as he has done for the last 10 years.
The West 4th league, founded by retired limousine driver Kenny Graham, has attracted top local talent since 1977. In the last decade, it has expanded to include high school and women's leagues, and has won legendary status.
Just like the b-ball skills of many of the players, Nash's art is homegrown, honed through years of observing and playing in street games and taking notes from the pros.
"I don't sit down and rehearse," he says. "Just being around basketball all my life and watching the announcers, I tend to know what to say."
The layout of the West 4th court makes Nash's job different from any professional gig ? he's right in the middle of the action. Clad in an official West 4th Street uniform and sunglasses, Nash sits just off the smaller-than-regulation court, right behind the nets, amid a throng of local spectators lounging in lawn chairs.
He serves as both color commentator and play-by-play announcer. Everything he says is within earshot of the players.
"I'm an announcer, so if I see something I'm going to say something," he says. "It's nothing personal."
During one afternoon game, Nash sounds like part coach, part cheerleader and part hawker:
"Now that's what you call helping your teammate out!"
"That's not going to help your chance of scoring!"
"Anybody who buys a shirt right now, we'll put you in the game!"
He tells jokes, narrates game play, and sells league T shirts ? he even gives nicknames to high-performing players. But it takes more than one good day on the court to earn a handle.
"I give guys nicknames if they come and show me something," he says.
When the players are good, they're really good. For Nash, watching them can be just as fun as watching his favorite pro team, the Knicks.
"I can tell which teams have been playing together for years," he says. "When they play, it's a great game because you're getting great basketball."
Nash got his start at 25, when a friend drove him from his home in Brownsville, Brooklyn, to play pickup at the Greenwich Village court.
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