Downtown hoopla: Saskatoon intersection turns mobile basketball arena for weekend tourney

People in downtown Saskatoon began noticing the giant bleachers parked in the middle of the street, at the corner of 4th Avenue and 21st Street, earlier this week. 

And when they were being hauled from SaskTel Centre, at a speed of 15 kilometres an hour.

"The people stopped their cars and gawked immediately at this bleacher coming down 51st Street and down Warman Road," said Kent Hartshorn. 

The temporarily-relocated seats are part of an elaborate pop-up basketball court — a first for the city — that will serve as the home of the 2017 FIBA 3X3 World Tour Masters event (another first for Saskatoon). 

The three-on-three competition will see 12 teams from across the globe, including a four-man team from Saskatoon, compete for $20,000 and the chance to qualify for this October's FIBA finals in Beijing, China.

But setting up the court — complete with a set of four bleachers capable of seating 1,000 people — ultimately proved to be a slam-dunk, said Hartshorn, the co-chair of the event's 15-person organizing committee.

"We had a towing company with a crew of 10 start at SaskTel Centre, bring a bleacher down with police escort, store it on 21st Street, change the tires, go back to SaskTel Centre and put new tires on and get the next set of bleachers down," said Hartshorn. 

"It took about six-and-a-half hours."

The end result? 

"We've transformed this intersection into a basketball court," said Hartshorn.

The Masters event starts at 11 a.m. CST Saturday with events for children. the competition's opening ceremonies follow at 3 p.m. 

Tickets for the games, which continue on Sunday, are free.