EA and the NBA Debut Collaboration with Renowned Artists to Refurbish Basketball Courts in Major Cities

Electronic Arts’ NBA LIVE franchise has announced a collaboration with the National Basketball Association (NBA) to bring the fun of basketball to local communities by refurbishing street courts in select parks in New York, Chicago and Orlando, beginning today with the reveal and re-opening of a court in Brooklyn’s Park Slope Playground.

NBA LIVE Sr. Producer at EA, Mike Mahar, said public parks and courts offer opportunities for anyone to engage with their community through the sport of basketball.

Todd Jacobson, NBA Senior Vice President of Social Responsibility, said the NBA has a longstanding tradition of using our game to bring communities together.

The court at Brooklyn’s Park Slope Playground features a mural in the brightly-colored style of famed California-based artist Mark Paul Deren, known professionally as MADSTEEZ. Deren has garnered international recognition for his large-scale exterior paintings that have graced walls from Los Angeles to New York.

Mark Paul Deren, known as MADSTEEZ, says Basketball is such a democratic and open sport. This was part of my inspiration behind the artwork.

EA and the NBA will continue to refurbish courts in the coming months, unveiling the new space in Chicago on July 20 that features the artwork of famed artist Hebru Brantley. More details on the Orlando refurbishment will be announced later this summer.