Everyone in town knew the place as “The Woodz,” although there was hardly a tree to be found there.
There was an outdoor basketball court, though, set near a cotton field. And it was on that court in Lepanto, Ark., (pop. 1,893) that new Charlotte Hornet Malik Monk learned the game.
Get pushed down. Jump back up. No cheap fouls. Winners stay. Losers sit. Play until it was too dark to see. On Sundays after church, take on players from other nearby towns in games that could last for hours.
“We called it ‘The Woodz,’ although really it was just the last three streets of Lepanto where most of the black people live,” the former University of Kentucky star said.