The night was a success because it didn’t end in a ticket.

It started with a trip to the Tri-State Classic, where I thought I’d be watching the final day of the regular season, but was instead treated to an intra-squad scrimmage among the Manhattan high-school all-star team as it prepares for next weekend’s Battle of the Boroughs. The game provided my first look at the highly recruited Angel Nunez, who I have read so much about on this site.

The Notre Dame Prep forward didn’t disappoint and I can see why he has a laundry list of major Division I schools hot on his trail. There is smoothness to his game. He can shoot the jumper, attack the rim off the dribble and block shots and rebound with his long arms. During his interview, Nunez was in a hurry to leave 145th Street and Lenox Avenue and catch up with Oak Hill’s Sidiki Johnson, but I didn’t know why.

Little did I know we were making the same trip.

With my appetite for true streetball still not satisfied I made the long six-minute trek up the Harlem River Drive to Dyckman to join colleague Marc Raimondi and intrepid photographer Damion Reid. In order to avoid looking for parking among the double- and triple-parked cars for hours, I left it in a no-standing zone two blocks away with my fingers crossed.

When I made my way to the court, who else would I see, but Johnson, who played in a high-school division game, and Nunez competing in a pro/college all-star game for Dyckman Select against Team Providence. He shot me a quick smile and a puzzled looked when he saw me under the basket.

Dyckman, in my two trips there, has not disappointed in providing all the things that make streetball great and Anthony (Africa) Pimble is one. The athletic 6-foot-6 swingman put on an aerial display that would have made General Patton stand up and salute. Each of his six monstrous dunks shook the rims from their supports more than then next. There was a vicious windmill, a poster-style stuff right on a Team Providence defender that drew the fans onto the court. Then he added a between-the-legs slam to give him 23 points and cap Dyckman Select’s win.

Famed emcee Joe Pope took the mic in the second half and should have been on stage at Dangerfield’s with all the jokes and wisecracks he was firing out. He told one Team Providence member that Pimble could dunk on him so hard it would put his name on his shirt.

None of that could take way from the star power and energy provided by Adris (2 Hard 2 Guard) DeLeon, the court’s Frank Sinatra with a basketball, always making beautiful music. Their favorite son brought the crowd to his feet each time the ball made contact with is finger tips. Though DeLeon’s scoring touch took time to come out he still turned a bounced ball over a defender’s head into a pass, showed the ball to a defender and made it disappear in a split second and was Pimble’s distributor for many of his power dunks.

When it was over I made the trip back to my car with a different feeling of anticipation, one of potential dread and despair of the inevitable sight of an orange ticket on my windshield. It was an image thankfully that never came to fruition.

Success.