Several Tam students have joined the Southern Marin Tri-City Amateur Basketball League (SMTCABL), a basketball league created and commissioned by senior Cedar Banks. Banks also coaches and plays for the Summit Swishers, a team in the league.
“It’s pretty fun,” Banks said. “The games aren’t too long or too short. And not everyone is necessarily an athlete so it’s not too strenuous. Everyone has fun with it.”
Banks started the league in early March, and within a week several teams had already joined with complete rosters. “It’s all in the title,” Banks said. “It’s an amateur basketball league that’s mostly kids from Tam with a couple kids from [other schools].” There are currently eight teams in the league, all with complete rosters and playing games on a weekly basis.

The games are four-on-four. Any shot inside the 3-point line counts as 1 point, and shots made outside the line are two points. There is no time limit; the games end when one team scores 21 points with at least a two-point lead. Each team also has a court in various places in Marin that their student coach has picked, that they are supposed to use as there practice court. However, all official games are played on the Tam courts outside of Ruby Scott Gym.

The league is co-ed, with one all girls team, the Lebronterage, and another team, the Summit Swishers with all boys and one girl, senior Bella Amyx. “I’m friends with all the guys [on the team] so it’s fun,” Amyx said. “Sometimes my friends come to the games. It’s always fun.”

Senior Colin Galeste of the Unincorporated Marin Cracker Jacks agrees. “The league is great,” Galeste said. “It’s not too competitive and it’s pretty mellow. We all have fun.”
When Banks started the league, only three teams were initially part of it and eveyone was a friend of Banks. “I thought that was going to be it for the teams, but then word got out and there was a lot of interest in the league,” Banks said. “There are now eight teams. I was really surprised. I’m happy so many people took interest in it.”

The league is predicted to continue into May, when it will crown its champion. With Banks’s departure from Tam coming up, he has received requests to pass on the title of commissioner to a junior for next year.

“I’d love to hand over the position to a responsible junior so they can keep it going,” Banks said.“It’d be great to see it keep going even when I’m gone.”