September 19 :: 2007

By RANDY CRUZ

THE WWE HAS ITS OWN UNDERTAKER, making dark and eerie entrances with bells sounding off as if death is coming. His character gives off the impression as a mortician from old Western movies, an impervious to pain individual and someone who possess supernatural powers, such as manipulation of flames and lightning. This would ultimately put fear into the hearts of his opponents. A death oriented character, the lord of darkness would take the souls of many - giving people their last rights, and ultimately burying them. An undertaker loves being surrounded by caskets, graveyards and druids - while Corey “The Undertaker” Underwood loves to be surrounded by a basketball court, a basketball and a defender. His mission: planting a tombstone next to the best big men in New York City…and incarnating his name as one of the city’s elite.

The 6’10 big man out of New York City made his Hoops in the Sun debut playing with Money Train back in the summer of 2005, but he is no stranger to the basketball world. Underwood has laced up his sneakers (K1X preferably) for a laundry list of teams, from Westchester Community College (JUCO), Jersey Squires (ABA), Brevard Blue Ducks (USBL), Gainesville Knights (WBA), Westchester Wildfire (USBL) to the Yakama Sun Kings (CBA), Utah Eagles (CBA), Arkansas RiverCatz (ABA) and even a tryout for the NBA New Jersey Nets, going up against Bostjan Nachbar, Marcus Williams, Antoine Wright, Nenad Kristic and Clifford Robinson. Man, you would have to Google Earth his career because he has played everywhere possible except the continent of Antarctica.

With the hopes of making it into the NBA still in his sights, and currently working out with the New York Knicks, the 27 year old Underwood continues to make his name known on the streetball circuit, everywhere from downtown Manhattan (West 4th) to all the way uptown in the Bronx (Hoops in the Sun), with occasional stops at Kingdome, Dyckman and Watson along the way. “My personal favorites are Hoops in the Sun, West 4th, Dyckman and Watson...I like all tournaments though. I just like to play where the best will be,” Underwood said.

UNDERWOOD ENTERED HOOPS IN THE SUN back in the summer of 2005, and a promising summer it was. Averaging 21 points and 8 rebounds per game for his Money Train squad; he was selected to his first All-Star Game appearance, as well as being voted onto the Hoops in the Sun All First Rookie Team. He would lose out on Rookie of the Year honors that season to Penny Black of the Young Ones. Having less than a sub par 2006 season, it didn’t stop the ‘Taker from coming back strong in the 2007 summer edition. Signing a recent shoe deal with K1X, and K1X having its own team in the league, Underwood vowed to show his fellow opponents why his name should be inserted into the raffle bag of the top big men in the game today.

“I do think I'm the best big man....wherever I play," Underwood said. "And if there is anybody who can bring what I can bring to the table at 6'10, I'd like to see it! Deep down inside, these guys know I'm a serious problem. Where can you rest? I'll shoot 3's...College or NBA 3-point range...I'll drive past you, and I'll score on the block, so pick and choose.”

He started making his claim in the first game of the 2007 season at Hoops in the Sun. Coming out the gate against the defending champions Don’t Fah-Get.com (better known as Powerful Inc.), the ‘Taker put up a massive 35 points and 12 rebounds on a hot 93 degree Sunday afternoon. The cold mortician was feeling pretty hot that day, and even with a K1X loss to Don’t Fah-Get.com, it was a message to the entire league, and maybe the city, that Underwood is a force to be reckoned with and shouldn’t be taken lightly.

“I felt that this summer I had to cement my name in any type of talk about ‘top city players’ whether guards or big men. I’ve played with the best players in the city from Antawn Dobie, Kenny Satterfield, John Strickland, Darren Phillip, Speedy Williams, Junie Sanders, and B.J. McFarlan and so on and so forth. People knew who they were everywhere they went, and I just wanted to start making a name for myself. This summer, I just wanted people to know that I'm for real - for real & when you mention the best player in the city, I want my name to come up in the discussion. If you're talking who's the best ball handler, I want you to mention my name....best 3 point shooter, whatever...I wanted to make it impossible for you not to mention my name. Our K1X team could have done better at the beach, but there’s always room for improvement and I felt I improved on my game out there this summer.”

Going up against perennial big men in the city such as Darren Phillip, BJ McFarlan and John Strickland isn’t an easy task, especially when these players have been doing it for such a long time. It’s like Underwood is stuck in the middle of the NBA’s Western Conference…surrounded by players that are 6’9 and better and every game is a tall order for him. These three players more than anything have shown that they’re the best big men in the city because they get the job done in every tournament that they play in, and most importantly, they win championships, which is something Underwood can relate to by winning the EBC Championship two times and also picking up a West 4th Championship.

But like in all sports, era’s change, and in today’s streetball world in New York City, the players that were doing their thing in the late 90s, early 2000’s era, are slowly beginning to take a back seat to more promising young street ballers, such as Underwood, Mike Glover, Kenny Satterfield and Steve Burtt, Jr. to name a few. It’s kind of like a draft class that dominated for so many years (e.g. 1996 NBA Draft with Iverson, Bryant, Nash, Marbury, Allen, Camby, J.O’Neal and Stojakovic) and a new draft class is coming in and taking their place in history (e.g. 2003 NBA Draft with James, Anthony, Wade, Bosh, Hinrich, Ford, West and Diaw.) Streetball goes through the same thing, and in 2007, the landscape of the game is changing. Fans are getting the opportunity to see younger players perform and at the same time, showing off their talents by going up against those players that did it before them. Underwood has gone up against the best of them and hasn’t backed down from a challenge, whether they have a nickname or not.

HAVING A NICKNAME IS LIKE HAVING a World Heavyweight Championship… you have to defend that championship against every opponent that crosses your path…and Mr. Underwood does have a nickname to defend, and that puts just a slight pressure on him playing in various tournaments ever since he received the now city-renowned nickname “The Undertaker.”

“First of all, I'm definitely feeling the nickname...big shout out to Randy Cruz...I'll never forget the phone call that day he gave me THE NICKNAME,” Underwood laughs. “When he called me & was like ‘I got it…Undertaker, because you're just burying these dudes!’ I think the name is pressure to an extent, because you have to perform!! If not, then the streetball police will put the word out! Does it give me an advantage? No way! If anything, you should already know that your opponent is going to give you the effort of his life so he can run back to his 'hood & say 'I killed the Undertaker’.

The Undertaker nickname must have been a blessing to Corey, now having a recent shoe deal signing with sneaker company K1X, Underwood does have his own personal make up of the 187's with the “Undertaker” on it, which a limited amount could be available by late October. Being with a shoe company, with the likes of NBA All-Star Ron Artest of the Sacramento Kings and streetball legend Corey “Homicide” Williams, Underwood finally feels he is one of the city’s elite.

“Being down with K1X is cool. Its something different and I think it’s a good situation for me. Homicide reached out to me about it. He told me that this summer would be sort of a 'rising to the top' summer for me, and since the SLAM Magazine article written by Sam Blake came out last year, I had to take my game to another level because I was pretty sure I would go from being a hunter, to the hunted.”

For anyone who doubts or doubted Underwood’s play, he vows 2008 to be different. “Get the caskets out; get the tombstones out, start digging those six foot graves because in 2008, people are going six feet under. I shall show no mercy. It will be the “Year of the Taker.”

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To view the previous article on Steve Burtt, Jr. click link.