While certainly not the first or the last venture of its kind, the Muslim Basketball league in northern New Jersey (muslimbasketball.org) just might be the best in the U.S. at what they do.
What began nine years ago as a loosely-organized series of pickup games in Flanders, N.J., has grown into a thriving rec league with at least 36 teams at any given time across three divisions. Former NBA star Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, former Ivy League Player of the Year Ibrahim Jaaber, and former Seton Hall standout Marcus Toney-El are a few of the notables who have made it down to Muslim Basketball’s regular gym in Parsippany, N.J.