Hoopbus is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit using basketball to build community, spread love, and create positive change. We bring the game to the places where it’s needed most, connecting people through the universal language of basketball.
From local blocks to global cities, we’re hoopers in the wild, traveling wherever the road takes us to create experiences that spark connection, hope, and possibility.
OUR Mission:
BUILD COMMUNITY. SPREAD LOVE. SHARE THE GAME.
We believe basketball can break down barriers, inspire people of all ages, and teach lessons that extend far beyond the court. It brings people together, builds confidence, and reminds us that anything is possible.
OUR GOAL:
to generate a billion buckets!
We aspire to be like Naismith’s Peach Basket: a simple, reframed idea to create a space to hoop. This journey has launched a quest for our team to generate a billion made baskets, especially from those who tell us, “I can’t do it,” when we pass them a ball.
VENICE BEACH
WHERE IT ALL BEGAN.
It started at Venice Beach, at the courts known as Hoopers Paradise, home of West Coast streetball. The Venice Basketball League became a destination for players, tourists, and basketball lovers from around the world, all drawn to the energy of the courts.
THE FIRST HOOPBUS
40 feet. Two hoops. One big idea.
One question kept coming up: “How can I bring this atmosphere to my city?” With a lifetime of experience renovating courts, building hoops, and creating spaces to play, the founders of Veniceball decided to take that energy on the road. With support from more than 200 crowdfunders, they purchased a 40-foot yellow school bus, put hoops on it, and Hoopbus was born.
THE KOBE BUS
Basketball, art, and community.
Following Kobe Bryant’s passing, the original Hoopbus became a moving tribute to his legacy. Thousands of fans in Los Angeles poured their love and creativity into the bus, transforming it into a powerful expression of community, art, and basketball.
That collaboration revealed what Hoopbus could become: more than a basketball court on wheels, but a vehicle of change.
BlACK LIVES MATTER
Taking a stand, one community at a time.
In 2020, Hoopbus took to the road in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, using basketball, art, and community to amplify the call for racial justice. Through a nationwide tour and collaborations with artists, the bus became a moving platform for awareness, solidarity, and change.
NBA 75
basketball’s biggest stage.
In 2021, Hoopbus took center stage in the NBA’s 75th anniversary campaign, appearing in NBA Lane, a short film celebrating the league’s history and culture. The original bus became part of a tribute to the game, connecting Hoopbus’ community roots with basketball’s biggest stage.
a VEHICLE OF CHANGE
From one bus to a global movement.
Since then, Hoopbus has grown from one bus in Los Angeles into a global movement. Today, we bring people together through basketball, creating spaces to play, connect, and dream wherever the road takes us.
The people behind the wheels.
From Los Angeles to cities around the world, explore the communities and places that make up the Hoopbus story.
