Tony Exum Sr. can still hear the basketball pounding the pavement at Memorial Park.

Teammates calling out screens, sneakers scraping across the cement on the courts and, of course, the swishing of leather as the ball fell through the net, all remain vivid memories.

Exum works as a Democratic state senator now, but he spent hours at the courts in the late 1960s and 1970s before he graduated from Palmer.

Whether honing his craft alone or getting in various runs with soldiers from Fort Carson and neighborhood players, Exum cherished those moments on the outdoor courts.

“Back in the day, if I had a varsity game at Palmer on a Saturday, I’d be at the court warming up getting ready for that evening,” Exum said. “It’s nice to see that kids are back because when we were playing, you’d have your friends, your girlfriend, your family, they’d be surrounding the court and it got to be an afternoon (activity.) It’s important for the kids to see that although it’s competitive ball, it’s part of a culture and part of a family.”

The basketball courts at Memorial Park will officially reopen at 10 a.m. Saturday following a ribbon cutting ceremony.

Along with a new paint job, the refurbishment will also include player benches, resurfacing, new basketball hoops and new backboards.

Terrell Brown, Hillside Connection founder, announced in July that the basketball courts at Memorial Park would be refurbished after Hillside Connection won the Every Court Has A Story contest, an initiative created by Project Backboard. Victory Creative Group and JDS Sports also assisted with the process.

“It’s humbling to see this is on the tipping point of getting done and the resources that are coming behind it,” Brown said in July shortly after the announcement. “When you’re talking about Five-Star Basketball, that’s a national entity. Wilt Chamberlain, Julius Erving, LeBron James, all of them played at Five-Star Basketball camps. … It’s humbling to think back to those Fourth of Julys here and some of those lost stories that are now coming back to life.”

Exum echoed Brown’s sentiments and noted the refurbished courts will show area kids that the community cares and wants to “see them thrive.”

“They’re seeing that the city cares about their side of town,” Exum said. “Refurbishing that and having that money from the city and investors is important to the younger generation growing up. That’s one thing about Hillside Connection. They’re bringing those things back; playing ball outside and shaking hands afterward, which is important.”

Kenny Callum recalls those heated battles at Memorial Park and how those games helped him and neighborhood hoopers bond.

Callum, who graduated from Palmer in 1974, said he hopes the refurbishment serves as the genesis of runs at Memorial Park that rival what he experienced in childhood.

“I’m hoping they’ll have more tournaments and establish an outdoor league,” Callum said. “I’m hoping kids from all over the community, not just that community, show up. I want to see kids from the southeast, northeast, northwest. They’ll see these programs that Terrell is doing will have larger effects on the whole community and bring those communities together.”

For Callum, who formerly served as Hillside Center’s director, the courts weren’t just a haven for he and his friends. This serves as a bridge for kids, and adults, from different neighborhoods to connect.

“We need to stop looking at a person’s pigmentation and where they come from and develop community,” Callum said. “We create the separation, and it doesn’t do much good. There are a lot of people trying to do a lot of good things with their programs and for kids. YMCA does their program; Trey Harris has his program over at P.L.U.T.O. Everyone has their thing, but it’s not what Terrell is doing.

“Terrell is building camaraderie. He’s building a community that exists and erases these barriers you have to break down because of who you are, not your talent.”

De’Anzo Williams, who grew up in Colorado Springs and played professional basketball in Bolencesto Superior National the Arecebo Capitanes in Puerto Rico, said the courts allow him to reminisce about childhood.

Williams, alongside his family, hooped at Memorial Park and he remembers the games they played and the verbal jousting between friends.

He wants that for others after the courts reopen.

“I grew up right across the street from there in the green house as a kid,” Williams said. “I spent endless hours there with my dad, Bobby Joe Williams, and at Helen Hunt. I went to South Junior (High) on the City Championship teams with my cousin, Darren Dunlap, Sherlock (Holmes) all as kids. My uncle, Bud, was our coach and we never lost.”

In early September, during his State of the City address, Mayor Yemi Mobolade spoke about the importance of the improvements and how the upgrades will benefit the neighborhood.

Mobolade spoke about the city’s efforts to “protect, preserve, and enhance Colorado Springs’ most beautiful assets” and how some residents, including Brown, have done so via sports.

“Terrell knows the power of public parks. These are third spaces and places where neighbors join together to experience community,” Mobolade said. “Places where young people can solve problems with adults, and places where people can imagine and activate their dreams. That is why, earlier this year, Terrell took a jump shot at restoring life to the courts at Memorial Park.

“Terrell’s submission to “Every Court Has a Story contest” won Colorado Springs a fully funded court renovation. It will bring art, positivity and pride to Memorial Park. … The road to our future is paved with progress.”