There weren’t any players in purple or gold. There weren’t any Laker Girls. But on April 23, even without the NBA playoffs in town for the first time in 11 years, gravity-defying basketball moves were out in full force in Los Angeles. Not to mention a couple of Hyundai girls.

Just a few miles down the road from the Staples Center, the Exposition Park Intergenerational Community Center housed over 250 basketball players in green and white for KoreAm’s second annual 3-on-3 basketball tournament.

With Hyundai as the title sponsor, K-Jam was a chance for 64 teams to battle it out for the first-place prize of roundtrip tickets to Korea on Asiana Airlines.

After a nail-biting final between teams BIG and Dave’s World, BIG ended up victorious, earning the tickets, individual trophies and, of course, bragging rights. Brian Kang, one of the four BIG players, was no stranger to the winning trophy as he had been on the champion team last year as well.

"The competition arose this year, but my teammates came through," said Kang.

"It was a very competitive tournament," said Steve Baik of Dave’s World. "They had a lot of younger guys — quick and explosive. We just had a team that played well and was balanced. So I thought we should have won, but we had our chance."

Hundreds came out to vie for the first place prize of roundtrip tickets to Korea.

Baik and other members of Dave’s World placed second, winning loge seat tickets to a Dodgers game and Kumho tires.

This year’s K-Jam was similar to last year’s tournament, but some rules were implemented to enhance the competition. Among them was a combined team height limit of 24 feet 6 inches, allowance of only one non-Korean player and the advancement of the top two teams in each grouping into the 64-team single-elimination tournament.

"It’s good that they have these rules," said BIG’s Dashawn Strong. "If not, you’ll get all the superstars."

While most of the players were of Korean descent, there was a mix in age.

"We thought there would be more younger guys," said 19-year-old Ryan Kim of Rip Squad, the third-place team that won Avionixx amplifiers, plus a $100 savings account from Center Bank. "I didn’t think the old guys could hang, but age didn’t play a factor as much as I thought it would."

Overall, players were happy with K-Jam, appreciating the free lunch, the test drive of the Hyundai Tucson, the courtesy gym bag filled with giveaways, and the chance to take part in a community event.

Fans were able to witness those who dared try their hand at dunking and alley oops.

"The tournament is a good experience for young Korean Americans to hang out with other KAs," said baller Tae Lee.

"They shouldn’t do this every year, but twice a year," said player Don Choi.