answered about 18 months ago by alpha

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Inappropriate?

There used to be weekend games at the American Club, but it wouldn't be five on five...as they only have a small half court. There are Vietnamese kids who play at the Van Phuc sports complex. In the summer months, you'd have to get there early...like 8am (everybody avoids the heat during the day). I can't vouch for the quality of the games, but there seemed to be plenty of people around playing full court. They rent the court by the hour, so they'd have to let you in the game. It's not just open run. I've also heard that there are games at the Hanoi Amsterdam High School, but I've never seen these.

I'm a bit out of the loop on this, so hopefully somebody more current can give you some specifics.

answered about 18 months ago by FunboyChow

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Inappropriate?

There are games on Tuesday and Thursday nights at the Van Phuc sports complex on Van Bao street (near RMIT, the Japanese embassy, Daewoo Hotel, etc.). People usually get there around 7 p.m. and play for an hour or two. It is supposed to be an "open" court, but occasionally a group will claim to have it reserved and will not let you join them. A little patience and friendliness usually takes care of this.

It costs 80,000 VND per hour for the court (to pay for the lights, I guess?) and usually a collection is taken at some point in the evening so one guy doesn't have to foot the bill, but if you are a bad person you can easily get away without paying.

Games are typically full-court, 5-on-5, but it depends on how many people are there and who got there first. I would estimate that it's about 2/3 Vietnamese players, 1/3 foreigners. There are some pretty good players, but the overall level of play is not intimidating.

It's very possible that there are games on other days, or at other times, but it seems Tuesday and Thursday nights are the big ones. I went on a Saturday evening once and there was no one there but little kids.