Baskitan is a long-term documentary photography project by Richard James Daniels that explores the deep-rooted relationship between basketball and everyday life in the Philippines. Developed over several years, the project focuses on grassroots courts and improvised hoops found across local communities, particularly in the Visayan region.
Basketball in the Philippines is more than a sport—it is a cultural constant. From coastal villages to dense urban neighbourhoods, courts appear in every available space, often built from found or repurposed materials. Through Baskitan, Daniels documents these environments as they exist: unfiltered, resourceful, and shaped by the people who use them.
The project features over 500 unique courts, each reflecting a distinct intersection of place, identity, and community. Backboards made from wood scraps, bent metal rims, and hand-painted lines speak to the creativity and resilience of local players. These structures are not just functional—they are symbols of belonging and shared experience.
Baskitan also explores the social dynamics surrounding the game, including the concept of “hoop politics,” where basketball courts are often tied to local leadership and community development. In this way, the project reveals how sport, space, and influence intertwine in everyday Filipino life.
Through a consistent visual language, Daniels captures not only the physical spaces of basketball, but also the atmosphere and meaning embedded within them. Baskitan becomes a study of repetition and variation—how a single sport can take on countless forms depending on its environment.
Ultimately, the project offers a broader reflection on grassroots basketball culture in the Philippines—where the game is ever-present, deeply personal, and inseparable from the communities that sustain it.
The project has been featured internationally, including coverage by BBC, Creative Review, Franchise Magazine, JOIA Magazine, and Complex, among others. It has also been published in Common Practice and Asia Society.