When Ben Peterson brought me this story I was floored — one, because it’s so deeply reported and felt, two, because it’s about a league that’s existed for 40 (!!) years and still feels like a very special secret, and three because, selfishly, it’s the perfect encapsulation of the stories I wanted BASKETBALL FEELINGS to platform in its relaunch as a digital magazine.

This is part one of Ben’s incredible feature on the San Francisco Gay Basketball Association’s Castro League, and I hope you love it as much as I do.