I first learned about Oaxacan basketball in the spring of 2000 when I read a story published by Sam Quinones in the L.A. Weekly. It was surprising to discover that Zapotecs, the largest of 16 indigenous groups in Oaxaca and among Mexico’s shortest people, had such an obsession for one of the most revered sports in the United States.

I learned that these tournaments allowed them to raise funds to send to their home villages. People from my town in Zacatecas raise funds by organizing soccer games, beauty pageants or dances, but basketball tournaments? The answer to this question is Oaxacan Hoops, a 20-minute documentary produced as my masters thesis at the Graduate School of Journalism at UC Berkeley.

The story opens in the Sierra Norte where playing basketball has been a tradition since the early 1930s. How basketball arrived in the mountain of Oaxaca remains a mystery. Some say teachers from Mexico City brought the sport to the Sierra Norte. Others say miners from Northern Mexico taught the sport to locals. They all agree, however, that in these isolated villages basketball has been an obsession for years and it is now a cultural tradition.

The film also takes us to Los Angeles, where thousands of Zapotecs have gone looking for work. It is here that the biggest Oaxacan basketball tournament outside of Mexico, the Oaxaca Cup, takes place. Played over two full Sundays and with its final on Thanksgiving Day, the Oaxaca Cup brings together more than 40 teams every year. Most teams represent a village back home.

The Oaxaca Cup is one of dozens of basketball tournaments that take place in the greater Los Angeles area throughout the year. In this city, where basketball is king, the sport has helped Zapotecs build community, find something familiar and stay connected to their roots.