A new holiday college basketball tournament is coming to Charlotte: the Jumpman Invitational.
The Charlotte Sports Foundation announced Thursday that the inaugural gathering is scheduled for Dec. 20-21, 2022 and features men's and women's teams from the original four schools to sign partnerships with Jordan Brand in basketball and football — Florida, Michigan, North Carolina and Oklahoma.
The games will be played at the Spectrum Center, the home of Michael Jordan's NBA team, the Charlotte Hornets. Two games will be played each night of the tournament, with ESPN networks airing all games.
“We’re incredibly excited to bring what we believe will quickly become the marquee college basketball event of the holiday season to the Queen City,” said Danny Morrison, executive director of the Charlotte Sports Foundation, in a news release. “These are four of the most storied and competitive programs in the game, and we’re looking forward to the interconference play.”
The event is slated to be played through 2024, with the possibility to expand it to include other Jordan-affiliated schools.
“We’re hoping this will be the start of one of the most anticipated, coveted and competitive events in all of college basketball each and every year,” Morrison said in the release.
