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Another inspiring basketball movie has just come out.
Michael Jordan’s name is mentioned in the first minute of Sweetwater in reference to whether any of the first Black players in the NBA compared to MJ. This flick is the story of Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton, star of the original Harlem Globetrotters and among the first Black players in pro basketball.
It won’t get the buzz of “Air” with Ben Affleck and Matt Damon but is definitely worth seeing. Better hurry because it is in one of the small auditoriums at Silverspot, a sure sign of a short run. I attended a matinee and was one of three people in the theater.
Surprisingly good unless you don’t like what might be called “woke” for recounting minority struggles in America. It has a surprising cast that includes Jeremy Piven from the HBO series Entourage who plays legendary New York Knicks coach Joe Lapchik, and veteran Richard Dreyfuss as Maurice Podoloff, first commissioner of the NBA.
The true star is tall and athletically talented Everett Osborne, who portrays Sweetwater in the late 1940s and does well both on and off the court. He stands up to Abe Saperstein, founder of the Globetrotters who is very chintzy with doling out barnstorming money to the players.
Just as “Air” plays loose with the screen adaptation, Sweetwater declares it is inspired by true events, and it also ends with the truth and Clifton far from the billionaire that Jordan became. It’s had an average start in ratings and at the box office, but it can be a tear-jerker if you like that kind of stuff.
The huge hands on the son of cotton farmers play a big part in Sweetwater’s antics with the Globetrotters who eventually drew competition from the Harlem Magicians once the best Globies also moved on to pro ball. He holds a basketball like a small melon and easily fakes passes to the guys trying to guard him.
The screenplay was actually written in 2007 and had stops and starts due to the economic crash and later the pandemic, resulting in most of the original cast having to be replaced. But Piven, the neurotic agent in Entourage, and Dreyfuss, who has played in dozens of movies, do fine jobs along with Cary Elwes, owner of the Knicks and Madison Square Garden who supports breaking the NBA color barrier with Sweetwater.
No awards coming, but good for fans and hoops historians.
Featured image via Briarcliff Entertainment
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