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Seasonal Watch: Basketball Movies – Jennifer Merin reports

Jennifer Merin , ,
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Basketball. Basketball. Basketball! Whether you’re a basketball fanatic or not, a diehard fan dedicated to an NBA team or not, or you’re crushing on a particular pro player or not, it’s hard not to follow the sport and its players at this time of year, when live playoff games are streaming and social media is screaming BASKETBALL. Thrilling videos on YouTube and other accessible internet platorms let you watch and rewatch and marvel at the stunning choreography of great scoring plays. You are urged to score appealing seasonal merch and memorabilia.

For millions of Americans and for the international multitude who follow the sport, life at this time of year is all about basketball. But the basketball life takes place and is chronicled off the courts, too, with inspiring stories about the game, its outstanding personnel and its social and cultural impact. To enhance your basketball season, watch our recommended basketball films for a wide variety of basketball stories, including romances, comedies and tales in which underdogs prevail. Here’s our list:

AIR (2023)

We’re used to seeing heroic stories of military figures, musicians, political leaders and activists, and, because movies are written by writers — writers. But in 2023 we had a remarkable number of movies with heroes or anti-heroes who were, well, capitalists. We saw the origin stories of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, Blackberrys, Beanie Babies, the proto-computer game Tetris, and other branded consumer goods and the development of the corporations that developed and marketed them. By far the best of the group, though, was the story of a sneaker, a shoe that would become so popular it would have, well, a massive cultural footprint. – Nell Minow

CHAMPIONS (2023)

Based on a 2018 Spanish film called Campeones, Champions is basically A League of Their Own. After a series of indiscretions, a minor-league basketball coach (Woody Harrelson) is fired and ordered by a judge to carry out community service as the manager of The Friends, a team of hoops players with intellectual disabilities. Some critics are saying the film is patronizing and making a mockery of the disabled community, but that’s not the case. The cast brings out the best in each other and all are true champions. – T.J. Callahan

GOAT (2026)

Where there’s a Will there’s a way. Will Harris that is. A small billy goat who has dreams of being the greatest of all time…in roarball – a high intensity, co-ed basketball league played by the most aggressive animals in the world. When a viral video of his skills surprisingly earns him a spot on his struggling hometown team, Will must now convince his squad that size doesn’t matter. GOAT is Rocky meets Space Jam. An inspirational tale about an underdog…err…goat…who just wants to be part of the herd. The PG animated sports comedy emphasizes perseverance, teamwork and trust. – T.J. Callahan

HUSTLE (2022)

Adam Sandler is trying to pull one over on us in Hustle. The 5’9” out of shape funny man is playing a former basketball player at Temple — #22, the Double Deuce, who’s career ended after an unfortunate accident stopped him from hooping and left him to forge a rather lengthy career as a scout for the Philadelphia 76ers, Hustle is fast paced, predictable and crowd pleasing. The Waterboy finally grew up to be the coach. He turns up the witty charm despite having no chemistry with Latifah, who plays his wife. – T.J. Callahan
 

JUST WRIGHT (2010)

In Just Wright, Queen Latifah plays the hard-working girl, Leslie Wright, who generously gives to everyone else, supporting her family and friends unselfishly. But her gentle ways aren‘t helping her to find Mr. Right, the guy who’ll always be there for her. But, the film is a romantic comedy, and (without giving away details) it all comes right in the end. – Jennifer Merin
 
 
REZ BALL (2024)

Much like Friday Night Lights, high school basketball is everything in sparsely populated, remote Chuska, New Mexico. But for the Chuska Warriors, expectations are lowered after the team loses its star player Nataanii Jackson (Kusem Goodwind). It falls on his best friend, Jimmy Holiday (Kauchani Bratt, a former high school basketball player making a solid acting debut) and the team’s coach, retired WNBA player Heather Hobbs (Jessica Matten) to rally the team. But the low morale Jimmy and his teammates struggle with isn’t just situational—it’s systemic. Movies like this aren’t called “inspirational” for nothing. So while Rez Ball may not be a slam dunk, it gets the job done. – Ann Lewinson

THE HOUSE THAT ROB BUILT (2021)

The House That Rob Built, which premiered at the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival, pays loving tribute to retired University of Montana women’s basketball coach Robin Selvig. Fans of women’s basketball – and the university’s Lady Griz in particular – no doubt will enjoy the documentaries compelling plunge into history. But other viewers might find that the accomplishments of Selvig and the women he coached bounce by too fast for them to absorb the emotional impact. – Valerie Kalfrin

THE WAY BACK (2020)

At Bishop Hayes High School in San Pedro, California, Jack Cunningham was a basketball star with a full college scholarship. But, then, suddenly, for no discernable reason, he walked away from the game, forfeiting his future. Now in his mid-40s, Jack (Ben Affleck) is drowning in the alcoholism that cost him his marriage to Angela (Janina Gavbankar) and all hope of a better life. During the day, working in construction, he hides cheap vodka in a metal canister; he spends evenings doing shots at Harold’s Place and drinking more cans of beer at home. When headmaster Father Devine (John Aylward) asks him to coach the basketball team at his parochial alma mater, he reluctantly accepts, surprising no one more than himself. – Susan Granger

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Jennifer Merin

Jennifer Merin is the Film Critic for Womens eNews and contributes the CINEMA CITIZEN blog for and is managing editor for AWFJ.org, the online magazine of the Alliance of Women Film Journalists, of which she is President. She has served as a regular critic and film-related interviewer for The New York Press and About.com. She has written about entertainment for USA Today, The L.A. Times, US Magazine, Ms. Magazine, Endless Vacation Magazine, NY Daily News, New York Post, SoHo News and other publications. After receiving her MFA from Tisch School of the Arts (Grad Acting), Jennifer performed at the O'Neill Theater Center's Playwrights Conference, Long Wharf Theater, American Place Theatre and LaMamma, where she worked with renown Japanese director, Shuji Terayama. She subsequently joined Terayama's theater company in Tokyo, where she also acted in films. Her journalism career began when she was asked to write about Terayama for The Drama Review. She became a regular contributor to the Christian Science Monitor after writing an article about Marketta Kimbrell's Theater For The Forgotten, with which she was performing at the time. She was an O'Neill Theater Center National Critics' Institute Fellow, and then became the institute's Coordinator. While teaching at the Universities of Wisconsin and Rhode Island, she wrote "A Directory of Festivals of Theater, Dance and Folklore Around the World," published by the International Theater Institute. Denmark's Odin Teatret's director, Eugenio Barba, wrote his manifesto in the form of a letter to "Dear Jennifer Merin," which has been published around the world, in languages as diverse as Farsi and Romanian. Jennifer's culturally-oriented travel column began in the LA Times in 1984, then moved to The Associated Press, LA Times Syndicate, Tribune Media, Creators Syndicate and Arcamax Publishing. She's been news writer/editor for ABC Radio Networks, on-air reporter for NBC, CBS Radio and for Westwood One's America In the Morning. She is a member of the Critics Choice Association in the Film, Documentary and TV branches and a voting member of the Black Reel Awards. For her AWFJ archive, type "Jennifer Merin" in the Search Box (upper right corner of screen).