Sure, you've got Hoosiers, Hoop Dreams and (my personal favorite) White Man Can't Jump, but can you name the top 20 basketball flicks of all time? Not sure I can get past eight -- so major props go out to the folks at Moviefone for coming up with a list of the 20 best basketball films of all time, in honor of March Madness. Ah, the madness of it all; the teams, the brackets, the Cinderella stories. Where would we be in life without the Final Four?
Unfortunately, Air Bud and Eddie didn't make their list, but among the top 20 we have films like The Air Up There (oh, Kevin Bacon can do more than just dance), The Basketball Diaries (drugs and b-ball don't mix so well), He Got Game (he got Denzel, Jordan and Shaq), Space Jam (because we always desperately wanted Bugs Bunny and Michael Jordan to pair up on the big screen) and the recent Semi-Pro (Will Ferrell's 85th sports-related film). Of course there's a whole lot more -- including films I bet you've never heard of -- so make sure to dribble on over to Moviefone and vote for your favorites. Alternatively, feel free to enter your own write-in vote ... in case, ya know, Air Bud just happens to hit you in a personal place.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
3-22-2008 @ 6:45PM
Rocky Johnson said...
How bout "Quantum Hoops"? So far according to rottentomatoes.com "Quantum Hoops" has a 100% fresh rating. In theory that makes it the highest rated sports film of all time!
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3-29-2008 @ 1:44PM
Janet said...
Right on Rocky! Don't know if I'm qualified to vote, but I strongly agree. Go to quantumhoops.com everyone and follow the excitement to hopefully see this documentary about the losing streak and determination of the Caltech b-ball team in nationwide distribution. It's playing in a few small theaters now. At the very least it will come out on DVD. Check it out, you won't be disappointed. I'm not prejudiced too much, I'm just Rick's Mom!
3-25-2008 @ 9:33PM
karla said...
Where's ONE ON ONE? You can't have a list of top basketball movies without Robby Benson's Warner Bros. basketball classic ONE ON ONE (1977). Benson wrote the screeplay for One on One at age 17, not only to be the first film to expose the issues surrounding the inequities in 'amateur' college athletics, he wrote One on One because HE LOVED TO PLAY THE GAME. Benson's basketball skills at the time were lauded by everyone from John Wooden to Red Auerbach (Robby was offered a spot personally by Auerbach for Celtics rookie camp) to Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Bradley, and scores of other top college and NBA and players and coaches through the years. Cast in Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now, Robby bought out his contract when Warner's gave One on One the green light. As an actor/athlete Robby Benson was the real thing. (Just asked Billy Mills -- the only USA 10000 meter Olympic Gold Medal winner, who chose Robby to portray him in Running Brave). Plus, any guy from 8 to 80 who saw One on One fell in love with Benson's love interest, the gorgeous red-headed tutor played by Annette O'Toole.
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3-26-2008 @ 8:54PM
Will said...
I totally agree... Somebody was sleeping at the wheel on this one. I looked at the list twice searching for ONE ON ONE but didn't see it on the list. I'm shocked. It's one of my all time faves for any sports movie.
3-29-2008 @ 9:58AM
Mark said...
I agree One on One was an excellent made basketball movie and should be on the list. Robby Benson along with the other cast all played their roles in a genuine way. From start to finish, One on One's story line was simple yet motivational and inspiring. I was a few years younger than Robby when I went to
the Regional tournament in the Pepsi Challenge HotShot contest in 1980. From the small town of Coffeyville, KS to the Regional in Kansas City, KS, I felt like Robby's character in a similar way for a brief moment in time. My favorite basketball movie with a good soundtrack throughout.
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3-29-2008 @ 11:01AM
Jeff Keeling said...
I can't believe Heaven is a Playground and Rebound aren't on the list either. I'd put both of them in my top 10. One on One should included also...and Basketball Diaries shouldn't even be on the list good movie, but not really a b-ball movie.
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3-29-2008 @ 12:43PM
Dennis Grunes said...
Weighted toward films of the past ten or twenty years, this list is ridiculous. How can any such list be taken seriously if it omits Jack Nicholson's 1971 "Drive, He Said"? Rather, this list seems to have been devised by someone or someones who haven't seen many basketball films and therefore feel obliged to scrape the bottom of the barrel. This is unfortunate. Why produce such a list if those producing it are incapable of making it a serious and substantive list?
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3-29-2008 @ 4:58PM
KYLE said...
None of these movies can hold a candle to Rebound.. The Earl Manigault Story.
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3-29-2008 @ 1:42PM
Patrick said...
I totally agree. Rebound, The Legend Of Earl Manigault , is not only a great basketball movie but more importantly a true story life lesson about how people can conquer drug addiction and turn their lives around. It should be on the tube more often.
3-30-2008 @ 1:05PM
GYDDEON said...
you forgot one on one, showing some the truth behind the collage game. like the pros the better the pay the better the performance.
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