Original subtitles

(grand orchestral fanfare playing)

(crowd chatter)

(pen scratching on paper)

MAN: Let's make somethin' together.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

(crowd cheering, whistling)

ANNOUNCER: It's the king.

(echoing): The king, the king, the king, the king.

(cheering and whistling continue)

(crowd cheering wildly)

(yelling)

(continues yelling)

(breathes deeply)

♪ ♪

(birds chirping and cawing)

♪ ♪

(groaning)

(turns on TV, static buzzing)

♪ ♪

ANNOUNCER: Oh, jump shot. Go on.

ANNOUNCER: He's heating up.

- Watch out, Sian. Move. - (player grunts)

ANNOUNCER: He's on fire.

Oh, you're on a game? I got next.

Too late, Dru. I already called it.

You couldn't grab us no cereal?

Do I look like your maid?

WILLIE: Nah. One of you farted.

Pause the game, LeBron.

I will, right after I...

- ANNOUNCER: Slam dunk. - (LeBron yelling)

- Yo! - DRU and LeBRON: Yo!

(other boys laughing)

- Oh, my bad. - (door opening)

SIAN: It's not even funny.

LeBRON: That's funny.

Boys...

- What...? - WILLIE: Sup, Coach.

- Sup, Coach. -DRU: Hi, Dad. - Sup, Coach.

SIAN: Hey, Coach. -Y'all get ready for the game.

I want to get to Salvation Army early.

And clean this mess up.

- Yes, sir. - SIAN: Yes, sir.

- Hurry up. - Yes, sir. -Yes, sir.

Right there.

- (sighing) - (footsteps receding)

- Nah, for real. - (door closes)

One of y'all stink.

Y'all gotta get that checked out.

- (laughing) - Yo, no.

It was Lil Dru. I think it was Lil Dru.

- Don't point at me now. - Nah, it was Dru.

(crowd cheering)

(crowd cheering)

Whoo! (laughing)

CAROLYN: That's all right, Sian. Go get back.

Back in there.

COACH DRU: Three-pointer, three-pointer,

take the three-pointer.

(laughing) Yeah.

Take the open shot.

(crowd cheering)

- Yeah, boy. - That's how you do it.

Yeah. Yeah.

I love what I see out there.

I love it, a lot of chemistry between the team.

I like what I'm seeing.

We were losing this game,

now we're winning this game, right?

Remember, it's not how you start the game...

ALL: It's how you finish the game.

Bring it in. -SIAN: All right, guys, let's go.

One, two, three.

ALL: Shooting Stars!

(crowd cheering)

(crowd cheering, whistling)

CROWD: Let's go, Shooting Stars!

Let's go, Shooting Stars!

Let's go, Shooting Stars!

Let's go, Shooting Stars!

DRU: Hell yeah.

When I make it to the league,

I'ma have a big ass pool in the back

and I'ma swim in that bitch every day,

sucker!

Sorry, Mama.

SIAN: When I make it to the league,

I'ma put an arcade in my joint.

Huge 40-inch big-screen and everything.

That's gonna be tight.

We can all build cribs next to each other,

build tunnels under 'em so we can hang out,

- like, all the time. - Why will we need tunnels

if you live right next door, fool.

You know, like the Batcave.

Oh, snap.

We should put a big ass basketball court

- down there, too. - (others agreeing)

(Coach Dru grunts)

What'd we do now?

I don't know what it is

but y'all are gonna do something special together.

Mm, that's right.

You know what? Y'all remind me of a song I need to play,

something for y'all to think about.

(gentle intro plays) -No. No, no. -This is a beautiful song.

Oh, you know what song we should do?

- What's that song? By Biggie? - Oh, yeah.

We should play Biggie.

- (boys agreeing) - There's no Biggie.

- ("Zoom" by Commodores) - * Whoa ♪

- * Whoa, zoom ♪ - (boys clamoring)

♪ I'd like to fly far away from here ♪

(Carolyn laughing)

♪ Where my mind ♪

♪ Oh, Lord, is fresh and clear... ♪

Your dad's musical taste is trash.

But when I make it to the league,

I'ma get a bunch of records

and I'm also gonna get a tattoo.

That'd be phat.

Don't worry, Sian, you already fat.

(laughter)

Besides, tattoos are stupid.

♪ Whoa, I like to greet the sun each mornin' ♪

♪ And walk amongst the stars at night... ♪

(song fades)

We need to hurry before Ma get back.

- (needle buzzing) - Can't rush art, brother.

Heard y'all finna start high school.

Yeah. Can't wait. Buchtel.

(scoffs) Yeah. I went there.

Slept through most of my classes though,

but game night?

It was on.

- Squad get all the hoes. - (LeBron chuckles)

- For real? - Oh, yeah.

(inhales sharply)

Sit still, dumbass,

fore this lion end up cross-eyed.

(needle buzzing)

(door opening)

Oh, shit. Let's wrap this up later, big dawg. -All right.

Tat?

I know you ain't puttin' no prison ink on my son.

- I'm sorry, we-we was just... - I swear to God. Tat!

I told you about this. Bron, get back here.

Tat!

Boy.

♪ In this whole world, you know ♪

♪ Whoa ♪

♪ Whoa... ♪

Gotta come home some time and that belt gonna be waitin'!

Come on, Mama.

♪ There are millions of boys and girls ♪

♪ Who are young, gifted and Black ♪

♪ With their souls in... ♪

(car horn honking)

♪ ♪

♪ In this whole world, you know ♪

(dog barking)

♪ ♪

♪ There are millions of boys and girls ♪

♪ Who are young, gifted and Black ♪

♪ With their souls intact ♪

- What's good, y'all? - Oh, what's good, bro?

♪ And that's a fact. ♪

(song ends)

Bro, what are you doing?

That's only gonna make your arms longer.

Yo, I grew a half inch just this month,

(straining): so kiss my ass.

Whoo.

Yo, is that a tattoo?

- Yeah, check it out. - (Dru grunting)

- What is it? -Damn. - Is that a cow?

It's a lion. He ain't done yet.

Cause it look like a cow.

What the hell would I get a cow for?

- (LeBron sighs) - Hey, where y'all goin'?

- Heading over to Buchtel. - Yeah, y'all should come.

Ain't nobody tryin' to go to school in the summer, Dad.

Well, it's about to be all y'all's school,

and if anybody'd benefit from meeting Coach Sams, it's you.

Boy, what...?

What... what is that?

A cow?

(boys laughing)

- I told you, I told you. - Yeah. -Come on.

CAROLYN: That is definitely a cow.

SIAN: Yeah, I'd cover that up with something.

LeBRON: Tell me that ain't Sian.

(Sian clicks tongue)

Man, that fool don't look nothin' like me.

WILLIE: Oh, shit.

Yo, he got them chubby cheeks and everything.

- Dang. - (laughter)

SIAN: Relax.

- Whoa. - Whoa.

- Dang. - It's huge.

- Hey. - Yo.

That scoreboard.

(boys talking indistinctly)

COACH SAMS: Boys like what you see?

- Yes, sir. - WILLIE: Yes, sir.

(Coach Sams chuckles)

That's what I want to hear.

(voice-over): 1930s,

white folks moved to Akron

just so their kids could attend Buchtel.

They called it the Pearl of Ohio.

Everything was white and pristine.

You believe that?

But now we here.

Academic excellence

and we still got one helluva basketball program.

And that's why we value all the talent

you boys are gonna bring to this school.

And I'm not just talking about varsity.

We need leaders on JV, too.

Wait, what? JV?

- Junior varsity. - I know what it is.

Don't worry.

We'll put some meat on them bones

and in a few years, few inches,

and you gonna be rolling with the big dogs.

- All right, bruh. - (Coach Sams chuckling)

♪ ♪

(Coach Sams chuckling)

ANNOUNCER: He goes up for the slam. Bang!

Another one.

(game continues indistinctly)

Man...

the hell with Buchtel.

Huh?

I said forget Buchtel. Place sucks.

Man, why you trippin'? It was cool.

Yeah, for you. You ain't gotta worry about your spot.

Plus Coach Sams practically drooling over Uncle Willie.

Man, that's cause I'm raw.

You over there downloading raw porn on his computer.

If I wanted porn

I'd just ask your mama to mail me some more pictures.

Yo, that's not cool, bro.

She just cooked us dinner last week.

- (overlapping chattering) - Yo, yo, yo, yeah, whoa.

Y'all hearing me?

Buchtel ain't gonna play me.

- He ain't say that. - Yes, he did.

JV?

The man ain't never seen me ball.

That's some bullshit.

Come on, man, it ain't even that serious.

What's more serious

than Buchtel trying to break up the Fab Four?

We supposed to play together.

Maybe if you stopped wildin' out on your pops,

he'll talk to Coach Sams for you.

My pops?

Can't you see they was both conspiring against me?

They shook hands right in front of me.

Look, if we want to play together,

Buchtel's the only school in our district.

What other choice we got?

And we'll still be on the same team. -Mm-hmm.

Only thing is you'll be JV.

You know, ballin' with the other munchkins.

(others laughing)

(video game continues indistinctly)

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

(door opens)

(door closes)

DRU: Keith Debrot?

No.

Dambrot.

Who are you?

Dru Joyce.

I just need a second, Coach.

- You're on the team here? - Nah.

Not yet.

But I could be if you're lucky.

Tryouts aren't until October.

Well, are you gonna give me a chance?

No, like a real chance. For varsity.

Varsity.

What the hell you think you're doing?

I don't have time for this.

I-I just started this job like 45 minutes ago.

Yeah, I know.

I read all about it.

- (bouncing ball) - Is that right?

Yeah.

I know what you're thinking.

You're thinking like everyone else:

too short, too small,

not enough meat on my bones, right?

Maybe you go on home and eat your Wheaties.

Maybe you'll luck and, uh, have a growth spurt.

But what if I don't?

What if I get old and stay short,

just like you.

Yeah, well, then maybe it's just not in the cards.

(Dru scoffs)

You know what, kid, why don't you take a hike, huh?

Kind of like how coaching college

wasn't in the cards for you?

I checked you out.

Head coach, Central Michigan, '91 to'93?

You were fired, right? Somethin' you said?

No, well, that wasn't... I mean, I-I never...

Look, look, it's all good.

I understand.

Sucks when people judge you before knowin' you, huh?

You played against the Fab Five, right?

Greatest college lineup ever:

- (crowd cheering, whistle blows) - Howard, Rose, Webber...

I know who the Fab Five are.

Well...

Me and my boys...

we call ourselves the Fab Four.

- CROWD: Let's go, Shooting Stars! -(crowd clapping)

We been ballin' with each other since we was, like, ten.

We can win you a state championship.

Guaranteed.

You sure are a cocky little bastard, aren't you?

♪ ♪

Yo.

(speaks indistinctly)

Man, where you been at?

I was at St. V's.

The Catholic school? For what?

DRU: Yeah, there's a new coach over there.

NCAA dude.

He legit.

All right, that's good for them,

but we goin' to Buchtel.

They ain't letting me play varsity so I ain't going.

But we're supposed to play together.

Y'all didn't seem to mind that I'm the odd man out.

I ain't wasting away on JV.

I'm better than that and y'all know it.

Yeah, we know, but Catholic school?

DRU: They got scholarships.

If we all stick together, maybe we could get some.

They got a lot of white folks, too, in case you forgot.

I ain't runnin' for class president, I'm goin' to ball.

And you serious?

Dead serious.

You really willing to walk away from Buchtel?

They got championships, my dawg.

And girls.

I mean, what's St. V's got?

A coach who believes in me.

Bro, we believe in you.

Well, you don't set the roster.

I mean...

what's St. V's mascot anyway?

The Irish.

(Sian scoffs)

So...

we'd be the Black Irish?

(Sian and Willie laughing)

Yo, that's trash.

- (Sian laughing) - WILLIE: Nah, man.

Them snow bunnies might be hittin' though.

Man, y'all know if we do this, our parents are gonna trip out.

♪ ♪

Buchtel was the plan. We agreed.

- (turns off engine) - You said Buchtel was the plan.

Yeah, because it'd make the most sense.

Yeah, so you can get a job there while Bron, Sian, Willie,

they get to play varsity, while I'm on JV. Right?

- Who cares about me? - No. No.

It's not about that.

You were the one who said

we was gonna do something special.

How we supposed to do that if we ain't even together?

Let's-let's reason this out.

All of you want to go to St. V's?

We just want to play together, Dad.

Willie's talkin' to Illya.

And-and Bron, he's talking with his moms.

Dad, Coach Dambrot, he's a real coach.

His squad played the Fab Five.

Plus he said he'd ask them to enroll us

with full scholarships if we all just say yes.

I'll talk to your mom about it.

All right, bet.

Thanks, Dad.

DRU: Come on, bro.

What are you gonna tell Coach Sams?

The truth I guess.

Does it matter?

No.

No matter what you say, we're gonna be labelled sellouts.

This is a Buchtel town.

We just living in it.

- Look at you. - (camera advance wheel clicking)

Pose for me one more time.

Come on, pose, Denzel.

- (camera clicks) - Mama, this ain't funny.

Shittin' me it ain't.

Oh, don't be all shy now.

You asked for this.

Go ahead.

("It Was a Good Day" by Ice Cube playing)

Knock 'em dead, baby.

♪ Just wakin' up in the mornin' ♪

♪ Gotta thank God ♪

♪ I don't know but today seems kinda odd ♪

♪ No barkin' from the dog, no smog ♪

♪ And mama cooked a breakfast with no hog ♪

♪ I got my grub on, but didn't pig out ♪

♪ Finally got a call from a girl I wanna dig out... ♪

All right, looking good.

Stop.

CAROLYN: Oh, my goodness, look at y'all.

Okay, now tell me.

Which one of y'all is supposed to be Carlton?

- Ma, stop. - Is it you? Is it you?

- Is it you? - Stop, stop.

- (Carolyn laughing) - * Lookin' in my mirror ♪

♪ Not a jacker in sight ♪

♪ And everything is all right ♪

♪ I got a beep from Kim, and she can do it all night ♪

♪ Called up the homies, and I'm askin' y'all ♪

♪ Which park are y'all playin' basketball? ♪

♪ Get me on the court and I'm trouble ♪

♪ Last week messed around and got a triple-double ♪

♪ Freakin' brothers every way like MJ ♪

♪ I can't believe, today was a good day ♪

(vocalizing)

(vocalizing)

♪ Drove to the pad and hit the showers ♪

♪ Didn't even get no static from them cowards ♪

♪ 'Cause just yesterday, them fools tried to blast me ♪

♪ Saw the police, and they rolled right past me ♪

♪ No flexin', didn't even look in a brother's direction ♪

- (bell ringing) - * As I ran the intersection ♪

♪ Went to Short Dog's house ♪

♪ They was watchin' Yo! MTV Raps♪

♪ What's the haps on the craps? ♪

♪ Shake 'em up, shake 'em up, shake 'em up, shake 'em ♪

♪ Roll 'em in a circle of homies and watch me break 'em ♪

♪ With the 7, 7-11, 7-11 ♪

♪ 7, even back door Little Joe ♪

♪ I picked up the cash flow ♪

♪ Then we played bones, and I'm yellin', "Domino!" ♪

♪ Plus nobody I know got killed in South Central LA ♪

♪ Today was a good day ♪

(vocalizing)

(vocalizing)

Man, with your cheatin' ass.

She let you copy off her test?

Don't hate the player, hate the game.

(laughter)

♪ Today was a good day. ♪

'Ey. I know this is trials but that's all just a technicality.

Be the Fab Four.

Show 'em how it's done.

Oh, shit.

Black people.

Where y'all been at?

COACH COOP: Right over left.

(player sighs)

So, how come we never see y'all in church?

Chapel ain't required for varsity seniors.

Jermaine, team captain.

That's Marlon, Malik, Jake.

- And back there is Chris. - COOP: Switch.

Well, um, this Sian,

that's Bron,

Lil Dru, and I'm...

MARLON: Willie McGee.

One of the best players in the city, right?

Well, in this gym, you're just another freshman.

(scoffs) Dambrot recruited us.

Dambrot's a burnout.

Y'all know why he landed here, right?

I'm surprised you even came.

(whistle blows)

Heads up.

Okay.

When I was your age, I...

well, hated being in high school

and now that I'm back, I hate it even more.

So if I gonna be here, I'm gonna win.

I don't give a shit if you started last year,

or you got a scholarship

or if your uncle is Michael Jordan.

If you're weak or lazy, you ain't makin' the team.

If you're slow, you ain't makin' the team.

If you suck, you're out.

For everyone left,

the next four hours will tell us who makes it and who breaks it.

Coop, it's all yours.

Everybody on the line. Let's go.

(whistle blows)

Let's move. Hustle up.

Three-point line, back. Half-court line, back.

Three-point line, back. Baseline, back. Go!

♪ Slam! Duh-duh-duh, duh-duh-duh ♪

- * Let the boys be boys! Slam! ♪ - Let's go!

♪ Duh-duh-duh, duh-duh-duh ♪

- All the way! All the way! - * Make noise b-boys ♪

♪ Well, it's another one in the gutter one ♪

♪ Ghetto runnin' 'em ♪

♪ Troublesome, Astral double dumb ♪

COOP: Touch the line, touch the line!

* So what if that I'm cheatin'? * -Let's go!

♪ Now everyone wanna say I'm grimy ♪

Touch it with your fingers! With your fingers!

♪ Yeah! ♪

(panting)

Yo, is this tryouts or Fight Club?

Dru, what's up with your boy?

Any of you tired?

Worn out?

Fatigued?

Maybe you're hungry.

If that's the case, get out of my gym!

Suicides. Again.

- Half-court. - * Slam! Slam! Slam! ♪

♪ Slam! Duh-duh-duh, duh-duh-duh ♪

Burpees!

♪ Let the boys be boys! Slam! ♪

- Again! - (players grunting)

Come on, hustle up!

- Again. - (players grunting)

♪ Let the boys be boys! Slam! ♪

♪ Duh-duh-duh, duh-duh-duh ♪

- You're slacking, team! - (player grunts)

All right, gentlemen, bear crawl.

Bear crawl now and you stand tall later.

♪ Slam! Duh-duh-duh, duh-duh! Slam! ♪

WILLIE: Yo, if that was tryouts,

I don't even want to think about actual practice.

I'd rather quit school and join the Marines

then do that shit again.

Maybe Buchtel will take us back.

Oh, my God, listen to y'all, man.

We made the team, right?

So stop trippin'.

The only reason why we here is 'cause you a midget.

Now we all gotta suffer.

No, we came here 'cause we the Fab Four.

(door opening) -You think them hatin'-ass seniors

and coach cuckoo bird give a shit about the Fab Four?

(door closing) -Dude threw a basketball at my head.

(approaching footsteps)

What's up, man? I've been waiting in the car

for, like, ten minutes.

Oh, oh, s-sorry, man.

I would ask y'all how it went but...

All right, come on, I can't be late for work, man.

Come on. We gotta go.

And if any of y'all want a ride, y'all better come on, too.

(sighs heavily)

Hey, listen.

Let it play out, a'ight?

It's day one.

It'll get better when the season starts.

(crowd cheering)

Yo, this is some bullshit.

- LeBRON: What'd you say? - DRU: This is some bullshit.

- PLAYER: Grab the ball! - (crowd cheering and shouting)

How we benchwarmin' while Romeo Travis, of all people,

gets to start for Central?

I still owe him an ass whoopin' for stealin' my J's.

He beat yo ass. I was there.

- SIAN: Ha. - He did beat your ass.

What you lookin' at, munchkin?

Yo, Coach! Yo, Coach, put me in!

I don't think coach heard you, dawg.

- DAMBROT: Jermaine! - For the 15th time.

You keep yellin' at him, he ain't never gonna play us.

- They're not very good, huh? - No.

(Vicki laughing)

- WOMAN: Hey! - Goddamn it!

- (players arguing) - (whistling blowing)

Marlon. Marlon, come on in.

Get your soft ass down.

Uh, Willie, you're in the game.

- Oh, me? - Let's go.

- (whistle blowing) - LeBRON: Yo, yo, go, go! -Go!

Hey, yo, Unc! Hey, Unc!

Let's go, Unc!

DAMBROT: Come on, come on, press it up.

DRU: Come on, Willie, get over it. -Come on, Irish.

He right there, he right there!

- LeBRON: Let's go, Willie. - Pass the ball, pass the ball.

MAN: Give him the ball!

Hey, pass him the ball. Pass it.

- DRU: Come on, man. - LeBRON: Come on, man.

This some bullshit.

They ain't passing Willie the ball.

- He ain't gettin' no love. - MAN: Why you holding onto it?

Shut up, Dru.

Just shut up.

- MAN: Give it to three-four! - DAMBROT: All right now.

Defense, Willie!

- DRU: Yo, yo. - LeBRON: Yeah, Willie.

SIAN: There he is, yeah.

(crowd chattering)

- (cheering) - (indistinct shouting)

Ain't no way you ain't makin' the rotation after tonight.

Just sayin', if they would've put you in earlier,

we would've won.

You was the only one playin' D.

Man, if we all was out there,

we would've been blew they ass out.

So y'all got something to say?

(Dru clicks his tongue)

Nobody was talkin' to you.

If you got a problem with the rotation,

go ahead and take it up with coach.

But that's right.

'Cause he don't want to hear shit you gotta say.

- We ain't come to not play. - But y'all ain't special.

You pay your dues just like we had to,

like everybody.

And if you don't like it, then quit.

Y'all ain't doin' nothin' else out there other than losin'.

(scoffs) Hold on, hold on, hold on.

What'd you say?

Oh, you heard me.

DRU: Yeah, you deaf?

Want me to say it louder, Mr. seven points,

five rebounds, four turnovers?

The season hasn't even started yet

and I'm already sick of these punks.

- Man, what? - LeBRON: What'd you say?

JERMAINE: Hold on. All right, all right, all right, all right.

So y'all think you're better than us, right?

- DRU (scoffs): Duh. - For sure.

So meet here tomorrow at 4:00

and then we'll see what's up.

Man, girls volleyball practice is at 4:00.

How do you know that?

(scoffs) How you not?

I mean, Bettes Park is always open.

If y'all ain't scared.

Y'all versus the Fab Four.

(people chattering)

(motorbike passing by)

Oh.

I didn't think you guys were gonna show up.

Why?

Ain't nobody scared.

(car alarm chirping)

Those matchin' shirts is cute.

Well, you gotta earn these, playboy.

Hey, James Podeski.

But, uh, you can call me Jimmy.

Cap said I'm your fifth man?

First to 21?

Let's do it.

- (man speaks indistinctly) - We up.

♪ ♪

- Get up. Hey! - (cheering)

- Yeah. - Set me up, set me up.

Swing, swing, swing. Yep.

Nah, it's mine.

Oh!

- Push it! - (cheering)

- Oh, get... take that. - Oh, hey, Willie, Willie,

you got it, you got it.

- LeBRON: Oh, my goodness. - Hey!

(players chattering)

What up, Cap?

Willie McGee.

You know I'm about to go left and dunk this, right?

Watch this, my nigga...

- You are my sons! - MAN: Oh-ho.

Little ass freshman.

- Go. - Get up.

(cheering)

SIAN: Oh, my God!

Wow, that kid's a freshman.

I've never seen anything like that.

Hey, what should I do?

You're doing it, man. Keep it up.

♪ King of the town? ♪

♪ Yeah, I been that ♪

♪ You know I click-clack, where you and your mens at? ♪

♪ Do the Smurf, do the Wop, Baseball Bat ♪

♪ Rooftop like we bringin' '88 back ♪

♪ They shootin'... ♪

♪ Like we bringin' '88 back ♪

♪ They shootin' ♪

- * Aw, made you look ♪ - Pow!

♪ You a slave to a page in my rhyme book ♪

♪ Gettin' big money, playboy, your time's up ♪

♪ Where them gangstas? Where them dimes at? ♪

(cheering)

- * Aw, made you look ♪ - Let's go then!

♪ You a slave to a page in my rhyme book ♪

Pass the rock. Damn, I'm open.

You don't have shit.

Man, they got us down 14-10. Wake up.

♪ Bravehearts ♪

♪ Bravehearts... ♪

♪ Bravehearts ♪

♪ Bravehearts... ♪

♪ Bravehearts ♪

♪ Bravehearts... ♪

- (gunshots) - (players exclaiming)

Was that gunfire?

So what, they shootin' over there.

We shootin' over here. Game point.

♪ ♪

(cheering)

♪ ♪

- (song ends) - LeBRON: Yeah.

- Yeah, Akron style, man! - That's what I'm talkin' about.

SIAN: Yeah, yeah.

- WILLIE: Good game, Sian. - Yeah.

Yo, Coach.

You hungry?

(dog barking in distance)

(boys chattering)

Well, they obviously never get tired of playing basketball.

What else do they do?

Oh, sometimes they play video games.

- Thank you. - Coach,

basketball video games.

- (laughing) - Yeah, that is true.

Well, they show a lot of passion.

Especially Dru.

Yeah, my boy can be a bit of a hothead.

The other boys put him in check though, you know.

They all kind of balance each other out like that.

Guess I'm lucky.

What do you mean?

I was just trying to find good kids.

I wasn't trying to make the best AAU team when they were young.

Willie...

I first saw Willie at a YMCA game.

He was amazing.

He was crossing over kids twice his size.

Both his parents...

addicts in Chicago.

His big brother Illya took him in

and became his legal guardian at the age of 18.

Saved his little brother's life.

Geez.

Sian... I go to church with Sian's dad, um, Lee Cotton.

You know, we just wanted Sian to work off a little bit of...

a little bit of his baby fat.

(chuckles) I hear you.

My boy, Dru? Dru was born with basketball in his blood.

I used to read John Wooden's book to him in his crib.

Now it doesn't hurt that he was so tall,

but I picked LeBron because he had skills

and was a-a good kid.

His mom, she gotta work.

She can't always be there, she gotta pull down shifts

so she just wants a spot where he can be safe,

stay busy and not get in any trouble.

If they have the-the opportunity to keep playing together,

it's gonna be special.

Listen, thank you.

Thanks for coming over and-and checking on the boys.

Well, I should be thanking you.

I was trying to keep them humble.

(laughs): Good luck with that.

DAMBROT: We play St. V's ball today, right?

All right, all in on three.

- One, two, three. - ALL: All in.

(crowd cheering)

ANNOUNCER: Willie McGee voted

Mr. Basketball Youth League Ohio Valley last year

gets his first start tonight.

(whistle blowing)

Willie!

(crowd cheering, shouting)

(cheering)

ANNOUNCER: It's hard to believe

he was just an eighth grader last season.

He really contributed to St. Vincent's

- young basketball season so far. - Time! Ref, time out!

- What? -(whistle blowing) - Come on, come on.

- DAMBROT: Hustle in. - MAN: Come on, boys, focus.

Jake, what's your problem?

You're not even in position, okay? -Huh?

Uh, LeBron. You're in the game. Let's go.

Come on, come on, play ball.

(crowd cheering and whistling)

♪ ♪

(laughing, cheering)

You go, baby!

♪ ♪

There we go, they got Willie and LeBron in the game,

they gonna kill.

MAN: This is crap! Let's see what happens, huh?

- (whistle blowing) - MAN: This is ridiculous!

Jake, stop the ball!

MAN 2: Yeah, let's go!

♪ ♪

ANNOUNCER (laughing): Oh, boy. Wow.

Oh, that was special.

Time out!

ANNOUNCER: LeBron James slams!

Ah, let's try this.

Come here.

Take a seat. It's all right, take a seat.

Sit down, sit down. Here we go.

Lil Dru, you're in the game.

Let's go. Come on, come on, check in.

MAN 3: Get in this game!

Sian, get on the court. Let's go.

Play ball.

ANNOUNCER: And Dambrot is doubling down

putting two more freshmen in the game,

Sian Cotton and Dru Joyce.

(crowd cheering, shouting)

It's not how you start the game...!

Let's finish it!

(cheering and whistling)

("Fettes College Pipes and Drums" playing)

MAN: Dambrot. Dambrot.

Dambrot! What the hell?!

- They're freshmen! - DAMBROT: Let's go, let's go.

My son is a senior. I want him playing.

MAN: Playing a freshman.

(scoffs) What is this, Hoop It Up?

We usually give more playing time to the upperclassmen.

It-it's a policy.

Yeah, well, policy doesn't win games.

♪ ♪

- * ♪ - (no dialogue)

(crowd cheering)

("We're An American Band" by Grand Funk Railroad playing)

He's a freshman! Take it out!

♪ ♪

ANNOUNCER: A steal from Cotton.

Outlet passes to Joyce.

Off the backboard and James slams it home!

(cheering wildly)

Look, I don't think I'm overstating

that we way be seeing the beginnings

of something special here in Akron.

That's how these freshman play!

♪ Out on the road for 40 days ♪

♪ Last night in Little Rock put me in a haze ♪

♪ Sweet, sweet Connie, doin' her act ♪

♪ She had the whole show and that's a natural fact ♪

♪ Up all night with Freddie King ♪

♪ I got to tell you, poker's his thing ♪

♪ Booze and ladies, keep me right ♪

♪ As long as we can make it to the show tonight ♪

♪ We're an American band ♪

♪ We're an American band... ♪

Yeah? -Spencer Keizler from The Chronicle.

Well, thanks, Coach.

Um, what's it like coaching

the best high school player in the country?

Who, LeBron?

Yeah, best player, my ass.

Kid's always loafing on defense.

(laughter)

♪ ♪

♪ Four young chiquitas in Omaha ♪

♪ Waitin' for the band... ♪

- Max Winter from The Post. - Hey, Max.

What about you, Coach? You thinking about returning

back to college any time soon?

I'm right in the middle of a season with this crazy bunch,

so, uh... (chuckles)

Yeah. Hell yeah, I'm thinking about it all the time.

(laughter)

♪ They had a plan ♪

♪ They was out to meet the boys in the band ♪

♪ They said, "Come on, dudes, let's get it on" ♪

♪ And we proceeded to tear that hotel down ♪

♪ We're an American band ♪

♪ We're an American band ♪

(fading): ♪ We're comin' to your town... ♪

COACH DRU: This the last doughnut.

- You want half? - LEE: It's all you.

I'm good. I'm tryin' to watch my weight.

Mmm.

Watch your weight do what?

What you mean, "Do what," man?

COACH DRU: You watching your weight. What? Do what?

- I'm tryin' to eat better, man. - (laughing)

Hey, guys!

How's it feel to be pimping for St. Vincent?

(tires squealing)

Gonna be a brick next time,

you get on the coaching staff.

(sirens wailing, horns honking)

- Uh, Mr. Wahl? - I'm on deadline. What?

60 seconds to run something by you?

I'll be at my office in 30 so talk twice as fast.

"After a forfeit from Buchtel,

"St. Vincent-St. Mary's finished its undefeated season

with a 73-55 win over Greenview High for the state title."

This is high school basketball?

My old rival high school, sir.

Feels like filler for the kid's magazine. Anything else?

The star players were four freshmen.

I think one in particular could be the next Jordan.

Kobe Bryant's the next Jordan.

So maybe he's the next Kobe?

Kobe's too young to have a next.

Keep me posted on wonder boy.

What's his name anyway?

Hey, yo, Bron.

Check this out, my dawg.

- Hmm? - Looking like that, man.

Um... we ain't order this.

My manager went to St. V's. Says enjoy.

It's on the house, baby.

Oh...

Yo, by all means,

this year finna be straight fire.

- Facts. - Hey,

I know y'all seen her checkin' me out.

Man, she was checkin' me out.

Y'all ain't got no game though.

Unlike y'all, I get girls.

Since when?

Melody.

(sputtering laughter)

Bro, y'all just hugged that one time.

Was it Melody from seventh grade?

Yo, you're still on that?

- He's still on that. - Talkin' about the girl

from seventh grade.

- (laughing) - Hey, shut up.

(Dru and Sian chuckling)

Yo...

(laughing): Oh, yo!

- DRU: Nah. - What up?

Illya'd never lets you drive his joint.

You right, but it ain't his whip no more.

You heard he got a new car, right?

Know what that mean.

♪ ♪

We in business!

- * Yo, I'm getting ready ♪ - (cheering)

♪ To put y'all up on something, man ♪

♪ Yo, when you see something ill ♪

♪ You know what I mean? That's whoa ♪

- * That's whoa ♪ - * That's whoa ♪

- * Anything ill you see, whoa ♪ - * Bring it up ♪

♪ Have a Big 6 at the curb, that's whoa ♪

♪ Especially if he got the fully equipped kit on it ♪

* It's whoa, like, you know what I mean? * -* Come on ♪

* Like, yo, I had this bad chick Uptown, she was whoa ♪

♪ Had me messed up in the head, I mean whoa ♪

♪ Bought the chick diamonds and pearls, I mean whoa ♪

♪ Should've seen the ice shining on her wrist, whoa ♪

♪ Now money ain't a problem, see my dough is like whoa ♪

♪ Pulled out my bankroll on y'all dudes like whoa ♪

♪ Floss the blue shrimp from two-tenth like whoa ♪

♪ Money want to peep my blueprints, I'm like whoa ♪

♪ More or less, more so, I'll rip your torso ♪

♪ I live the fast life ♪

♪ Come through in the Porsche slow like whoa ♪

♪ My people like dough, light 'dro ♪

♪ Nitro, might flow, nice clothes like whoa. ♪

DAMBROT: Last year is last year.

Doesn't do shit for us anymore but put a big target on our ass.

If we don't win at all, they'll say it's a fluke.

And it'll be a fluke.

Maybe you see some new faces here.

This is Mr. Travis, who did us the favor

of getting expelled again so that he could be here with us.

- (crowd cheering) - What you lookin' at, munchkin?

Lucky for him, I value good defense over bad behavior,

so, listen up, Romeo,

pull any shit on my team,

you consider yourself permanently retired.

Oh, this here is Coach Dru.

Some of you all know him, I think.

- We need him on the schedule... - (cheering)

Wait, whoa, ho, ho, ho.

No, he's not gonna save you all.

Right?

We're gonna win it all

because you're gonna work your asses off.

That's how this works. All right?

Let's go.

Come on, bring it in on three.

- One, two, three. - ALL: All in!

(chattering indistinctly)

WILLIE: Man, why...

Why you slide? Why you slide?

(grunts): Watch out.

You watch out.

SIAN: It's not that he really broke another kid's jaw?

Man, do we even know he broke the first kid's jaw?

Well, he here now so he had to break somebody's jaw.

Let's go say somethin'.

Hell no.

SIAN: We can't keep ignoring him.

What we gonna do on the court, sign language?

- What's wrong with that? - (Sian clicks his tongue)

WILLIE: Man, let's just go say wussup.

- Yo, stop acting scary. - SIAN: Hey, yo.

Food don't got much seasonin' on it, but...

you gonna get used to it.

What y'all want, man?

Look, bro, we on the same team, so we might as well talk.

You can save all that fake shit.

See? I told y'all this career criminal

wasn't worth our time.

You lucky you got them little dress shoes on

or I'd take them, too.

- Yo, I'd like to see you try. - Dru.

Dru. Chill.

Look, dawg, we got a good thing goin'.

All we want to know is if you tryin' to mess it up.

I tried.

I guess, but...

You can't be serious.

See he wasn't gonna eat it.

Oh, your fat ass.

- ("We Ready" playing) - (crowd cheering)

ANNOUNCER: Sian Cotton!

Yeah, yeah.

Willie McGee!

Dru Joyce!

Romeo Travis!

LeBron James!

♪ ♪

PLAYERS:

♪ We ready ♪

I can't hear you.

♪ We ready and so strong. ♪

ANNOUNCER: And it's a capacity crowd here tonight in Akron.

ANNOUNCER 2: This place is bursting at the seams...

Pass the ball. Pass the ball, Dru.

...as defending state champions St. V's

takes on perennial powerhouse Massillon.

Hey, Dru!

Pass the ball next time! He was wide open!

Yo, listen to your pop, midget.

Kiss my ass.

Can't nobody bend that low.

ANNOUNCER: Ooh, Travis blocks the shot.

LeBron James grabs the rebound.

ANNOUNCER 2: That looks like he's going coast-to-coast!

ANNOUNCER: And that's what we call a guaranteed bucket.

(cheering)

ANNOUNCER 2: H-Have you ever heard the story of King Arthur?

ANNOUNCER (laughing): Yes, sir.

The boy that would be king.

ANNOUNCER 2: Yeah, Bob, I mean, the score is so lopsided,

the starting five are resting on the bench

and some of the reserves get a go at the Tigers.

Bro, it's gonna be so many chicks at that party.

I'm telling you.

I got two of their cheerleaders' numbers before the game.

And their team sucks.

They want us there.

And it's gonna be packed out.

I don't know, man.

Yo, what's the point of bein' popular

if we just gonna hang out all night at Dru's playin' 2K

and wait for Girls Gone Wild commercials to come on?

- I like Girls Gone Wild. - Huh.

E pluribus unum, nigga.

Seize the day.

I say we go to that bitch.

♪ All the girls standing in the line for the bathroom ♪

All right, so, maybe this was a good idea.

Told you.

Come on.

♪ All the girls standing in the ♪

♪ All the girls standing in the line for the bathroom ♪

("Everyone Nose" by N.E.R.D. playing)

(whooping and laughing)

♪ ♪

(cheering, chattering)

♪ ♪

♪ You and your girls are goin' out tonight ♪

♪ Y'all been plannin' this all week, right? ♪

♪ You got somethin' boys can't deny ♪

- * Here's a hint ♪ - * It's like apple pie ♪

LeBron James.

- Tequila or... vodka. - How are you?

Vodka.

♪ A hundred dollar bills look ♪

♪ At you, at you ♪

♪ A hundred dollar bills look ♪

♪ At you, at you ♪

- * A hundred dollar bills look ♪ - * At you, at you ♪

- Yo. - * A hundred dollar bills look ♪

♪ At you, at you ♪

♪ All the girls standing in the line for the bathroom ♪

♪ All the girls standing in the line for the bathroom ♪

♪ All the girls standing in the line ♪

♪ All the girls standing in the line for the bathroom... ♪

Excuse me, miss.

You was at the game tonight?

♪ He talkin' about a autograph ♪

♪ You just wanna dance in your wreck-less path ♪

♪ Close your eyes, see colorful things you wanna... ♪

Okay, I gotta be trippin'.

- * A hundred dollar bills look ♪ - * At you, at you ♪

♪ A hundred dollar bills look ♪

♪ At you, at you ♪

- * A hundred dollar bills look ♪ - * At you, at you ♪

♪ A hundred dollar bills look ♪

- * At you, at you ♪ - * Because ♪

I'm gonna catch you later.

♪ All the girls standing in the line for the bathroom... ♪

- Oh! - (gasps)

- Yo, for real?! - I-I'm so sorry.

Ya think? Agh!

(girl growls in frustration)

Oh.

- I'm-I'm so sorry. - (girl sighs)

- I did not mean to do that. - Look, it's fine.

Just leave me alone.

Here. Take it.

Please.

(sighs)

St. V's?

Pretty far from home.

N-Nah, it's just my boy drove... -It's cool.

I go to Buchtel.

My cousin invited me out.

Buchtel, huh?

Yeah, why?

They don't like me too much over there.

Why, you throw drinks on them, too?

Nah, just you.

♪ ♪

Well, you got some nerve.

I'm Savannah.

I know.

(sighs)

GLORIA: Mm.

Hmm.

This is what you call...

a hangover!

Why you yellin'?

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

Okay, Don Juan.

Who's the girl?

Your hand.

Her name's Savannah.

Savannah?

Hmm.

- She cute? - (laughs softly)

What you think?

I don't know, you kinda goofy looking.

I don't know what you might attract.

- Ma. - (chuckling)

I'm just playin' with you.

You know you handsome.

Drink up.

You're gonna need it.

Can I borrow your car next weekend to take her out?

Sorry, baby, I picked up some night shifts next weekend.

It's okay, I'll figure it out.

I don't know why you had to keep asking for more bread.

They told you the kitchen was closed.

They wasn't gonna do nothin' but throw it away.

I want my full dining experience with my leftovers.

Okay, whatever.

(door handle rattling)

(sighs)

Let me see.

You know I got the magic touch.

(quietly): You know I-I got this.

(LeBron grunts)

There you go.

Nice try, but you don't get points

for opening my door after I already tried.

(clicks tongue) You a hater.

(laughs): Yeah.

(LeBron sighs)

(starter whirring)

Really?

(sighs): This is not my car.

- It's my boy Willie's. - Mm.

- Mm-hmm. - It sucks.

I'm sorry. Let's just give it a minute.

♪ ♪

(LeBron sighs heavily)

♪ ♪

CROWD (chanting): And we're always in the fight!

You can't get us, we're always in the fight!

Yeah, we are Buchtel and we're always in the fight!

There they go.

You can't get us, we're always in the fight!

We are Buchtel...!

LeBron is a sellout!

Who you calling a sellout, Tony?

You still owe me $100! Sit down!

(muffled chanting continues)

Hey, fellas, let's focus.

Let's pay no mind to all this bullshit.

These the same dudes who called us sellouts.

Same dudes who tried to put me on JV.

I ain't losin' tonight.

Period.

(crowd cheering)

(cheering)

DAMBROT: Come on, now!

Come on, call that foul! You blind?

Daydreaming!

Ah, no, no, no!

(crowd cheering)

Come on!

(cheering)

Time out! Bring it in.

(whistle blowing)

Yeah, we are Buchtel and we're always in the fight!

Taking a walk! Get in here!

You got pride.

We gonna let these people over here disrespect us?

No, we're not.

It's a mismatch out there.

You're too small and-and the refs,

they're swallowing the whistle, so take a break.

(chanting continues)

Sit down, Dru.

All in on three. One, two, three.

ALL: All in.

♪ ♪

Dru, what are you doing?

Lock in, boy.

ANNOUNCER: Oh, Dru Joyce is checking into the game.

Diminutive would be a vast understatement.

He's all of five feet, two inches tall. -Sit down.

DAMBROT: Dru, that's not the play!

(announcers speaks indistinctly)

ANNOUNCER 2: He's not bashful either. Those guys are on him.

They're flying at him. He doesn't care.

(crowd shouting)

No, no!

ANNOUNCER: Long three by Dru Joyce.

And he stuck it again.

You almost couldn't see him shoot it, and he stuck it.

ANNOUNCER 2: Got to be proud of the little guy.

(cheering)

DAMBROT: Oh, no, don't shoot that.

ANNOUNCER: Dru Joyce gets open deep in the corner

and he'd done it again.

Dru Joyce has the fans here today -He's hot, he's hot.

just in disbelief at his ability to shoot the basketball.

ANNOUNCER 2: This looks like the Irish

just want to pass it around the outside

and look for the...

(cheering, exclaiming)

Is he's shooting that or throwing it?

He's catching it, his feet set

and he just knocked it down. That's five of them.

- Here we go. Five for five. - Five for five.

ANNOUNCER 2: He's gonna try another one.

Check this out.

- (crowd cheering) - (announcer 2 laughing)

Six for six, Dru Joyce.

ANNOUNCER: He had 18 points in six minutes of court time.

ANNOUNCER 2: Well, but he's... he's pretty big today.

Six for six from behind

- the three-point. - No question about it.

18 points for Dru Joyce to lead everyone in scoring

for Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary.

♪ ♪

Good game.

(cheering)

DAMBROT: Good game, guys. Everybody on the bus.

SIAN: Yeah. Rat-a-tat-tat.

Boy, you wet them fools up. That's what I'm talking about.

(crowd chatter)

Where you going? You thought you wasn't gonna see us again.

Not gonna deal with y'all right now, man, move.

- I'm talking to you. - Sellout ass.

(grunting)

Where's the rest of your cheap ass team?

Yo, that's Romeo.

- That's Romeo. - Yo, Dru, hold up.

(grunting)

- DRU: Hey, yo, yo, yo, yo! - (Willie shouting)

DRU: Go, go, go, go, go, go, go.

- (grunting, laughing) - What is wrong with you?

- That was stupid. - WILLIE: Man, what?

You out here having Ultimate Fighting Championships

- by yoself. - Literally, bro.

You didn't have to do that shit, bro.

Huh. We beat they ass, though.

- (laughing) - WILLIE: Oh, my God.

I know y'all seen Dru come through with the Falcon Punch.

(laughter)

Yeah, but who were they, though?

Don't worry about it. They was nobody.

Yeah, nobody till we beat they ass.

- (laughter) - (Sian grunting)

COACH DRU: LeBron. Six-six, yep.

And he ain't even done growing.

Yes.

Special. Very, very special.

Well, just come, come and see for yourself.

His next game is this Friday.

A-All right, now.

Yes.

Thank you. Good night.

(Coach Dru exhales)

(exhales, grunts)

So, who was that?

That was Sports Illustrated.

They want to do a story on LeBron.

Mm-hmm.

We have a big deal now.

CAROLYN: Well, look at that.

My baby's a celebrity.

Yeah.

Guess you raised a baller.

COACH DRU: Mm.

(talking low, indistinctly)

Coach, Coach. How long you playing LeBron tonight?

The whole game? Half game?

Max, what don't you ask Coach Dru a couple of these questions.

I got a game to win.

Hey, how you feeling about coaching your son

in the championship game tonight?

I'm just an assistant,

but I think we're getting used to the dynamic. You know?

Yeah, you're gonna have to, right,

with Coach Dambrot going back to college ball.

Where do you get your information from?

You leaving, Coach?

- No, don't listen... - Yeah. Hell yeah.

University of Akron.

Deals done. Tonight's the last game.

Is this not true?

- (recorder clatters to floor) - What's with the questions?

Damn it.

Locker room, right now.

Let's go!

(crowd cheering)

DAMBROT: Ball!

- (whistle blowing) - No, he didn't touch him!

ANNOUNCER: The 2001 Ohio State Championship

is underway and St. Vincent-St. Mary's,

led by LeBron James, are dominating.

Will you listen?

DAMBROT: Listen to me.

Screen, screen, screen, back, back.

No, don't shoot that...

- (cheering) - Okay, okay.

Okay, get back.

ANNOUNCER: Yeah, the team is playing with more individual

streetball style tonight.

ANNOUNCER 2: Yeah, I agree.

There's been a lot of showboating,

which is uncharacteristic for a Dambrot team.

(groans) Coach, why don't you try

and talk some sense into one of your boys, huh?

They're not listening.

What's he doing over here?

This is ridiculous. I gotta call time.

Dru!

Time! Time!

- (whistle blows) - Time.

DAMBROT: Dru, Dru, what are you doing?

We got a game plan. What are you doing?

One play, not one play we practiced.

You know, you...

You got some goddamn nerve, Lil Dru.

I got a nerve?

We ain't run not one of your plays this whole night

and we still winning.

There's a game plan, Dru.

No, no, stop with the game plan shit.

We don't need you, we never needed you.

You just been riding our coattails

ever since you got here.

Dru. -Just so you could get your ticket out.

Yeah, yeah, but I worked my ass off to build you up.

Nah, Coach, you just got in the way.

Now, if you want to leave...

(scoffs) cool, leave.

'Cause I promise, don't nobody care around here, man.

- Bye. See ya. Sayonara. - This is ridiculous.

- COACH DRU: C-Coach. - COOP: Hey, Coach. Coach.

DAMBROT: No, I'm not putting up with this shit.

Coach.

Coach, wait.

There's six minutes left.

It's a championship game.

(horn blaring)

Coach.

Coach... -I'm not going to be disrespected

by a bunch of teenagers.

What do you expect?

They look up to you, and you're walking out on them.

So you want me to get 'em in a circle

and all hold hands and have a good cry?

I have an opportunity.

They'll get over this.

Most of these boys been getting over it

their entire lives.

Every time someone gets close to them,

they end up leaving, abandoning them.

Every single person that matters to them has left.

Except you.

Coach, I tried to keep them humble.

You said it was going to be hard but... (sighs)

they're so damn good and they know it.

Just make sure that doesn't tear them apart.

Hmm?

Got six minutes.

Yeah. Heard he planned it all along.

Yeah, but what's he going to do? Not go?

Screw that, Uncle Willie.

We the reason why he got a shot in the first place.

(chuckles quietly)

Oh, Dru, this shit not funny, bro.

It's a serious matter.

Bro, how can y'all be serious with this comedy playin' out?

- (camera shutter clicking) - Yo, stop tryin' to act hard!

With your soft ass.

(camera shutter clicking)

Man, stop making me laugh.

- Yo. - Oh.

Yo, what you doin'? Focus.

Stop worryin' about us.

- Yo, sit down. - A'ight.

Oh, he mad.

(overlapping chatter)

Hey, yo, check this out. Check this out.

That's my foot.

How is that your foot? I was standin' right behind him.

Man, Ray Charles could see that that's my lean chocolate calf.

That is not your ashy ass calf.

Ain't nothin' lean about that calf.

What y'all talking about?

I see it, I guess.

Yeah. Thanks, Ms. Gloria.

Bro, you can't tell she was bein' sarcastic?

- Dang. - What...?

- Hey. Stop, st-stop it. - Get him, Dru. Get him. Hit him.

SIAN: Man, you hit hard for a little man.

Ma, can we buy your car

so we don't have to cram into Willie's bucket?

Sure, baby.

Yo.

DRU: Yeah. Oh, damn.

- Hold on. - Yo!

DRU: Oh, yo, this is art.

We in the front, We in the front.

(laughing) Get in the back.

Yeah, try to sit in the back.

How'd you pull this off?

I took out a loan.

They know we're gonna be good for it.

Check out your ride.

Man, this shit clean, dawg.

ROMEO: Wait, you got a DVD playing here.

LeBron, yo, let's ride. Let's get out of here.

Wait, hold up, hold up, hold up.

What about my car?

Bro, no, no, ain't nobody gonna steal that shit, bro.

(laughing)

Yeah, laugh now, laugh now.

Just don't forget, when y'all needed a ride somewhere,

Who was there for y'all? Uncle Willie.

- DRU: Uncle Willie. - (engine starting)

(boys laughing, chattering)

♪ ♪

BOY: LeBron.

He's here. LeBron.

- * ♪ - (camera clicks)

- Okay, kids, squeeze in. - (camera clicks)

♪ ♪

- LeBron. - Hey.

You a fan of Wes Unseld?

Washington Bullets? You kiddin' me. Of course.

(chuckles) This is for you.

- This real? - Of course it's real.

It's vintage, from 1976.

- Now it's yours. - Dang.

Man, thank you. Appreciate that.

Yeah, you... hey, you mind taking a picture?

- Uh, sure. - All right, great.

Hey, would you take our picture?

Please? Come on.

- Oh, thank you so much. - Yeah.

All right.

Thank you very much.

- All right, thank you. - Hey, man, nice to meet you.

Hi. What'd you get?

Cookies and cream.

Yeah, and it's half melted.

Still good, it's just ice cream soup.

Are you done being famous now?

Done with your little attitude now?

Maybe.

Your food's in the car.

SAVANNAH: I think it would be a really smart choice, you know.

I'm sorry, you said something, babe.

What I was trying to say is that the class is only 200 bucks

and it's supposed to be really good

and you should check it out.

LeBRON: Okay.

What do I need to take an SAT for?

(Savannah sighs)

What if you blow your knee out or...?

Hey, don't put that on me.

Don't do that.

- I'm just saying. - I'm just sayin'.

I'm going to be making millions right out the gate.

I definitely don't need college.

You don't either.

Wait, what's that supposed to mean?

It means you hit the lotto.

Oh, I did, did I?

Oh, wait, I just...

Hey, everybody, I just hit the lottery.

Savannah, that came out.

No, no, no, 'cause my boyfriend is LeBron James.

I mean, I had to buy his ice cream

- 'cause he didn't have no cash. - (sighs)

But in a couple years?

Bling, bling, hoe. Gold diggers, stand up.

- (Savannah scoffs) - Savannah, I was just sayin'...

I know exactly what you were saying

'cause you've been saying it for a while now.

I mean, look at you, you ain't even in the NBA yet,

but I can't tell.

What's it going to be like when you actually are?

LeBRON: Ain't nothin' about me gonna change.

I'm still me.

SAVANNAH (echoing): Are you?

- You're good at basketball. - (crowd cheering)

LeBron, you're great, but if you don't check yourself,

basketball is gonna be all that you have.

(echoing): Basketball is gonna be all that you have.

Basketball is gonna be all that you have.

(crickets chirping)

(cheering)

Coach!

COACH DRU: All right. All right, all right, I get it.

Listen up.

Now, I know everybody thinks y'all are...

God's gift to basketball, right?

But we got to get ready.

I don't need to get ready 'cause I stay ready.

I hope so, 'cause this ain't last year.

We ain't playing for no state championship.

We're playing for number one in the nation.

So if you thought last year's schedule was hard, think again.

We ran through that.

Well, now a whole country going to be watching,

and we got Oak Hill next month, remember?

The consensus number one team.

Basically, it's a bunch of all-stars.

I suggest you do not let this go to your heads.

♪ Uh, uh ♪

♪ The frail sh..., uh ♪

♪ 'Cause when my ... come in ♪

♪ They gotta use the scale that they weigh the whales with ♪

♪ Carlssons on the Jeep, Bugatti made the prototype ♪

♪ Hoped you'd get the picture, but you just can't photo life ♪

♪ Determined ... make it, kicking down the door ♪

♪ And we burning ... naked, the house costs a million ♪

♪ Sitting on the beach... ♪

Came to tell you, you know, welcome to the family, dawg.

(others exclaiming)

Fab Four is now officially the Fab Five.

♪ Say that they be wilding, you on the Cayman Islands ♪

♪ On a yacht with our favorite albums ♪

♪ A bad ... and a plate of salmon ♪

♪ You thinking that our fate is violent? ♪

♪ I love my ... for the fact that he real ♪

♪ And nobody on the faculty squeal ♪

♪ And if you facing capital pun, pass me a ... ♪

♪ And I'ma give you time to run while I rapidly peel, uh ♪

♪ We gon' make it, we gon' make it ♪

♪ we gon' make it ♪

♪ We gon' make it, we gon' make it, we gon' make it ♪

♪ I learned the game quickly, and I don't like to rent ♪

♪ So when I fly now, I bring my cars on the plane with me ♪

♪ In this case, who's the loser? ♪

♪ Ran through enough ... ♪

♪ For Castro to build schools in Cuba... ♪

What does La Quinta even mean?

It means you failed Spanish, Negro.

Yeah, we came a long way from selling duct tape.

Man, jerseys sure look a lot better, too.

Y'all sold duct tape for uniforms?

We came from the struggle, dawg.

ROMEO: Struggle?

I had to break a kid's jaw to get here.

(clicks tongue) Y'all really believe that shit?

But I told these fools that was some bullshit.

Man, it's the crazy eyes you got, you know.

No, but look, though, if we beat these dudes,

we're going to be number one.

Like legit, the best team in America.

- We already the best team. - Nah, dawg.

Like Ric Flair said, to beat a man...

ALL: You gotta be the man!

Whoo!

(phone chiming)

Oh, shit.

- Oh, what's up? - Yo...

I just got invited to a party

and they said half the league is goin' to be there.

Hey, y'all got to cover for me.

I'll be back.

Bro.

All right, bro.

♪ ♪

- * ♪ - (no dialogue)

ANNOUNCER: The Fighting Irish are going

to have their hands full here tonight

with Oak Hill Academy.

They've been called The Hoop factory,

NBA High, and, of course,

the number one team in America by USA Today.

And, boy, are they loaded.

Boasting a starting lineup filled with top 100 recruits,

including the number one recruit in the nation, Carmelo Anthony.

(coughing)

(gagging)

What's going on? Are you all right?

Yeah, it's just the pizza from last night.

Yeah, it was pepperoni.

He was in the bathroom all night, Coach.

Well, maybe you should sit out this game.

No, I'm good.

For real, I'm fine.

ANNOUNCER: Oak Hills' Carmelo Anthony

and St. V's LeBron James

are both leading their teams in scoring.

ANNOUNCER 2: Well, we are going to see

both of these young men in the NBA,

and one of them is going to have bragging rights

when this game comes up.

(crowd cheering, shouting)

ANNOUNCER: Yeah, up until this game,

St. V's hasn't really faced any adversity.

(crowd cheering)

- (players shouting) - Hey, yo, steal.

Wow, Willie McGee really picking up the slack

for the Irish here in the third.

With all the hype surrounding LeBron James,

this is a bit of a disappointing debut

on the big stage for him today,

Go, go!

(cheering, shouting)

MAN: Push, push.

ANNOUNCER: A great game,

but, tonight, Oak Hill just wanted it more.

ANNOUNCER 2: I agree. LeBron James and the Irish

looked good at times, but ultimately came up short.

ANNOUNCER: Final score Oak Hill 77,

St. Vincent-St. Mary's 66.

Let me talk to you for a minute.

(door closes)

(Coach Dru sniffs)

I want you to take today,

how you played and the outcome...

...and learn from it.

You are a special player.

The whole world already knows it.

You are going to have to deal with distractions

these other boys are not going to have to deal with.

I'm just being real.

How successful you become depends entirely...

on how well you manage...

...the pressure.

We're definitely blessed.

I mean, this is the third year in a row going back to state.

And I know with these guys behind me,

we can make it a three-peat.

Listen, Dru, take the ball back up top.

Uh, well, yeah, you know, it-it's the chemistry we got.

I know where LeBron gonna be before he even gets there.

(whistle blowing)

COACH DRU: No, no, no.

Run it back. What you-what you looking at?

W-Willie flashed out to the wing.

I thought I could get it to him. -Willie?

They play ain't for Willie, son.

Well, we've been playin' basketball together

since we were ten.

It's like, natural.

Uh, coming from where I'm from,

I-it's crazy to see how tight-knit everyone was.

And then they just kind of folded me in,

made me a part of the family,

'cause that's what this feels like, family.

(whistle blowing)

Coach, Rome wasn't cuttin' fast enough.

Yo, I was right there. You just wanted to shoot that...

COACH DRU: I don't want to hear that.

Even when we're not on the court, we're always together.

That's how it's always been.

LeBron's this big star now, but to us,

it feels like nothing's changed.

COACH DRU: You acting like you don't understand

simple concepts!

Hello!

When the down screen come from LeBron,

give him the ball.

Great. Okay, I think that's good.

Thank you so much, guys.

- SIAN: Thanks. - OTHERS: Thank you.

- Uh, you see that there? - (crowd chanting)

- That is pure joy there. - (whistle blows)

They're just taking every opportunity here

and spinning it into pure gold.

And they're a good team, but this is unexpected.

The fans are going nuts.

ANNOUNCER: Well, with the ten point lead

and growing, it's like, no wonder.

(chanting): You suck! You suck! You suck!

You suck! You suck! You suck!

Watch out, watch out, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

- (whistle blows) - Ball.

LeBRON: That ain't no foul, ref?

REFEREE: Ain't no foul, no foul, keep playing.

No foul, keep playing, keep playing.

(whistle blowing)

Pass the ball.

You ain't gotta do it all by yourself.

CROWD (chanting): Roger Bacon...!

- (whistle blowing) - COACH DRU: Let's go!

Move the ball!

(chanting continues)

Roger Bacon, that's right!

That's terrible court spacing.

SIAN: Ball, pass the ball.

You ain't gotta do it all by yourself.

- LeBRON: Yo, time. - (whistle blowing)

- ROMEO: No, you didn't. - LeBRON: Yes, I did.

Get open. You're no help.

- I've been open this whole time. - Get open.

COACH DRU: Hey, I don't want to hear none of that.

Get over here.

Bro, we about to blow it against Roger got-damn Bacon.

How we gettin' beat by a team named after a breakfast meat?

Cut the talk, pay attention.

We could still win this game.

(crowd cheering)

(whistle blowing)

All in on three.

- One, two, three. - ALL: All in.

- (camera shutter clicking) - DRU: Pass the ball.

Man, play some defense.

♪ ♪

What the hell, bruh!

Focus on your game, Dru!

Sorry, can't all be 23.

Watch your mouth.

You supposed to switch that.

I'm only helping. You need to get back.

Shut the fuck up, Chosen One.

What'd you say to me?

You got ears. Get out of my face, bro.

Don't be mad at me

'cause you ain't tall enough to make it pro.

- Huh? - You stop pushing me.

Hey, hey, guys, cut it out, cut it out, cut it out.

You gonna mess around and get a tech.

(whistle blowing)

- (whistle blows) - 12 green.

Come on, man, think.

You're costing us the game, Dru.

Get off of me, bro.

Dru!

Get over here!

Hey, LeBron.

Damn, get over here.

CROWD: ♪ Na, na, na, na ♪

♪ Hey, hey, hey, goodbye ♪

Are we really gonna lose this game?

Think we might have lost more than that.

♪ Hey, hey, hey, goodbye. ♪

(horn blaring)

(crowd cheering)

♪ ♪

(clattering)

(water splashing)

(footsteps receding)

Man, this shit ain't fun no more.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Yo.

After midnight again, man.

A couple more.

(chain net rattles)

All right, what's going on, man?

What's up?

When we was kids...

...I had size and skills over everybody.

But it's like...

they got better and I just stayed the same.

What happens if nobody wants me?

Get up, man.

Let me ask you something, why you think the boys

been calling you Uncle Willie since y'all was 11?

What's that got to do with anything?

You a leader, Willie.

Just 'cause you ain't leading down the path you thought,

does not mean you ain't on your way.

You hear what I'm saying?

You're a whole lot more than just basketball, little bro.

What you doing here?

Nice to see you, too.

You should be proud.

You guys had a good season.

You boys are looking good.

When are we not?

(Dambrot laughs)

Roger Bacon ring a bell?

You come here to break my balls?

Only partly.

My point guard graduates this year.

(Dru sighs)

You want me to come play for you?

You're a good player, Dru.

I enjoyed coaching you.

So much you dipped out on us first chance you got.

I wanted back in college ball.

I saw my shot and I took it.

Not going to apologize for that.

(ball bouncing)

It doesn't mean I'm blind to what you boys did for me.

Or that I forgot what I was doing

in this school in the first place.

It's not like I left you high and dry.

I knew you'd be in good hands.

I wanted to make great players out of you.

And I did.

Your dad wants to make great men.

That'll last you a lot longer.

Don't forget that.

Give me a call.

♪ ♪

(sniffs)

So we just ain't gonna talk to each other

for the whole season?

I got somethin' to say.

Look, I came here to play ball,

to put in work.

So while I'm here, that's what I plan to do.

Before practice, after practice, it's whatever.

But when we get on that court, it's strictly business.

You feel me?

Yeah.

All right.

Well, we got Oak Hill next month, so...

So we do what we gotta do.

♪ ♪

ANNOUNCER: A high school game here in Cleveland

has attracted a crowd of 10,000 here tonight.

But it's not just any high school game.

It's phenom LeBron James

against the number one ranked team in the country, Oak Hill.

LeBron mania goes national here tonight.

ANNOUNCER 2: He's one of those teenage phenoms

that come along in their given sport

and are so gifted and all I know is

if he's half as good as all I've heard about him,

he is going to be one special athlete.

♪ Yeah, inslumnational, underground ♪

* Thunder pounds when I stomp the ground * -* Whoo♪

♪ Like a million elephants or silverback, orangutans ♪

♪ You can't stop a train, who want some? ♪

♪ Don't come unprepared, I'll be there ♪

♪ But when I leave there, better be a household name ♪

♪ Weather man tellin' us it ain't gon' rain ♪

♪ So now we sittin' in a drop-top, soakin' wet ♪

♪ In a silk suit, tryin' not to sweat ♪

♪ Hit somersaults without the net ♪

♪ But this'll be the year that we won't forget ♪

♪ 1-9-9-9, anno Domini, anything goes ♪

♪ Be whatchu wanna be long as you know ♪

♪ Consequences are given for livin' ♪

♪ The fence is too high to jump in jail ♪

♪ Too low to dig, I might just touch hell, hot ♪

♪ Get a life, now they on sale ♪

♪ Then I might cast you a spell, look at what came in the mail ♪

♪ A scale and some Arm & Hammer ♪

♪ Soul-gold grill and a baby mama ♪

♪ Black Cadillac and a pack of Pampers ♪

♪ Stack of question with no answers ♪

♪ Cure for cancer, cure for AIDS ♪

♪ Make a nigga wanna stay on tour for days ♪

♪ Get back home, things are wrong ♪

♪ Well, not really, it was bad all along ♪

♪ Before you left adds up to a ball of power ♪

♪ Thoughts at a thousand miles per hour ♪

♪ Hello, ghetto, let your brain breathe ♪

♪ Believe there's always mo', ow ♪

♪ Don't pull the thang out, unless you plan to bang ♪

- * Bombs over Baghdad♪ - * Yeah, yeah ♪

♪ Don't even bang unless you plan to hit something ♪

- * Bombs over Baghdad♪ - * Yeah, uh ♪

♪ Don't pull the thang out, unless you plan to bang ♪

- * Bombs over Baghdad♪ - * Yeah ♪

♪ Don't even bang unless you plan to hit something ♪

♪ Bombs over Baghdad♪

- (crowd cheering) - * Uno, dos, tres, it's on ♪

♪ Did you ever think a pimp rock a microphone? ♪

♪ Like that there Boi and will still stay street ♪

♪ Big things happen every time we meet ♪

(echoing): * Every time we meet, every time we meet ♪

(fading): * Every time we meet, every time we meet... ♪

Good game, man.

(Gloria grunts)

LeBron, can we have a word with you?

Oh, no, yeah, of course.

Love you.

You've been on the cover of Sports Illustrated,

ESPN and USA Today.

That must be a bit surreal.

What do you think? Is it too much pressure for you?

No, no, it's never no pressure.

No, I just come in there, play my game,

and get my teammates involved.

You know, when I'm with my boys, man,

I'm always focused like no other. For real.

And tonight, we played the number one team in the country.

We gave it our all, 110%, like we do every other night.

We all do it together.

Well, congrats.

- Enjoy the win. - Thank you.

(crowd chattering)

What happen, somebody die?

A bribe? That's bullshit.

It's what they're claiming.

It was a jersey a random dude just gave me.

a vintage jersey worth $1,800.

How the hell is he supposed to know that?

Regardless, it was over the permissible limits

- set by OHSAA. - COACH DRU: It was from a fan.

Not a coach, not a booster. A fan.

Besides, all the players get sponsored gear.

If the donor isn't a family member, it's considered a bribe.

But it was just some random dude.

This is witch hunt, Dave.

There's been some very generous alumni endowments

since these boys stepped foot on this campus.

Don't you think we owe him our support?

The only thing that St. V owes anyone is a good education,

and-and the look of a high school player

driving a Hummer doesn't help.

- (Gloria sighs) - Please, no disrespect.

And, yes, I know what this is.

Look, it's not my call.

LeBron, you're suspended for the rest of the season,

pending appeal.

- Are you serious? - No, you know this isn't right.

- Mom. - You can go to the games,

but you're not allowed to suit up

or interact with the players?

For all intents and purposes,

you're not a part of the team anymore.

(Gloria scoffs)

He's just a kid.

(Dave sighs)

Just... Let's go.

Come on, let's go.

(theme music playing)

A controversial Ohio High School Athletic Association

ruling today involving basketball phenom LeBron James.

This ruling means not only is LeBron James ineligible

for the remainder of the season,

it means the Fighting Irish must forfeit

the big win last week over rival Buchtel.

Here's the OHSAA commissioner, Clair Muscaro.

The OHSAA is not persecuting one student athlete.

Rather, we are protecting every student athlete on every team.

Bullshit.

(rain falling)

(answering machine beeps)

WILLIE: Yo, Bron.

It's Unc checking up on you.

Illya told me to save it up.

I'm just letting you know, man, we got your back, all right?

(answering machine beeps)

DRU: Yo, big dawg.

Just calling to check on you.

Um, you know, you know, we gonna get through this.

Don't stress it.

(answering machine beeps)

SIAN: Hey, yo, Bron, I heard what happened, man.

That's some bullshit.

Forget Clair, or whatever his name is.

Just hit me back, bro.

♪ ♪

- Listen up, listen up. - (crowd cheering)

Y'all know who ain't here, right?

But we here. We here.

It don't matter that everybody written us off

because we know what we capable of.

So, let's go out there and show these fools

that we're more than just one player.

- A'ight? A'ight? - (other agreeing)

More than just one player.

A'ight, all in on three.

- One, two, three. - ALL: All in!

ANNOUNCER: Tonight St. V's goes against Canton McKinley.

Both teams need this game

to continue to the state championship.

ANNOUNCER 2: Yeah, and the whole state of Ohio is aware tonight

LeBron James will not be on the court.

ANNOUNCER: You know, this is when the phrase,

"Next man up" becomes all too real.

(crowd cheering, shouting)

ANNOUNCER: And tonight, we'll see

how this St. Vincent team fares without their centerpiece.

Let's go, green!

To Romeo!

(cheering)

There we go, there we go.

(cheering)

(cheering)

Come on, come on, come on.

- (cheering) - Yeah!

Oh, yeah, Willie.

(shouting indistinctly)

- Time out. - Time, time.

- Ref! - (whistle blowing)

Ooh, ooh, here we go, Bulldogs, here we go, ooh, ooh!

Here we go, Bulldogs, here we go, ooh, ooh!

Here we go, Irish, here we go!

Here we go, Irish, here we go!

Here we go, Bulldogs, here we go, ooh, ooh!

(crowd cheering)

- (cheering) - (buzzer sounds)

(cheering and shouting)

(band playing)

♪ ♪

Oh, hey, hey, hey, come on, LeBron.

- You know you can't. - Come on, Coach Coop.

You'll get us in trouble, all right?

I'm sorry, brother. Come on, chin up.

(cheering continues)

(band continues playing)

(door closes)

(TV playing indistinctly)

You ain't going to say hi?

Hey, Ma.

How was the game?

What you watching?

I taped my stories.

They won.

They goin' to state.

"They"?

I ain't on the team no more.

Hmm.

Did you have friends in high school?

I had friends just like everybody else.

Nah, I mean like friends.

Yeah, I had a few.

You still talk to any of them?

Nah.

Not really.

That's just how life is sometimes, baby.

You go to school, you got your crew

and you can't imagine what life would be like without them.

Then you graduate or you move or...

The real world hits you, gets in the way.

And you just kind of grow apart.

It happens.

It's really not what I wanted to hear.

I know.

But that don't change how it is.

What's important is that when you look back...

did you make the time you had together count?

Did you give it everything you got?

MUSCARO: Mr. James,

I'm sure you're aware that the association

has no bearing on your eligibility for the NBA draft.

Yes, sir.

(clock ticking)

I have to be honest with you then.

I'm a little puzzled why we're all here today.

You're on the very brink of wealth and fame

and by your own admission, you don't plan to attend college.

I can't see how missing one high school basketball game

will affect your future in any way.

It won't, sir.

You understand that presenting yourself here today

puts us under no obligation to reinstate you.

Yes, ma'am.

It's just...

right now I'm not thinking about the future.

I'm thinking about my brothers.

And they made it all the way to state without me.

So this is just a vanity play

so you can be in the championship game?

No, ma'am.

It wouldn't matter what game it was.

I moved ten times before I was 12.

All I had is my mom.

She's the only thing consistent, you know?

And...

this crazy coach

who kept quoting John Wooden found me.

One of the only men in my life that I could look up to.

He put me on the Shooting Stars

where I met Dru, Sian and Willie.

And, man, we'd hoop all day except for school.

Uh... spend nights playing video games

and doing it all over again the next day.

It wasn't nothing special really about it, but...

it was special to me.

Then we went to St. V's and met Coach Dambrot.

And, man, he was tough,

but he helped me become the player who I am now.

People keep telling me that my life's about to change

and...

they probably right.

In a year..,.

...I might not be the same person.

So if I have to pay a fine, change my jersey number,

do community service, I'll do it.

Just tell me what to do.

But please...

let me play with my best friends one last time.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

(engine idling)

What's up, bruh?

Yo, what's up?

Hey, Bron. -It's good to have you back, bro.

I heard you cried in front of the board.

Like a 220-pound baby.

(chuckling)

- Bro. - My boy.

- What's good, bro? - What's up, B? -What's up, man?

Look who came crawlin' back.

It's just sad when you see shit like that.

Ain't it sad, Rome?

It's definitely sad.

- Shut up, y'all. - (others chuckling)

- Ready to hoop? - Hell, yeah.

(crowd cheering)

ANNOUNCER: Well, Bob, it's been an absolute pleasure

covering four years of basketball

with the St. Vincent- St. Mary's team

and of course, the Akron phenom himself, LeBron James.

(cheering)

ANNOUNCER 2: I think everyone's hoping

for a storybook ending.

A low scoring game as we come to the end of the quarter.

We now go into halftime with St. V's down by five.

(buzzer sounds)

Tonight you have the chance to go down

as the greatest high school team in basketball history.

But...

I want you to take a minute.

Try to grasp this thing.

This opportunity that we've been given.

I can tell you...

when you look back at this time in your lives,

it won't be about stats,

accolades, the X's and O's.

It's not about winning the state championship.

It'll be that person next to you.

And no matter how you spin it,

this is my last time coaching some of you.

More importantly, this is the last time

that this team will ever play together.

Ask yourselves, what are you going to do with that time?

("Remembrance" by AJ McKay playing)

- * ♪ - (no dialogue)

♪ ♪

(whistle blowing)

What's up?

Coach, I think it's time for me to come out.

'Cause it's time for Jimmy to go in.

All right.

- (players cheering) - WILLIE: Let's do it.

In on three.

- One, two, three. - ALL: Do it!

Get it, boy.

(song continues)

- * ♪ - (no dialogue)

♪ ♪

- * ♪ - (no dialogue)

(horn blaring)

(crowd cheering)

♪ ♪

(cheering and music fading)

♪ How do I ♪

♪ Say goodbye ♪

♪ To what we had? ♪

MAN (over speakers): Jimmy Podeski!

(cheering)

♪ The good times that made us laugh ♪

- * Outweigh the bad... ♪ - SIAN: Oh, man.

Why they gotta play this song?

- Are you cryin' - No shit, I'm cryin'.

'Cause I got a heart unlike you cold ass bastards.

It's all right there, big fella.

DAVE: You guys ready?

Thought you guys were walking with your families.

We are.

♪ It's so hard ♪

♪ To say goodbye ♪

♪ To yesterday ♪

♪ I don't know ♪

♪ Where this road ♪

♪ Is going to lead ♪

♪ All I know ♪

♪ Is where we've been ♪

♪ And what we've been through ♪

♪ If we get ♪

♪ To see tomorrow ♪

♪ I hope it's worth all the wait ♪

♪ It's so hard ♪

♪ To say goodbye ♪

♪ To yesterday. ♪

(engine starting)

- It's crazy. - (laughter)

Man, you abandoning us, Coach?

what y'all doing out here?

You know the party's in there.

Nah, last time we checked, the party was in here.

Yeah, but you can't play none of that whack ass music.

Whack ass music?

How have I failed you all so badly?

(whirring)

("Zoom" by Commodores)

What do you know about this, Coach?

WILLIE: Y'all have to get in the back.

Yes. Y'all don't know nothing about no music.

Hey, Willie, what you doing, man?

- Oh, my goodness. - I got this, I got this.

- Y'all stink. - Coach, I got it.

(laughing): No!

No, you ain't...

What y'all doin', baby?

(low chattering)

♪ ♪

♪ I may be just a foolish dreamer ♪

♪ But I don't care ♪

♪ 'Cause I know my happiness is waiting out there ♪

♪ Somewhere ♪

♪ I'm searching for that silver lining ♪

(boys laughing)

♪ Horizons that I've never seen ♪

♪ Oh, I'd like to take just a moment ♪

♪ And dream my dream ♪

♪ Oh ♪

♪ Dream my dream ♪

(vocalizing)

♪ Whoa, whoa ♪

♪ Zoom ♪

♪ I'd like to fly far away from here ♪

♪ Where my mind ♪

♪ Oh, Lord, is fresh and clear ♪

♪ And I'd find the love that I long to see ♪

♪ Where everybody can be what they want to be ♪

- * ♪ - (no dialogue)

(song ends)

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

- * ♪ - (no dialogue)

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

(music fades)