Raising 18 - NBA Feature Documentary (2024)

Wilt Chamberlain: Borscht Belt Bellhop

In 1954, before his senior year of high school, Wilt Chamberlain took a summer job that would change his life, working as a bellhop at Kutsher's Country Club, a Jewish resort in the Catskill Mountains. An unexplored and pivotal chapter in the life of one of basketball's greatest players, and a fascinating glimpse of a time when a very different era of basketball met the Borscht Belt in its heyday.

MECCA: The Floor That Made Milwaukee Famous

In the 1970s the city of Milwaukee hired an artist to paint the Bucks' floor. More than 30 years later, Bucks fan Andy Gorzalski puts his family's credit card down for $20k to protect this iconic symbol of the city's history.

From Africa: Pathways to the NBA

In a beach town on the coast of Senegal sits a basketball academy attended by the most promising players in Africa. Through the eyes of NBA Academy Africa’s players and staff, “From Africa: Pathways to the NBA” details stories of work on the court and in the classroom, the brotherhood that these star prospects have built, and their pursuit of the NBA dream.

Basketball Stories: Indiana Glory

Indiana native son Larry Bird, "Mr. Hoosier" Isiah Thomas, and all-time Pacer great Reggie Miller discuss their journey through basketball, relive their greatest on-court battles and share memories of Indiana basketball.

Hoop Dreams

Every school day, African-American teenagers William Gates and Arthur Agee travel 90 minutes each way from inner-city Chicago to St. Joseph High School in Westchester, Illinois, a predominately white suburban school well-known for the excellence of its basketball program. Gates and Agee dream of NBA stardom, and with the support of their close-knit families, they battle the social and physical obstacles that stand in their way. This acclaimed documentary was shot over the course of five years.

Luc Longley: One Giant Leap

How a “gentle giant” from Fremantle, Australia, ended up playing alongside Michael Jordan on the “greatest team of all time.”

1968

A.E.K., the well-known Greek basketball team founded in 1924 by refugees from Constantinople, after 44 years, beats SLAVIA of Prague and wins the European Cup.

Chasing Greatness: Coach K x LeBron

A candid conversation between two basketball icons that explores the concept of "Greatness" and what it takes to achieve it.

More than a Game

This documentary follows NBA superstar LeBron James and four of his talented teammates through the trials and tribulations of high school basketball in Ohio and James' journey to fame.

Kobe Bryant's Muse

Documentary that goes behind the stats to reveal the story of Kobe Bryant's career, exploring the mentorships, allies and rivalries that have helped shape his stellar 18-year tenure in the NBA, and offering access to his daily experiences, his lifelong inspirations and the battle with his greatest personal challenge yet.

Anything is Possible: A Serge Ibaka Story

From a boy on the streets of the Congo to becoming an NBA champion, Serge Ibaka has risen to a level even he can hardly believe. Watch as he brings the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy back to Africa for the first time, and re-visits all the places he used to go as a young man in this emotional journey.

D. Wade: Life Unexpected

For a decade, Dwayne Wade intimately documented his life and career with a film crew. The result is a remarkably candid portrait of one of the greatest NBA players of all-time.

Winning Time: Reggie Miller vs. The New York Knicks

Reggie Miller single-handedly crushed the hearts of Knick fans multiple times. But it was the 1995 Eastern Conference Semifinals that solidified Miller as Public Enemy #1 in New York City. With moments to go in Game 1, and facing a seemingly insurmountable deficit of 105-99, Miller scored eight points in 8.9 seconds to give his Indiana Pacers an astonishing victory. This career-defining performance, combined with his give-and-take with Knicks fan Spike Lee, made Miller and the Knicks a highlight of the 1995 NBA playoffs. Peabody Award-winning director Dan Klores will explore how Miller proudly built his legend as "The Garden's Greatest Villain".

Nash

This coming of age documentary chronicles the life of NBA All Star Steve Nash as he tries to navigate his way through the somewhat toils of professional sports while trying to leave a lasting legacy on and off the court.

After the Game: A 20 Year Look at Three Former Athletes

Three women from a 1999 collegiate basketball team test their limits as they push to reach their athletic potential. Nearly 20 years later, they apply lessons learned from their playing days to different professional, off-the-court challenges.

Kobe Doin' Work

A documentary following Kobe Bryant during one day of the 2008 NBA playoffs.

Nowitzki: The Perfect Shot

This documentary chronicles the life story of the Dallas Mavericks' Dirk Nowitzki and his inspiring journey from Germany to superstardom in the NBA.

Estudiantes. 20 años de una Copa

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Playing for the Mob

The story of how mobster Henry Hill - played by Ray Liotta in Martin Scorsese 1990 classic, Goodfellas - helped orchestrate the fixing of Boston College basketball games in the 1978-79 season. The details of that point-shaving scandal are revealed for the first time on film through the testimony of the players, the federal investigators and the actual fixers. Playing For The Mob may be set in the seemingly golden world of college basketball, but like Goodfellas, this is a tale of greed, betrayal and reckoning. Ultimately, they both share the same message: With that much money at stake, you can't trust anybody.

Most Hated: How Kevin Durant Became the NBA’s Villain

An original documentary about how Kevin Durant became one of the most hated players in the NBA...in just one summer.

Basketball County: In the Water

This documentary film examines how NBA star Kevin Durant’s hometown of Prince George’s County, Maryland, has recently produced more elite basketball players than anywhere else in the world.

Jordan Rides the Bus

In the fall of 1993, in his prime and at the summit of the sports world, Michael Jordan walked away from pro basketball. After leading the Dream Team to an Olympic gold medal in 1992 and taking the Bulls to their third consecutive NBA championship the following year, Jordan was jolted by the murder of his father. Was it the brutal loss of such an anchor in his life that caused the world’s most famous athlete to rekindle a childhood ambition by playing baseball? Or some feeling that he had nothing left to prove or conquer in basketball? Or something deeper and perhaps not yet understood?

June 17th, 1994

Do you remember where you were on June 17, 1994? Thanks to a wide array of unrelated, coast-to-coast occurrences, this Friday has come to be known for its firsts, lasts, triumphs and tragedy. Arnold Palmer played his last round at a U.S. Open, in Oakmont, PA, the FIFA World Cup kicked off in Chicago, the New York Rangers celebrated on Broadway, Patrick Ewing desperately pursued a long evasive championship in Madison Garden and Donald Fehr stared down the baseball owners. And yet, all of that was a prelude to O.J. Simpson leading America on a slow speed chase in a white Ford Bronco around Los Angeles.

Once Brothers

Drazen Petrovic and Vlade Divac were two friends who grew up together sharing the common bond of basketball. Together, they lifted the Yugoslavian National team to unimaginable heights. After conquering Europe, they both went to USA where they became the first two foreign players to attain NBA stardom. But with the fall of the Soviet Union on Christmas Day 1991, Yugoslavia split up. A war broke out between Petrovic's Croatia and Divac's Serbia. Long buried ethnic tensions surfaced. And these two men, once brothers, were now on opposite sides of a deadly civil war. As Petrovic and Divac continued to face each other on the basketball courts of the NBA, no words passed between the two. Then, on the fateful night of June 7, 1993, Drazen Petrovic was killed in an auto accident. This film will tell the gripping tale of these men, how circumstances beyond their control tore them apart, and whether Divac has ever come to terms with the death of a friend before they had a chance to reconcile.

Without Bias

The late Len Bias still leaves more questions than answers. When Bias dropped dead two days after the 1986 NBA Draft, he forever altered our perception of casual drug use and became the tipping point of America's drug crisis in the mid-80's. Future generations continue to face the harsh punishment of drug policies that were influenced by the public outcry after his heartbreaking death. Instead of becoming an NBA star, he became a one-man deterrent, the athlete who reminded everyone just how dangerous drug use can be. Amazingly, questions still linger about his death nearly a quarter-century later. How good could he have been in the pro ranks? Has he become underrated or overrated as the years pass? How could a University of Maryland superstar and Boston Celtics lottery pick be derailed by a cocaine binge? Was Bias a one-time user as we were led to believe, or was there a pattern of recreational use that led to his fatal last night? Did he fall in with the wrong crowd.

Undefeated: The Roger Brown Story

Roger Brown, a 1950s New York City schoolboy legend, robbed of his prime playing years at age 19 by a baseless NBA blacklist, led the Indiana Pacers of the fledgling ABA, to three titles and five championship appearances in eight seasons.

Magic & Bird: A Courtship of Rivals

An exploration of the fierce rivalry between NBA superstars Larry Bird and Magic Johnson during their decade of dominance.

Going Big

Sam Bowie had a productive basketball career at Kentucky and in the NBA but was plagued by leg injuries and lofty expectations (he was drafted one spot ahead of Michael Jordan). Still, he never let his run of bad fortune deflate his spirit, eventually finding success and happiness as a horse owner in Lexington, Kentucky.

Kevin Garnett: Anything Is Possible

Follow Kevin Garnett's remarkable career and the pivotal moments that defined it.