In a quarantine-free world, NBA playoffs would be underway right now. But with the sports world temporarily benched, there’s no way to know when players will return this year, if at all, or what shape the game will take when they do (other than an almost-certain absence of live / cheering crowds). So what is a fan to do in self-isolation? The living room is a long way from sitting courtside at Staples, of course, but these five films may help ease the withdrawal pains.
Hoosiers
Streaming On: Hulu, Amazon Prime
Have you heard this one before: troubled coach finds redemption by leading underdog team to glory? Of course, you have — just last month The Way Back saw Ben Affleck filling the role of the coach-with-issues. The gold standard of this genre-within-a-genre, however, is this 1986 drama led by the reliably excellent Gene Hackman. Can his high school basketball team overcome impossible odds and private demons to claim the state championship? What do you think? The material is elevated by thoughtful storytelling, all-star performances by Hackman and Dennis Hopper and white-knuckle jolts of impressively breathless action. FOR AGES: 9 and up
Hoop Dreams
Streaming On: Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO Now
Considered one of the best documentaries ever, this three-hour Oscar-winner follows high school students William Gates and Arthur Agee as they chart a path to the NBA — and out of an inner-city existence rife with poverty and inequality. And just because its a documentary, don’t assume the on-court action suffers. In fact, because the stakes are so vivid and real, Hoop Dreams crackles with moments of genuine, heart-in-throat suspense. FOR AGES: 13 and up
Space Jam
Streaming On: Netflix
Michael Jordan is enlisted by Bugs Bunny to help win a basketball game between the Looney Tunes characters and a group of intergalactic cretins who, if they prove victorious, will make Bugs and the gang main attractions at a seedy outer space amusement park. Sophisticated and soulful, this is not — but with dazzling visuals, the pleasure of watching the Looney Tunes in action and supporting work from Bill Murray, who needs sophistication and soulfulness anyway, especially if you have kids? FOR AGES: 6 and up
White Men Can’t Jump
Streaming On: Amazon Prime
Sports is about winning. So why are the most entertaining sports films about losers? Like Bull Durham and Tin Cup — two other comedies from director Ron Shelton about minor leaguers and has-beens — White Men Can’t Jump cares less about the game than it does the fakes and fouls that occur between characters off the court. Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes star as trash-talking Venice beach basketball hustlers not above double-crossing each other. FOR AGES: 16 and up
He Got Game
Streaming On: Hulu, Amazon Prime
Serving prison time for accidentally killing his wife, Jake Shuttlesworth (Denzel Washington) receives an early, one-week release from the governor as well as a special request: convince his son, the country’s top-ranked basketball prospect, Jesus (Ray Allen), to play for the governor’s alma mater, “Big State” University, and in exchange, Jake’s prison sentence will be reduced. Directed by Spike Lee, He Got Game feels as current as ever today, super-charged by the conflict between domineering father and haunted son. FOR AGES: 18 and up