HOOP DREAMS HOOP REALITIES Essay Research Paper

HOOP DREAMS. HOOP REALITIES. Essay, Research Paper

The poor living conditions of many black people living in the United States have created a desperate situation in which many black youths are pushed and pulled into the world of athletics, most often with disastrous consequences. A survey of black youths found that 66% believed they could make a living playing pro-sports.1 The fame of superstars such as Jackie Robinson, Michael Jordan, and other successful black athletes has led to an overemphasis on sports in the black community. In reality, the odds are 10,000 to 1 against becoming a professional athlete.2 As well, the horrible conditions of black Americans living in inner cities, which include rampant crime, poverty and limited opportunities, have created a desperate situation. Many black people perceive that the only way out is through success in athletics.

The social and economic prosperity of many black people in the United States appears to have no relation to the desperate situation that the black community faces as a whole. A quick look at some statistics paints a clear picture of this situation. The average black household’s net worth is one-tenth that of white people. Forty percent of black people live below the poverty line, compared to 12% of white people. Half of all black children live in poverty. The black infant mortality rate is twice as high as it is for white people. Forty percent of black men between the ages 17 and 35 are either in prison or on probation.3

These statistics attest to the bleak status of black people in American society. However, statistics do not tell the whole tragic story. One phenomenon that has sprouted is the widespread pressure to succeed in athletics as a means of escaping the inner cities. This pressure is applied on kids from an early age. Talent scouts scour the playgrounds of the inner cities looking for the next Michael Jordan. These scouts, who if not looking for basketball players would never set foot in the inner cities, are part of a much bigger picture that exploits the poverty of inner city residents.

The process that channels top basketball players to leading college teams is a very simple and effective one, yet leaves insurmountable damage in its wake. It starts innocently enough on the playgrounds of urban America where unofficial, paid-under-the-table scouts look for talented young kids and report their findings to their clients, the high school coaches. Coaches use various incentives to recruit kids to play for their high schools, such as guaranteed starting positions on the school team, or even scholarships in the case of parochial schools. This system ensures that the best players end up on the best teams. Even talented kids who are missed initially are sure to be discovered by independent scouts eventually. The process intensifies over the next few years as college coaches scavenge the nation, seeking the next college basketball superstar. At summer camps such as Nike Camp, high-school players show off their talent for coaches. Those who perform well at these camps are heavily recruited by the top college programs that are, in turn, feeders to the NBA. Coaches beg the young players to come play for them, bombarding them with letters and phone calls that promise four-year scholarships. This entire process is governed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) which has constructed an elaborate, but meaningless, set of rules regarding athlete recruitment. These rules include a ban on contact between players and coaches at camps such as Nike. Coaches get around this easily by loitering in public areas, where contact with players is unavoidable.4

This system can be seen at work in the documentary film Hoop Dreams. The product of nearly five years of filming, Hoop Dreams chronicles the lives of two high school basketball sensations from Chicago, Arthur Agee and William Gates. Recruited from different parts of Chicago, the two begin high school together at St. Joseph’s High School, the alma mater of NBA superstar Isiah Thomas. The two are separated when Arthur is forced to transfer to a public school due to financial constraints.

Though the young men pursue their basketball careers separately, they share many common experiences of life in the inner city. Arthur’s family is destroyed by his father’s crack addiction. As his family slips into poverty, Arthur disintegrates as well. His performance on the court falters, and his grades in school verge on failure. Although Arthur manages to turn his life around once his family reunites, his adolescence is scarred by an additional experience that is common to far too many people in the inner cities. Arthur becomes a father of two children by different women.

Abandoned by his father at birth, William’s experiences mirror Arthur’s, and he too eventually becomes a father. However, William is determined to be different than his father. He stays with and eventually marries the child’s mother. He takes care of them even as his basketball career takes a nose-dive due to a serious injury.

The film looks at how devastating life is in the inner cities. However, there is much more to the story than two kids trying to make it to the NBA. For example, the film follows William’s older brother, Bo, who is a father as well as a former crack addict. Also portrayed are the boys’ devoted mothers, who cling to dreams of succ