When you combine both his on and off the court success, LeBron James has proven he’s become the world’s most powerful athlete. When you look at their award winning documentaries and sports programming, Showtime has proven to be one of the leaders in amazing sports content and storytelling.
Now the two have combined on a new project, one that definitely sticks it to ignorance with the title alone.
“SHUT UP AND DRIBBLE” is a new documentary series focusing on the transformation of NBA players to cultural and political figures. With a hilarious nod to the comment made by Fox News’ Laura Ingraham, LeBron and Showtime will be releasing a second dose of ether for Ingraham and the ignorance she, and others like her, spews about the role of athletes, particularly Black athletes. And what better way to turn the tables than to use her own words against her and those of her ilk.
The Shadow League on Twitter
LeBron James speaks on the ignorant “Shut up and dribble” comments https://t.co/bnfuWmuDxU
If being a star athlete is inherently a political experience, SHUT UP AND DRIBBLE tells that complex and dramatic story from the past to the present and from the inside out, said Showtime Networks’ President and CEO, David Nevins. LeBron James is one of many competitors whose place in the spotlight has led not to silence but perspective, and he, Maverick Carter and Gotham Chopra have given us an important, insightful docuseries that should bring their fans and fellow citizens to a higher level of discourse, rather than the dismissal satirized in the title.
The docuseries is an extremely timely one, with athletes experiencing a revival of social consciousness in the divisive age of Trump. And who better to lead the charge than the man who Trump just can’t seem to get enough of trying to demean and insult, LeBron James. Yet each time 45 comes for him, LeBron only gets stronger and does more for the community that 45 ever could or would, and this docuseries is another example of the power of King James.
Per the release:
SHOWTIME has announced a timely new three-part documentary series SHUT UP AND DRIBBLE, a powerful inside look at the changing role of athletes in our fraught cultural and political environment, through the lens of the NBA. Executive produced by LeBron James and Maverick Carter, the series will premiere this October on SHOWTIME. The announcement was made today at the Television Critics Associations summer press tour by David Nevins, President and CEO of Showtime Networks Inc.
Directed by Gotham Chopra (Tom vs. Time, Kobe Bryants Muse), SHUT UP AND DRIBBLE takes its title from conservative pundit Laura Ingrahams remarks to James in February after players from the Golden State Warriors declined an invitation to the White House after the 2018 NBA Finals. The controversy serves as a prologue to the series as it chronicles the modern history of the NBA and its players, starting with the 1976 merger of the freewheeling ABA and the more conventional NBA of today. The league soon became an incubator for many of its top athletes to grow their brands beyond the court, becoming powerful players in commerce and fashion, and transcending the game to become cultural icons. SHUT UP AND DRIBBLE charts this evolution through the experience of basketball players, who by taking control of their own destinies have helped to bring about social change and make their own statements in the current political climate.
SHUT UP AND DRIBBLE is a presentation of SHOWTIME Sports Documentary Films and SpringHill Entertainment. The series is executive produced by LeBron James, Maverick Carter, Rich Paul, Gotham Chopra, Martin Desmond Roe, Chris Uetwiller and Datari Turner.
