Hoop Dreams

There’s nothing more beautiful than basketball, at least not in the eyes of 14-year-olds William Gates and Arthur Agee. These two adolescents dream of becoming professional players in the NBA, where the athletes are seen as gods, eternal fame can be achieved and huge sums of money can be made.

The two boys stand a more than average chance of making it into the happy few, owing to their education at the prestigious St. John’s College, where both stand out as stellar players. Steve James and his team followed them from 1987 to 1991, and it took another three years to turn the plethora of footage into a film. The myth surrounding basketball is soon put into perspective by reality: the boys do not have any money, their fathers are unemployed, and a knee injury might mean the end of the dream for William.

The award-winning Hoop Dreams reveals how important basketball is in the United States, but also shows how sports and education are inextricably linked in this country. In many cases, sports are the only way out of a hopeless existence, and many want out so badly that they chase their dreams relentlessly.