I'm a big fan of sports documentaries and at least until the early 2000's I was a pretty big fan of the NBA as well. I was completely unaware of the history surrounding Stephon Marbury and actually was kind of wondering what happened to him. Well, I didn't wonder enough to actually look into it and that is why this film was such a good viewing for me. It is very well made and details the highs and lows of one of the best forgotten players of recent times.
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There can't be many stories like Marbury's. As is detailed in the doco, he comes from a family of immense basketball talent. There was a lot of pressure on Stephon because even though all of his older brothers were exceptional basketball players as well, none of them ended up going to the pros in any capacity.
Coney Island isn't known for much. Most people just know that Nathan's Hot Dogs has a hot dog eating contest there every year and there is a boardwalk filled with overpriced restaurants and even a couple of rather awful and again overpriced amusement parks.
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The thing about Marbury is that he isn't very tall as professional basketball players go. At 6 foot 2 inches in height, he already has a lot going against him as far as elite basketball is concerned. Despite this he was considered one of the best in the country in high school, was heavily recruited and in his one an only season as a college player her managed to average nearly 20 points a game. While Georgia Tech didn't do so well in his freshman year, he certainly shined and it was evident that he had great potential as a pro.
He was drafted by Minnesota just a year into his college career.
There was a series of ups and downs that made his NBA career a little less than a fairy tale and eventually he departed the NBA to play in China, which was a part of the story I had no idea about. There is plenty of really great footage of his time playing in the CBA
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He is quite beloved in China for a number of reasons including charity work and donations he has made to poor communities there. He is also one of the few Americans to ever be given a permanent residency card.
I'm probably revealing too much about the documentary, but if you like basketball or rags to riches stories at all this could be a real winner for you.
Should I watch it?
I think that this documentary would appeal to people even if they don't like sports or the NBA. It has a lot of highs and lows and is an emotional ride. I think this will appeal to almost everyone and you actually learn something in the meantime, which to me is always a plus.
