Hoop Dreams Page #8

How many hours do we have up here?

The statistics on Division I players

graduating from college

are really frightening.

Let's assume you're playing

big-time college basketball...

and your team travels-

You have to realize...

that nobody cares about you.

You're black,

you're a young male.

All you're supposed to do

is deal drugs and mug women.

The only reason why you're here-

you can make their team win.

If their team wins...

these schools get a lot of money.

This whole thing

is revolving around money.

Recruiting is like

any other sales business.

We've gotta win to keep our jobs.

We've gotta fill the arena

to keep our jobs.

And if we don't, they fire us.

I mean, that's - hey, if bankers

don't make money, they fire them.

When you look at some of these young boys'

bodies, they got NBA bodies already.

There's one particular kid

who's here now...

I've watched him since sixth grade;

I've watched him blossom.

That's when you wanna get on 'em -

when they're young -

and start writin' 'em

before everybody else writes 'em.

Try to get any edge you can

in this business.

It's already become a meat market.

But I try to - to, uh, do my job...

you know, and serve professional me.

What schools do you think

are most involved with William right now?

I would say DePaul...

Marquette, Indiana, Michigan.

Excellent.

Great job! Way to go!

Bob Gibbons done seen me

play my best game out here.

Turned in 16 points, 12 assists.

Bob Gibbons over there like this -

"hmm."

Yeah, I was smilin' too, Bob.

Give me a slice of the crust.

Probably will.

Thanks a lot.

Look.

Hey, Mom.

Right now I'm feelin' good about myself.

I really feel like, since I been down here,

that I was all-American.

When I go back home

I'm gonna feel unstoppable.

This one eyebrows up.

This one eyebrows up.

Swing it!

Whoo-hoo!

I'm gonna pull up on it, okay?

Tell me if it hurts more.

- Yeah.

- It hurts more when I do that?

Easy does it, now.

It's on the muscle. It's not on the joint.

It's above the joint.

Okay?

What's your name?

Though it's only a muscle injury...

it's severe enough that

William will not compete

for the final two days of the camp.

How many electives

you need to graduate?

- Six.

- Six?

Arthur's transcript

from St. Joseph's has arrived.

If you pass all of the classes

that you're presently taking...

you can graduate

from summer school.

- Okay?

- Mm-hmm.

- have you taken the A.C.T.?

- Mm-mmm.

When do you plan to take it?

Sometime soon.

What institution are

you planning on going to?

Have you decided that?

I was, um, thinking about,

going to, um... Alabama.

But you need to take

Algebra-Trig. Okay?

Do you plan to take that?

I don't know.

You don't know?

So you just barely gettin' by again.

No. You ain't gotta say that.

But you are.

You've been barely gettin' by all along.

Now, you gonna have to do better than that

if you wanna go to Alabama...

or any other school.

You gonna have to do more

than just get by.

Don't forget to bring

those papers back to me.

- Okay.

- All right.

St. Joe's just messed everything up.

Shouldn't have even went there.

Thought I had more credits than this.

They goin' kick me out

'cause I ain't payin' 'em money. Man!

That's all right, though.

I'm gonna still make it.

"Don't let your best

opportunity get away from you.

"You can have a great experience

at Marquette University.

"Once you visit our campus...

"I feel confident that you will know

that Marquette is the right place for you.

Sincerely, Kevin O'Neill."

I like these.

I been gettin; like, two a week

from the school for...

a couple of months.

So that's quite a few.

I know you're game,

but, Monica, you seem very overwrought.

I had Division I offers.

I had even signed at Marquette

'cause they thought I

was gonna make the grades.

The great ballplayers...

they care about basketball

more than they care about school...

and I know they do.

Shaky. Shaky.

Ohh.!

Let me try somethin;!

If you're looking for

a progressive college basketball program...

with experienced leadership

and a winning tradition...

then the Marquette Warriors

are for you.

William's first home recruiting visit.

Three top schools postpone visits...

preferring to wait and

see how William will do

his senior year at St. Joe's.

If you don't make the test score,

it doesn't mean we don't want you...

because we still do-

that's what I'm telling you.

If you tear your knee out

again this year...

and you can't

play ever again...

you're gonna have your education

paid for at Marquette University.

I know that the scholarship

is one-year renewable.

Gene's right about this,

but any school worth

its salt is gonna

give you four years.

The bottom line is this-

we want to win the national title.

Number two-I wanna make you

the best player I can.

I wanna give you an opportunity

to, maybe someday...

be one of those guys that makes

some money in Europe or in the NBA.

You're one of seven guys

that we're recruiting right now.

- You're recruiting seven guys?

- Seven guys for three spots.

Where he fit in?

- Where does he fit in?

- Yeah.

As soon as William tells me

he's not looking at any other schools...

then I'm not looking at

any other players.

So, what?

The first one sign, that's -

Well-Well, that's what

it's gonna come down to.

If I tell you that, hey,

you're our guy and this and that...

and I lose you to Kansas, Indiana,

North Carolina State or something...

I'm out of luck.

The president's saying to me,

"I thought you were recruiting a guard. '"

It's a tough situation,

but it's something that has to be done.

It's a great place.

We're gettin' ready

to have it rockin;

The best is yet to come.

Lot of serious ballplayers

been through this building-

Junior Bridgeman, Sidney Moncrief,

Bob Lanier, Oscar Robertson.

Can you see yourself playing

in this place here, 18,000 in it?

Big difference from St. Joe's, now.

We stayed at the hyatt.

Man, it was nice. Real nice.

They had these balloons

all hangin' up on the ceiling, everything.

They-They really did it up.

And I must say, we did it up too.

We - Room service.

Man!

Had these phony newspapers written up.

Notre Dame 77, Marquette 76.

Gates is out high, calling for the ball.!

There are six seconds left.

The freshman spins past the defender,

slicing to his left to the foul line.

Three seconds left.

Marquette down by one.

Gates launches a running one-hander.!

It's on the way.!

It is good.!

Gates buries a 13-footer

just ahead of the horn...

and Marquette

has defeated Notre Dame.!

If you think we care about you

a lot in recruiting...

we're gonna do more

when you're here.

Don't let it get to a

point where somebody else

comes in and takes a scholarship away.

Let us know what you wanna do-unless

you know what you wanna do right now.

He knows, but he won't say.

You talked to any, uh...

leading black people on the campus?

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