Welcome Back, Trotters (and Hot Boyz!!)

Meadow Lark Lemon

I went to a basketball game Saturday night and an aerial circus broke out. The Harlem Globetrotters, led by Showbiz Jackson and former University of Montana player Shane Christensen, entertained the crowd with swishes, slapstick, and a whole lot of slams. It was the Hot Boyz however that stole the show. You heard it right. The Hot Boyz. These five aerial dunkmasters dominated the evening during pregame, halftime, and every pause in the game. Dressed as ninja gangstas, they ran in rapid fire succession down the length of the court, flung themselves off a trampoline and body slam dunked, behind the back dunked, and even flip dunked. It was pretty wild. The kids howled.

Overall I had a great evening but had to hide my disappointment somewhat. I wanted my kids to see a player like Meadowlark Lemon, who could make long hook shots with a blindfold on I think. Or Curly Neal, the bald dribbling wizard, who would have everyone running in circles and was also hilarious. I desperately wanted to see someone, anyone actually, please for God's sakes, MAKE even one of the half court shots. I wanted them to believe, like I did when I was a kid, that the Harlem Globetrotters were quite possibly the greatest basketball team ever. It is way too hard to suspend belief with this group of Trotters. The Globetrotters have always been about entertainment but it used to be that there was great basketball at its core. It was Pete Maravich style basketball before there was a Pete. Not so much now...but how about them Hot Boyz.

Addendum:
Roy Disney's family investment company purchased the Globetrotters in 2005. (No wonder tickets prices have gone up to $24.50.) Mrs. Hawkeye thinks I am a sorehead and actually just irked because I paid the full ticket price and missed out on the Tribune and Campbells' soup discount. I do hate missing a deal.

Sweet Georgia Brown
Brother Bones recorded one of the most instantly recognizable songs of the 20th century, yet remains a virtual unknown, overshadowed by his own hit record and the world famous basketball team that adopted it as their official theme. He would also tap dance and play the bones and knives, perfecting a style which used four bones in each hand whereas most bones players used only two.