The new film celebrating the legendary ballhandlers of the Five Boroughs premieres Friday, July 29 on SHOWTIME.
Boardroom and 35V co-founders Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman extend their collaboration with SHOWTIME Sports Documentary Films with NYC POINT GODS, a feature length film spotlighting the history and enduring impact of New York City point guards who honed their craft and taste for showmanship on the city’s iconic playgrounds and high school gyms in the 1980s and ’90s, the companies announced Thursday. Durant and Kleiman serve as executive producers on the project.
The film premieres on Friday, July 29 at 9 p.m. ET and PT on SHOWTIME, as well as on the network’s on-demand and streaming platforms. It highlights NYC playground and high school legends like Rafer Alston, Kenny Anderson, Mark Jackson, Stephon Marbury, God Shammgod, Kenny Smith, Rod Strickland, and Dwayne “Pearl” Washington who took their unique games from the asphalt playgrounds to high school gyms and all the way to the NBA.
NYC POINT GODS explores how the city shaped these prodigious athletes not just as players, but as people — and how they still impact the global sport of basketball today.
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“These players were the first people I ever idolized and looked up to, and that time in my life had a huge impact on me,” said Kleiman, an executive producer on the film. “To get to tell these stories about this era and these cultural superheroes is an honor and something that I hope makes all New Yorkers and hoops fans proud to watch.”
The documentary features rare footage of the elite point guards as well as commentary from prominent NYC-based voices like Stephen A. Smith, Cam’ron, Fat Joe, and coaching luminaries including Lou Carnesecca, Jim Boeheim, and Rick Pitino.
“Everyone knows an NYC point guard when they see them,” said Durant, also an executive producer, “and the point gods of this film were instrumental in changing the game for everyone. We are really excited to honor them through this doc, and I know basketball fans will really appreciate it.”
NYC POINT GODS is the second collaboration between Boardroom and SHOWTIME after the 2020 film BASKETBALL COUNTY: In The Water about the basketball culture in Durant’s birthplace of Prince George’s County, Maryland. POINT GODS is directed by Sam Eliad and executive produced by Coodie and Chike, the duo behind Netflix’s smash hit Kanye West documentary jeen-yuhs.
“As a fan who rooted for each of these point gods when they played, I couldn’t be prouder of this film for its faithful depiction of a special time and special place in basketball history,” said Stephen Espinoza, SHOWTIME Networks Inc.’s president of sports and event programming “New York City produced some of the greatest showmen and offensive leaders ever, players whose moves and style continue to influence the game today. Thank you to Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman for their vision and expertise in telling this rich and colorful story. Just as the game evolved because of these players, SHOWTIME BASKETBALL continues to evolve and generate premium programs that we can’t stop watching.”
