Showtime Orders Sports Documentary SHUT UP AND DRIBBLE

Showtime has ordered SHUT UP AND DRIBBLE, a three-part documentary about the “changing role of athletes in our fraught cultural and political environment, through the lens of the NBA.”

The title comes from conservative pundit Laura Ingraham’s controversial statement to NBA star LeBron James. (James serves as an executive producer on the series.)

“If being a star athlete is inherently a political experience, SHUT UP AND DRIBBLE tells that complex and dramatic story from the past to the present and from the inside out,” said David Nevins, President and CEO of Showtime Networks Inc, in a statement. “LeBron James is one of many competitors whose place in the spotlight has led not to silence but perspective, and he, Maverick Carter and Gotham Chopra have given us an important, insightful docuseries that should bring their fans and fellow citizens to a higher level of discourse, rather than the dismissal satirized in the title.”

Per Showtime, the Ingraham/James controversy “serves as a prologue to the series as it chronicles the modern history of the NBA and its players, starting with the 1976 merger of the freewheeling ABA and the more conventional NBA of today. The league soon became an incubator for many of its top athletes to grow their brands beyond the court, becoming powerful players in commerce and fashion, and transcending the game to become cultural icons. SHUT UP AND DRIBBLE charts this evolution through the experience of basketball players, who by taking control of their own destinies have helped to bring about social change and make their own statements in the current political climate.”

SHUT UP AND DRIBBLE, Series Premiere, October, Showtime

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