Steve James, director of the acclaimed Hoop Dreams, has a new documentary about Allen Iverson that's coming out next month as part of ESPN's 30 for 30 initiative. It will premiere March 14 at the South By Southwest Film Festival before appearing on ESPN Tuesday April 13 at 8 p.m.
James is actually a native of Hampton, Virginia which gives him a unique perspective on the ugly incident that clouds Allen Iverson's youth. [trailer below]
From James thoughts on the ESPN 30 for 30 page:
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As a native of Hampton who grew up and played high school basketball
there this story resonates for me in very personal ways. My late father
was a star athlete and inductee into the Hampton Sports Hall of Fame.
My mother (who still lives in the house I grew up in) became the school
nurse the first year the city integrated its all black high school.
ESPN really responded to the idea that I will make this something of a
“first person” exploration, where I can also draw upon my own
experiences of sports and race relations in the course of the film.
Ultimately, I want to revisit what happened sixteen years ago so I can
learn what the lasting legacy of it is for the city’s black and white
communities, and for Allen Iverson himself. I hope this film can have
something to say, not just about race and sports, but race and American
society at this particularly crucial moment in our country’s history.
Trailer for "No Crossover: The Trial of Allen Iverson" via Philebrity.
You can read more about it all over at SLAM.