Anthony Davis – Memphis Flyer

If you were expecting a true sequel to the original Space Jam released in 1996, I regret to inform you that this is not that movie. If you were expecting a well-written cinematic masterpiece, I regret to inform you that this is also not that movie. Space Jam: A New Legacy is less of a sequel to the original and more like a modernized ABC Afterschool Special.

LeBron James plays LeBron James, a basketball superstar and bumbling dad insistent on pushing his sons to follow in his basketball footsteps. The movie opens with a flashback of a young LeBron heading into a school gymnasium before a basketball game and being gifted a hand-me-down Game Boy from his friend Malik. LeBron is so engrossed in this new toy that his coach must call him to attention during the game. Later, when he’s leading the charge on a final play, he misses what should have been the game-winning shot. After the game, his coach takes him aside to express disappointment that LeBron had been distracted by video games and had not given his all on the court.

Flash forward to present-day, where LeBron’s sons are on a private basketball court. Older son Darius (Ceyair J Wright) practices shooting while his younger brother Dom (Cedric Joe) sits on a nearby bench playing a handheld video game. LeBron joins the boys on the court, and calls out Dom’s halfhearted effort.

Later, LeBron visits Dom’s room, where he plays a game his son created called “DomBall,” which combines realistic basketball moves with bonus video game abilities. Dom would rather go to a game design camp than basketball camp. Later, he accompanies LeBron to a meeting at Warner Bros. Studios, where two executives (Sarah Silverman and Steven Yeun) attempt to pitch LeBron on an augmented reality device called the Warner 3000, which gives users the ability to insert themselves into WB movies and livestream it to all their social media followers.

Four-time NBA MVP and two-time Olympic Gold Medal winner LeBron James (left) with Tweety, the star of 1941’s “A Tale of Two Kitties”

SJ: ANL is doing a lot, and not in the best way. What it lacks in plot development it more than makes up for by packing in cameos and top-notch hand drawn and computer-generated animation. If you told me a group of executives sat around brainstorming how to cram in as many culturally irrelevant intellectual properties as possible, I would absolutely believe it.

The Warner 3000 is a creation of a sentient AI called Al G Rhythm (played fabulously by Don Cheadle), who tries to persuade LeBron to help him promote this new innovative technology. After LeBron rejects the pitch, Al G tricks him and Dom into entering “The Serververse.” He then kidnaps Dom and challenges LeBron to play a game of basketball to get his son back and free them from the Serververse. If he loses, they must stay forever. LeBron travels to Toon World to enlist Bugs Bunny in his quest to assemble a basketball team to beat Al G’s Goon Squad. LeBron and Bugs hijack Marvin the Martian’s spaceship and set off through the Serververse to collect various Loony Toons characters to build the Toon Squad: Daffy Duck, Yosemite Sam, Granny, Tweety, Sylvester, Porky Pig, Speedy Gonzalez, Foghorn Leghorn, Taz, Lola Bunny, and a hairy red monster called Gossamer.

Meanwhile, Al G exploits Dom’s resentment toward his dad, and convinces him to give up the code to DomBall. That makes the big game a lot more interesting. Al G’s Goon Squad includes characters based on, and voiced by, real NBA and WNBA players: Wet-Fire (Klay Thompson), Chronos (Damian Lillard), The Brow (Anthony Davis), White Mamba (Diana Taurasi), and Arachnneka (Nneka Ogwumike). TBS’s Ernie Johnson and Lil Rel Howery from Get Out are transported in to serve as play-by-play announcers.

Whew. I told you this movie was doing a lot. It is not a great film by any metric, but Space Jam: A New Legacy does have something for everyone: feel-good family moments, Porky Pig dropping a rap verse, fictional character cameos, an entertaining battle of something akin to basketball, and a metric ton of CGI.

If you have elementary school-aged children or nostalgia for the ’90s, this might be a movie for you. Everyone else can safely skip it.

Sunday, during the first night of NBA free agency, the Memphis Grizzlies, as expected, were quiet as far as trying to sign a new player. But that didn’t mean that they weren’t active. The team acquired veteran wing Andre Iguodala in a deal with the Golden State Warriors. The Warriors were desperately trying to come off of Iguodala’s contract in an effort to make room to facilitate a sign-and-trade involving Kevin Durant and former Brooklyn Nets point guard, D’Angelo Russell. The Grizzlies were able to absorb Iguodala’s contract into their own $25 million trade exception that was created as a result of the Mike Conley trade. As compensation, the Grizzlies also received a conditional future first-round draft pick from the Warriors. NBA.com

Andre Iguodala

The pick has very favorable protections for the Grizzlies — starting with a top four pick protection in 2024. If not conveyed, the pick becomes number-one overall protected in 2025 and is completely unprotected in 2016. Since Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green will be 36, 34, and 34 years old, respectively, in 2024, the assumption is that the Warriors will be rebuilding by the time that the trade is available. If so, the Grizzlies more than likely would be receiving a lottery pick from them.

This could be an enviable opportunity for the Grizzlies, in the event they are able to acquire a high-draft pick from a Warriors team in transition. The Grizzlies could add a young player to their own roster or they could use the pick as a trade piece between now and then. Since the Grizzlies also own a future Utah Jazz first-round draft pick, they could package the two assets along with other players to acquire a star level talent via trade. This happens often when star players decide to part ways with their team and the team lays desirable assets on the trading block to acquire or replace a missing piece.

Iguodala should definitely be able to contribute and help this rebuilding Grizzlies team — on and off the court — if that is the direction that the team decides to go. A former NBA Finals MVP, Iguodala is a proven professional and one of the best defenders and crunch-time shot makers in the league. At 35, he is past the form that once had him labeled as one of the most athletic and versatile wings in the league, but he’s still a capable contributor who can help accelerate the Grizzlies’ rebuilding process. Whether Iguodala is willing to be a part of a team that’s rebuilding is still a question mark.

One of the best outcomes would involve the Grizzlies being able to trade Iguadola to a contender for another future asset before the coming season’s trade deadline. In the event that the Grizzlies are able to obtain not only the pick that came from the Warriors, but a second draft pick for Iguadala, it would be a definite win for their new front office.

There has also been rising speculation about the Grizzlies simply buying out the $16 million remaining on the final season of Iguadala’s current contract. This would allow Iguodala to go to any team he chooses. There are reports that if the Grizzlies did agree to a buyout agreement with Iguodala, he would join Lebron James and Anthony Davis with the Lakers. This narrative has been inflated by some in the national media. If Iguodala does not, in fact, want to be a part of a rebuilding and non-contending team in Memphis, that would be understandable. My hope is that the Grizzlies don’t allow their hand to be influenced by those media narratives. Iguodala is under contract with the Grizzlies now, and, regardless of anyone else’s opinion, it’s ultimately their decision about what to do with him.

The Grizzlies may not want the blow-back of negative criticism that could come if Iguodala says he wants to be traded and the team holds him “against his will.” But, whether it is mutually agreed upon that Iguodala can be a benefit to the team or not, the hope here is that the Andre Iguodala era in Memphis — however long it lasts — is one that ends on a positive note for all.