The Drew: No Excuse, Just Produce opens with a famous and true quote from Nelson Mandela about the power of sport. To paraphrase: Sport brings people together. It strengthens bonds within communities and families that are otherwise fractured. It channels anger, demands focus and—for a lucky few—rewards hard work with an unimaginably opulent lifestyle.
Baron Davis, the documentary’s director and a 13-year NBA veteran, is one of those lucky few. And none of it would be possible without South Los Angeles' Drew League, one of the country's most celebrated basketball leagues that just so happens to be located in one of its most defeated neighborhoods. Davis played his first Drew League game when he was only 13. He never stopped going back.
His film stands tall as a show of gratitude to the sport that scooped him from poverty, but this isn't a basketball story so much as an informative tale about the positive influence local institutions can have on their compromised population.
At the center of it all is a gregarious, portly man named Oris “Dino” Smiley, the Drew League&r ...
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Article written by Michael Pina
Baron Davis’ ‘The Drew’ Is a Story Worth Telling
May 4th, 2016 by Michael Pina Leave a reply »
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