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ESPN: Fab Five


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http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2009/04/03/sports/fabfive_span.jpg

 

Who watched the documentary last night on ESPN? I thought it was amazing, and it really taught me a lot about how much they broke barriers in college basketball and how much controversy was surrounding them throughout their two years in the NCAA.

 

It sucks that Chris Webber didn't take part in the documentary, the film in a way seems unfinished, but it did a great job breaking down each individual and showing their importance to the team. I got a ton of respect for Jalen, he was the emotional leader of that team, and he was completely honest throughout the film and even discussed his anger with Chris following that scandal involving Ed Martin. The only downside I have towards it is that they didn't break down their second national championship game enough, it really just focused on the Webber timeout. Yeah Chris made a huge error, but he was their best player those 2 years and played his heart out that entire game.

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It was very good and detailed, for the most part. I'm glad they brought up the "crack house" incident, too, and the racist letters.

 

I'm with you, though...C-Webb not being a part of it was disappointing. I knew the story, of course, and I really didn't expect him to speak on it, but not seeing him anywhere at ALL in the special...it was sad.

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I'm with you, though...C-Webb not being a part of it was disappointing. I knew the story, of course, and I really didn't expect him to speak on it, but not seeing him anywhere at ALL in the special...it was sad.

I just checked the boxscore of the game, and I'm kind of disappointed they didn't mention how badly everyone but Chris played in that game.

 

http://www.betting-collegebasketball.com/final-four/1993.php

 

I can definitely understand why Webber has shied away from this whole documentary, clearly he was disappointed with how things went down both years. It was just a real shitty situation for him because a few teammates had signaled for a timeout, and in the heat of the moment, you really don't think straight.

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I liked it for the most part. Probably one of my favorites 30/30 documentaries along with Once Brothers.

 

A few things on this documentary:

 

1) The director sure did his hardest to shed light on the whole Chris Webber controversy without portraying him as the bad guy. I thought all the interviews in defense of Webber were kind of overdone. The man made a mistake, didn't accept it, and instead used someone else as a scapegoat. That was pretty [expletive]ed up of C Webb.

 

2) I didn't think the team collectively was all that spectacular. Granted that it was a team of five freshmen, and they made it to the national championship twice, I still thought that C Webb was the dominant force on the team and the other four guys were primarily role players. I don't agree with the 'Fab Five' nickname.

 

3) Is Jalen Rose still friends with Chris Webber?

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Even though it wasn't a 30 for 30 it was arguably one of the best docs their production team has ever put on ESPN. I thought it was great, especially Jalen Rose. It was so great that I didn't even realize Chris Webber was absent until a good hour and ten minutes into the doc. The Fab Five really necessary for any sports fan to watch, because I didn't even remember the drug bust being in the news OR the fact that the starting lineup only feature four of them in the begining. I'm glad that they also uncovered the threats and racist letters sent to the coach and players. Once again, the media was able to paint whatever picture they wanted at the time. They made it seem like the Fab Five lived life on top with all the marketing and merchandise, when in actuality they fought extreme adversity.

 

BTW...Did you realize that Taye Diggs narrated the doc? I dind't even know until the credits came across at the end.

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1) The director sure did his hardest to shed light on the whole Chris Webber controversy without portraying him as the bad guy. I thought all the interviews in defense of Webber were kind of overdone. The man made a mistake, didn't accept it, and instead used someone else as a scapegoat. That was pretty [expletive]ed up of C Webb.

I'm not trying to defend CWebb by any means, but you could see just by the documentary that he desperately wanted to win. I don't think he was trying to use anyone as a scapegoat, when they were showing the replays and the camera focused solely on the Michigan bench, you could see multiple players calling for a timeout. It's only natural, in the situation Chris was in, to call it.

 

2) I didn't think the team collectively was all that spectacular. Granted that it was a team of five freshmen, and they made it to the national championship twice, I still thought that C Webb was the dominant force on the team and the other four guys were primarily role players. I don't agree with the 'Fab Five' nickname.

No way. Jalen Rose was great, as was Juwan Howard. As a matter of fact, in '91, Jalen led the team in scoring with 17.6ppg, followed by Chris then Juwan.

 

They were not considered the fab five due to how great they were individually, it was simply because they were all highly recruited freshmen that made a huge impact as a whole on college basketball.

 

3) Is Jalen Rose still friends with Chris Webber?

I believe so. I can't imagine that they would stop their friendship over one scandal.

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I'm not trying to defend CWebb by any means, but you could see just by the documentary that he desperately wanted to win. I don't think he was trying to use anyone as a scapegoat, when they were showing the replays and the camera focused solely on the Michigan bench, you could see multiple players calling for a timeout. It's only natural, in the situation Chris was in, to call it.

 

I was referring to the Ed Martin scandal in my initial post. Ed Martin was generous enough to lend C Webb the money, but C Webb threw him under the bus during the investigation if I remember correctly. That was pretty selfish of him for a couple reasons. For one, Michigan had to forfeit their their championship banners because Chris didn't cooperate with the investigation and didn't man up for his actions, and secondly Chris did unjust to Ed Martin who was so close to all the players (as Jalen stated near the end). We'll never know if Ed was loaning money to guys expecting for a huge payoff at the end, or whether he was genuinely helping those in need. But C Webb did him wrong.

 

Now I'm not sure if that's exactly what happened because I watched the end on and off, but that's what I understood from it. Correct me if I'm wrong though.

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Here's what Grant Hill said about it:

"It was a sad and somewhat pathetic turn of events," Hill writes, "to see friends narrating this interesting documentary about their moment in time and calling me a bitch and worse, calling all black players at Duke 'Uncle Toms' and, to some degree, disparaging my parents for their education, work ethic and commitment to each other and to me." He continues:

To hint that those who grew up in a household with a mother and father are somehow less black than those who did not is beyond ridiculous. All of us are extremely proud of the current Duke team, especially Nolan Smith. He was raised by his mother, plays in memory of his late father and carries himself with the pride and confidence that they instilled in him.

 

The sacrifice, the effort, the education and the friendships I experienced in my four years are cherished. The many Duke graduates I have met around the world are also my “family,” and they are a special group of people. A good education is a privilege.

 

Just as Jalen has founded a charter school in Michigan, we are expected to use our education to help others, to improve life for those who need our assistance and to use the excellent education we have received to better the world. ...

 

I caution my fabulous five friends to avoid stereotyping me and others they do not know in much the same way so many people stereotyped them back then for their appearance and swagger. I wish for you the restoration of the bond that made you friends, brothers and icons.

 

I am proud of my family. I am proud of my Duke championships and all my Duke teammates. And, I am proud I never lost a game against the Fab Five.

http://espn.go.com/blog/TrueHoop/post/_/id/26433/grant-hill-and-the-fab-five

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And, I am proud I never lost a game against the Fab Five.

What a beast.

 

He's right, though. I still think the documentary was good, but those guys are just bitter. They hate Duke, and it's nobody's fault but their own.

 

The only thing I didn't like about the IDEA of having this on television? It really, really forces people to believe that the Fab Five was the big thing for the black community and college basketball, but some of us know that all originated in Georgetown. People know. Ewing's team won it all, also...and was in the championship game three of those four years. John Thompson and the crew worked their asses off to win games, and they did it without the circus act. They didn't talk trash every 30 seconds, didn't taunt...they just got the job done, and were one of the most intimidating basketball teams in the history of college bball.

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