The Hoop Life
Communication Breakdown
Episode 1.9 - Aug. 22, 1999
Lee Tergesen played a fast-talking, hip-hop photographer in this episode.
"The Hoop Life" series, which originally aired on Showtime, dramatized the off-court lives of professional basketball players. It is centered around the fictional New England Knights
of the fictional United Basketball Association. One of those players
is a 17-year-old basketball phenom named Curtis Thorpe (played by
Cirroc Lofton).
Lee is in three lively scenes of this guest-starring appearance.
He is in charge of the photo shoots involved in an endorsement deal
of young Curtis. Lee sports a nifty wardrobe, slick moves and
even slicker patter to keep the young star convinced he's doing the
right thing in the ads that are being created.
However, the player begins to second-guess his acceptance of the
ads because they are depicting him in a kind of gangsta way that is
not him. When he breaks the news -- and thus the contract -- it
makes the photographer vein-poppingly angry.
ABOUT HOOP LIFE
The New York Post called the series "a clever collection of interlocking stories involving a small, central core of characters brought to life by a talent-rich cast."
However, another review
was not so kind: "The Hoop Life offers a mundane look at sports.
... When is a Tom Fontana/Barry Levinson project not worth
watching? When they're financing the series but aren't running
the show."
The Levinson/Fontana Company was one of the production companies
for the show, which premiered July 4, 1999.
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