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Listen up, Hollywood creatives: Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James has a pitch for a new series: “Hard Knocks” for basketball.
On Wednesday — the day after HBO aired the third episode of Season 16 of “Hard Knocks” — LeBron tweeted his desire to see a similar behind-the-scenes preseason series for the NBA.
“Man watching Hard Knocks! Incredible show man!! Every time I watch it I wish we had that as well. Just for training camp/pre season too!”
Every streaming exec calling SpringHill right now pic.twitter.com/vHGlLzsKRg
— Michael Corvo (@michaelcorvo_) August 25, 2021
The current season of “Hard Knocks” is chronicling the Dallas Cowboys, who were also featured in Season 2, way back in 2002. (James, like his new Lakers teammate, Russell Westbrook, is one of many non-Texan celebrities who roots for America's Team.)
LeBron, of all people, could probably make it happen. Not only is there no shortage of streaming services and cable networks in search of sports-related content with established personalities, but James happens to be the co-founder of a prolific media company, SpringHill Co., which has a litany of projects in the works across various platforms. The sports documentary subgenre is booming.
Last decade, Showtime attempted a “Hard Knocks”-style series for the MLB, “The Franchise“, which chronicled the San Francisco Giants and Miami Marlins over two seasons. Amazon's “All or Nothing” offers a profoundly compelling look at the inner workings of professional sports clubs, including the Cowboys, Los Angeles Rams, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City, and the Toronto Maple Leafs.
A handful of NFL teams have all-access training camp shows on their YouTube channels.
It's hard to imagine a production being greenlit and set up in time, but, needless to say, the 2021-22 Lakers would be about as ideal of a subject for a behind-the-scenes training camp show as any team in sports, considering the Hollywood proximity, juicy storylines, and star-studded cast, with LeBron at the center of it all.
