By Donald H. Harrison
SAN DIEGO– The Harlem Globetrotters still do some pretty amazing dribbling, passing and dunking, but more and more, it seems, they elevate members of their audiences–particularly children–into their co-stars.
Such was the case at Valley View Casino Center (formerly the San Diego Sports Arena) on Friday night, Feb. 17, when youngsters were summoned to the court to dance, take free-throws, and have a race promoting the Globetrotter’s major sponsor, Howard Johnson Hotels.
Three mattresses were set up on one side of the court. Some steps away were pajamas for the contestants to pull over themselves. Beyond that were basketballs. And on the other side of the court was the basket, which the three contestants needed to successfully get their ball into, before racing back to the mattresses and snuggling under the covers.
All were declared winners in the contest but I thought victory belonged to the little girl who beat out two boys. Because there was some suspense to it, this game was nearly as exciting as the “World Championship” game between the Harlem Globetrotters and a new team styled the “International Elite.” The hype for the game — and I do mean hype — was that whichever team won the game would go on a world tour next year, while the other team would have to sit 2013 out.
Even as the young girl was the star of that competition, for many spectators the 5’6 “TNT” Maddox, the only woman on the team, was also a favorite. That lady–who in her off-time is studying for a master’s degree in business–can slide under opposing players legs, roll over while still dribbling, and keep the ball in play while crawling and squirming away from defenders.
The other big star — 6’9 of him — is “Big Easy” Lofton, the center and so-called “Clown Prince” of the team. One of the shticks he does is to hoist a teammate onto his shoulders allowing him to just drop a ball into the basket. As this is against the rules, even in a Globetrotter game, the pair was sent to a penalty box (a concept borrowed from hockey), permitting the Globetrotters to demonstrate their ball-handling prowess, even when outnumbered 3-5
Yes, of course, the game is fixed so that the Globetrotters will win — how else could any team compile a .986 winning percentage with over 24,000 “victories” to its name? But there are some good basketball players on the “Elite” who helped keep the contest which was tied 41-41 at halftime and ended with a 91-84 Globetrotter victory, always within the realm of possibility of an “upset.”
A boy brought on the court to do free throws was also invited by players to mimic some of their clowning. He did a jump and a stance, but stiffened and refused when he was invited to go cart-wheeling across the court — even though he would have been helped through the acrobatics by a Globetrotter. Once the child bridled, he was thanked, applauded, and allowed to return to his seat.
One might expect such stunts to be done before the game or during half time, but at Harlem Globetrotter games, they are done right in the middle of the action — the game clock running all the while.
Some of Friday night’s hijinks included using a balloon made to look like a basketball during a free throw — it floated up to the scoreboard –and using another ball that snapped back on a string to its passer. On another occasion the five Globetrotters linked arms and skipped down the court together while one dribbled the ball. On more than one occasion, players had their pants pulled down from behind– don’t worry they had shorts underneath. One International Elite player drove down the court to make a lay-up only to find a Globetrotter actually sitting in the basket and looking down on him from that vantage point.
All this produced many laughs and giggles from a crowd that was enlivened with the presence of Cub Scout troops.
At three minutes before the end of each period, a buzzer sounded to signal the onset of a 4-point shot window. There were four circles drawn on the floor of the court, each approximately 35 feet from a basket. Any one who shoots a basket from any of the circles gets twice the normal score.
Interestingly, unidentified players of the International Elite” seemed to do as well, if not better, than the Globetrotters in this competition.
After the game, audience members were invited to bring their Harlem Globetrotter merchandise out onto the court to be autographed by the players. While they were doing that, we headed home.
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Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted at donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com