With All American, Big Shot, Cobra Kai and The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers, some US series in the field of youth sports are currently on the air. With Swagger, Apple TV + has added another format. The basketball drama is produced by NBA star Kevin Durant, who in 2012 with “Thunderstruck“Was already active as an actor. This time he stays in the background and actually only gives his good name. Instead, the creative work is done by the director and writer Reggie Rock Bythewood (Shots Fired).
In front of the camera, O’Shea Jackson Jr. leads the cast as coach. (Just as a side note: The actor is the son of rap star Ice Cube, who also played his father in the film “Straight Outta Compton”Also in the Swagger ensemble: Shinelle Azoroh, Tristan Wilds, Tessa Ferrer and Sean Baker as well as the youngsters Isaiah Hill, Caleel Harris and Quvenzhane Wallis. The one-hour opening episode is titled NBA and appeared together with two other episodes of the ten-part opening season today in the Apple stream.
What’s the matter?
The series has not just one, but several main characters. The life story of Kevin Durant is not retold, but the personal experiences of the top athlete are said to have had a major impact. At the center is the former player Ike (Jackson), who now works as a youth coach. One of the most talented shooting stars on his team is Jace Carson (Hill), who might actually have a good chance of jumping into the NBA. His mother Jenna (Azoroh) also does a lot to ensure that her son can start a successful career.
How the 14-year-old Jace is encouraged to perform at his best is surely strange to outsiders. The world of competitive sport is no picnic for young people in this country either. If the parents are not as firmly behind it as here in the case of Swagger, the dream has often already been broken. Even so, of course, the pressure has to be viewed critically; after all, these are children who are told early on that their whole life depends on how diligently they train over the next few years. And even if they give it their all, there is never a guarantee. You bet everything on one card from a young age …
