Rocky crossed with an NBA All-Star lineup

Adam Sandler directed a basketball film called “Hustle,” which also stars Dirk Nowitzki and Moe Wagner. The film is primarily a promotion for the NBA, even if it follows an old pattern. The flick’s secret star is neither Sandler nor the other main character, played by NBA actor Juancho Hernangomez.

“You don’t get it. This boy is like Scottie Pippen and a wolf had a baby that was raised by Lisa Leslie and Allen Iverson was babysitting.” It is probably the best line in Adam Sandler’s new film “Hustle”, which has also been on show in Germany since June 8th Netflix you can see.

It’s an easily digestible film, primarily to pick up basketball fans, that has the typical Hollywood elements. Here the underdogs, on the other side the evil, always with a clear tendency towards arrogance. The lines are more clearly drawn than they were in the terrific “Uncut Gems,” Sandler’s last film to feature basketball and celebrities.

There are tons of NBA star cameos in “Hustle,” including Dirk Nowitzki, Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Kyle Lowry, and even Trae Young (and many, many more) all stepping in and making you laugh certain realism. They all play themselves, others were given roles.

Hustle: Adam Sandler as the Philadelphia 76ers scout

The main role is reserved for Sandler, who plays a Philadelphia 76ers scout in Stanley Sugarman who is always on the go, hardly sees his family and actually would rather be an assistant coach. At the beginning this wish comes true, but then the owner dies and his son Vince (Ben Foster) sends him back to look for talent, far away from the family. On Mallorca, Sugarman accidentally discovers 22-year-old Bo Cruz (Juancho Hernangomez), who works in construction to take care of his seven-year-old daughter and her mother.

Sugarman sees the talent and recommends him to the Sixers, but the Sixers dismiss him and feel vindicated when Sugarman takes Cruz to the States and he encounters problems with a criminal record upon arrival. Sugarman quits his job and makes Cruz his project, which becomes a race against time to get him in the draft.

The film uses an old playbook here, there are countless training scenes to see in which Sugarman wants to prepare Cruz for the draft combine. Mothers are insulted, they run up stairs and in the evening the Pringles in the minibar are plundered. Hernangomez doesn’t speak much in his role, but still gives his character a certain charm and brings it across.

The star of the film, however, is someone else. Anthony Edwards as Kermit Wilts is Cruz’s antagonist and puts on a fantastic, because authentic performance (“Spain? Shit sounds whack”). One immediately takes any trash talk from Edward and wonders if his lines weren’t completely improvised. The young Wolves star is charming and could have liked to have made more appearances. From a German point of view, Moe Wagner is also there as “Haas aka German MJ”, but the Berliner doesn’t say much in his scenes.