From the birth of the 3-pointer to becoming the first female player signed to the WNBA, this documentary highlights the importance of bridging the gap between social justice and sports. 

Over the last several decades, the game of professional basketball has truly changed, helping to propel women into sports, shaping social justice, and dominating our home televisions. On Tuesday, NBCLX released its newest sports documentary, “Change the Game,” which discussed how the game of basketball has evolved over time, beginning with the highly-contested 3-point shot, the birth of the WNBA, and the legacy the late Kobe Bryant left behind for more women to play in sports. 

Running at 26-minutes, Change the Game is everything you want in a story like this – a hauntingly beautiful evolution of where we as a society stand in the world of sports today, taking into account our biggest enemy right now: social injustice. 

Every minute of watching the documentary, I truly felt the struggle, conflict, and love that players like Sheryl Swoopes, Steph Curry, Ray Allen, Kobe Bryant, and other industry-leading athletes have endured throughout their career.

I spoke with NBCLX Emmy-Award winning executive producer and host, Tabitha Lipkin, who came up with the idea of putting together a story on how the game of basketball has changed, interviewing legends Ray Allen, Marques Johnson, Sheryl Swoopes, and sports analyst Eric Mitchell to help put the pieces together. 

“It took about six months to put together,” Lipkin told PopWrapped. “It really was a phoenix of sorts – where it started out as a simple interview with Ray Allen, and turned into a larger story about basketball. Eventually, there was an idea to really dive in and talk about all the aspects of the sport.”

The version, according to Lipkin, that we as viewers see on NBC’s Peacock, is a “30-minute piece on the subject with very little left on the cutting floor.”

Andrew Rossow: How did the pandemic, if at all, affect the filming and production of Change in the Game?”

Tabitha Lipkin: Due to the pandemic, all the interviews were done via Zoom, rather than in-person, which is just a sign of the times. We also had a really hard time finding a basketball gym that would allow us to shoot my stand-up and even touch a basketball.

The Highly Contested ‘3-Pointer’

One of the biggest talking points, according to Lipkin, on how the game of basketball has changed revolves around the development of the 3-pointer. 

Did you know that back in the day, it was frowned upon to take a 3-point shot, unless it was late in the game?

Five-time NBA All-Star Marques Johnson recalled how even shooting a 3-pointer was once a highly-contested action amongst players and coaches:

“When I played, the 3-point shot came in around my second or third year in the league – I believe 1979, and it was basically a shot that you would take if you were down five late in the game, and then all of a sudden you’re down two, and then you get a chance to win or tie the basketball game. Now, you have teams shooting 40 or 50 times a game.”

Johnson referred to a player like Steph Curry, who is so skilled today, that can knock down shots from 25 or 30 feet with “alarming consistency and regularity.” 

“It’s amazing to me just how that time has become something that is acceptable. Back in the day, if you shot a 30-footer, you’d be on the bench next to the coach…so I believe today, it expands the floor and is a good thing for basketball.”

“Today, it’s a skill you get paid handsomely for,” said ‘Pistol’ Pete Marovich. 

Sheryl Swoopes Brought the WNBA to Life

Sheryl Swoopes is a former professional basketball player, and the first player to be signed in the WNBA. A three-time WNBA MVP and named one of the league’s Top 15 Players of All Time at the 2011 WNBA All-Star Game, Swoopes’ endorsement of the WNBA allowed for women to be seen for who they really are: greatness.

One of Swoopes’ proudest accomplishments was not winning four championships with the Comets – but instead, returning to the league just 6 weeks after giving birth to her son and playing in the inaugural season of the WNBA. 

“Nothing that I have done has been a right; it’s been a privilege to have played in the NBA for 18 seasons,” former NBA star Ray Allen said. “The game of basketball is the best sport ever invented,” Swoopes emphasized. “

Pushing for Social Justice and the Late Kobe Bryant

The legacy of Kobe Bryant laid the groundwork for more women to play in sports, which made his passing in January of last year so heartbreaking and gut-wrenching. Bryant embodied what many saw coming out of the NBA and WNBA – a fight for social justice and equal rights. He represented what was good about America and the NBA as a whole.

“It’s why I’ve been an NBA fan for years,” said Mitchell, who is also the founder of LifeFlip Media. 

“The NBA’s belief in social justice; what they did in the bubble standing down and making sure Black Lives Matter was a huge social topic. These guys grew up in neighborhoods that weren’t safe, secure; they know what they’re talking about and they’re just trying to bring as much as they can to the forefront. And they have the support of their coaches. It goes that these players may play for different leagues, but they all stand for the same thing. And when those players stood down, I stood up because I was so proud of them for taking the time to make a scene – which could have cost them $4 billion if they would have shut them down – but they didn’t care.”

“A lot of people who really never followed the WNBA, for the first time, really truly were able to see who these women are, because of the bubble they were in last season due to the pandemic,” Swoope added. 

Rossow: What would you consider to be the most fulfilling part about this documentary, keeping in mind the attack on social injustice with George Floyd, Kobe Bryant, and the January 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol?

Lipkin: I really think the most fulfilling part of the documentary is hearing firsthand from these athletes on how their lives were affected, or moments in history that changed them outside of the sport. 

Rossow: Why do you feel today’s media has been gunshy about putting a work like this out there?

Lipkin: I think some media outlets these days are very hard on the “turn and burn.” A piece like this takes time – and while the story is interesting and relevant, I think it could get overlooked at other news organizations, because it’s simply too long. But what we know about fans and the younger generations, is that context is appreciated — and sometimes context needs longer than a two-minute piece.

In the documentary, Allen honored Bryant on the court as being both an adversary and honors him today as being present in each moment:

“We had a lot of battles over the course of the past two decades – we were drafted together, shared a mutual respect, because the level of competitiveness was always going to go up to another level – whether we were playing a preseason game, regular season, or NBA Final. He represented what was good in not only America, but the NBA as a whole – seeing a young kid come from high school and grow to become such a great ambassador for the game of basketball and sports in general. It was a sad day hearing about his passing, because you just assume that he was going to be someone you’d be swapping stories with for the rest of your life. It always sets precedent on how we need to live better; how we need to live in the moment, what are we saving for? Because tomorrow is not guaranteed.”

And this past year was certainly a generational trauma for us all, where we witnessed the power of movements like Black Lives Matter and how organizations like the WNBA push for equality. 

Since as early as 1997, Swoopes says the WNBA has been at the forefront of fighting the very issues we are seeing today. “When we see something that isn’t right, we speak up – from social injustice and politics to equal pay for women and sexuality. There have always been issues that WNBA players have never been afraid to tackle.”

For viewers, Lipkin wants viewers to learn something new about basketball! “I know so much more about history and the personal lives of these athletes than when I started on this journey six months ago – and I was a sports reporter in Southern California for five years!”

And for those who haven’t yet watched Lipkin’s documentary, I strongly encourage you to do so, as it will certainly leave you with tears in your eyes.

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