He Got Game

Synopsis: Tells the story of Jesus Shuttlesworth, the most sought after high school basketball prospect in the nation. Jesus and his dream to make it to the big ranks in professional basketball are overshadowed by his father, Jake, who is spending his life in prison for killing Jesus' mother.
Genre: Drama, Sport
Director(s): Spike Lee
Production: Buena Vista
  10 nominations.
 
IMDB:
6.9
Metacritic:
63
Rotten Tomatoes:
80%
R
Year:
1998
136 min
2,169 Views


Shuttlesworth!

Shuttlesworth!

- What's up, bro?

- Game's over. Warden wants to see you.

The warden?

What's this all about?

Don't know nothin'.

Don't wanna know nothin'.

He tells me to get you,

so I get you.

Thank you, Books.

You may wait outside.

Jake, please sit down.

Sit down.

I was told you were

on the court.

Yes, sir.

I try to stay fit, trim.

You know, everything like that.

Keep my mind occupied.

As you already know, you've picked

the perfect recreation.

Dr. James Naismith

knew what he was doin'.

- It's a great game, isn't it?

- Basketball, yes.

- You played some?

- Uh, yes, sir, when I was younger.

- You know, I put in a little work.

- I coach my son's team.

I ran a neighborhood center.

Let's go. Show me that.

Oh, good!

That's good, but you crossed over.

You still bailed out.

- You coached?

- Nah, nothing like that there.

You know, I see somebody out there,

a little kid who needs some help.

I work with him,

give him a few tips.

- Which hand did you shoot with?

- Right.

- Which hand are you

supposed to be shooting with?

- Left.

But nowadays, uh,

Warden, they--

these kids ain't gonna listen

to nothin' you say, you know.

They think they know it all.

All they wanna do is dunk and--

you know, everything like that.

Their fundamentals is, uh--

is, like, sorely lacking.

That's strange.

I haven't had that problem yet.

Yeah, well, you--

The kids are smart.

They know they don't listen to you,

they end up in here with me.

I never thought about it like that.

Did you vote for Governor Pernell?

Uh, nah, I ain't never voted.

No matter. What does matter

is Governor is a big,

huge, fanatical

basketball fan.

He played himself--

four years, varsity, at Big State.

Good, not great athlete.

He's the biggest supporter

Big State has. Bleeds red and white.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I think I saw

something like that about him on TV.

Do you have a son named

Jesus Shuttlesworth?

Yes, sir.

Is your son considered the number one

high school prospect...

in these United States

of America?

Some people rate him

that high, some don't.

- You know, two, three, six.

- Come on, Jake. Come on.

Don't be modest. You oughta be proud.

You oughta be proud as a peacock.

I always been proud of my son even

before he was the number one prospect...

in the whole entire world.

- You aren't modest, after all.

- God is working with me on that, sir.

The governor's made a request

that your son, Jesus Shuttlesworth,

seriously consider enrolling

in his alma mater, Big State.

If you persuade your son

to do this,

the governor's given me

his word...

he'll do everything

in his power to...

cut your time here short,

considerably.

The governor can do that?

He can--

- He can do that.

- I'm lookin' at 15, Warden. I mean--

This is for real, right?

You can make the governor

very happy.

He's got a great reputation

for never forgetting anyone

who's done right by him.

He's also never forgiven anyone

who's done him wrong.

Can't do nothin' in here, though.

I mean, behind these--

Behind these bars, you know,

these walls and everything like that,

I mean, something

like this here...

can't be worked out

over the phone or--

We have to get started right away.

The NC two - A deadline for kids

to declare is one week away.

- One week?

- Seven days.

Everything's been arranged.

- It's all been worked out.

- The Bulls ain't got nothin',

especially against

the Knicks.

All you ever talk about is

Jordan this, Jordan that.

Guard!

You do your part, you deliver your son,

- Guard!

- Governor Pernell will do his part.

- Guard!

- What the hell's goin' on in there?

You'll have to excuse

the temporary discomfort,

but we can't trust

in your abilities as an actor.

There's little margin

for error.

Let's go, Doc!

Hurry up.

Where you takin' him?

- What's wrong with this inmate?

- I don't know.

- Food poisoning?

- Are you sure?

I don't know.

He just rolled him in.

I want this inmate

quarantined immediately.

- Looks like he ate some

of this fine prison cuisine.

- I can't take a chance.

Last time something like this happened,

half the prison population got sick.

- He's quarantined now. He's contagious.

- God!

One last thing.

Don't try any funny business.

Any shenanigans, the deal is off.

Any shenanigans, the deal is off.

Can't you make him shut up?

- The guy's in pain.

- Then give him something.

We got two more hours to go.

Man, I don't wanna hear that sh*t.

Two parole officers

will be assigned to you.

- Spivey, he's a black man.

You should like him.

He should like you.

Your other chaperone is Crudup.

Quiet. But, as my father told me,

it's the quiet one's you have to watch.

Spivey, I'm sick

as a dog, man.

Here. Drink that.

Drink it.

Spivey and Crudup,

two of the best,

handpicked by me.

If necessary, these men have

been given a green light to shoot.

We don't give a sh*t about you,

or you being sick as a dog.

You wanna throw up, let us know.

We'll pull over.

You puke back there,

my main man Crudup will see to it...

that you lick it

all back up,

every single

nasty-ass drop.

You understand,

my brother? Capisce?

Yeah, capisce.

Can you pull over?

Please?

Remember what my main man Spivey said.

Don't get any in the car.

- Not a drop, not a speck.

- Don't move too fast

- What up?

- Let's keep control

- What's up, bro?

Rate this script:3.7 / 9 votes

Spike Lee

Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee is an American film director, producer, writer, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has produced over 35 films since 1983. more…

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Submitted on August 05, 2018

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    "He Got Game" Scripts.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Mar. 2024. <https://www.scripts.com/script/he_got_game_9724>.

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