Can Will Smith Slam Dunk? A Look At Will's Basketball Skills
Will Smith spent the last three decades showing us that he’s good at acting, rapping, and dancing, but what about basketball? Can he perform one of the most impressive moves in this sport – a slam dunk?
Video footage from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air indicates that Will Smith can do a slam dunk. He also enjoys playing basketball privately, but his moves are less impressive when they’re not heavily rehearsed and planned in advance.
Playing Ball on “The Fresh Prince”
Will Smith demonstrated his basketball skills while starring on The Fresh Prince. The episode “Courting Disaster” saw him joining the school’s basketball team and becoming its star player. He had a hard time balancing school and basketball practices, and ended up falling asleep in one of his classes. He had a dream about playing basketball against NBA champion Isiah Thomas, who said he had a great time working with Smith.
“Not only was it great, what was real cool, Will, at the time, was a basketball fan so he could play a little bit. So, being on the Fresh Prince and then hanging with Will, that was awesome… I guess he was in the dream, and I was in too,” Thomas told Scoop B Radio.
Smith’s basketball scenes in The Fresh Prince were heavily rehearsed and edited, putting his ability to slam dunk under suspicion. He still enjoys playing this sport every chance he gets, and it seemed to be one of his favorite pastimes on the set of Bad Boys for Life. His moves are pretty impressive for someone who never professionally played basketball, and isn’t exactly considered tall by the NBA standards.
Will Smith’s NBA Connections
Will Smith wasn’t only playing basketball on The Fresh Prince back in the ‘90s. When MTV launched MTV Rock N’ Jock – a series where celebrities played sports alongside professional athletes, he was one of the actors who joined in the fun.
Smith also had a chance to brush shoulders with some of the biggest legends in NBA history, including Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. He’s friendly with Michael Jordan, as well, and he described him as one of the most competitive people he’s ever met.
“I love being around people with that kind of competitive energy, but like, Mike will compete with anything, though. If we’re drinking water, Mike’ll be, ‘I’ll race you!’ You can’t beat Mike at anything. If he can’t beat you then he’s not going to play,” Smith told Jimmy Kimmel.
Basketball Team Owner
Will Smith took his love for basketball to a whole new level in 2011, when he became a minority owner of NBA team the Philadelphia 76ers with his wife Jada. He was born and raised in Philadelphia, and supporting the Sixers was his way of paying tribute to his hometown.
He discussed the experience of being the owner of an NBA team with Jimmy Kimmel, and explained what it’s like to interact with the players, and come back to his hometown to watch them play.
“There is nothing, in like all of entertainment, than to walk into the building when it’s announced that you’re a part owner of your hometown basketball team. That is ridiculous. If the team doesn’t win, it sucks later, but at first initial – it’s fantastic,” Smith gold Kimmel.
The Men in Black star isn’t the only celebrity who supports the Philadelphia 76ers. His good friend and fellow Hollywood star Kevin Hart is also a Philadelphia native, and a huge fan of the Sixers. Rapper Meek Mill, and The Sixth Sense director M. Night Shyamalan both support this team, which is not much of a surprise since they both have strong ties to Philadelphia.
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