May 25, 2017 marks the 40th anniversary of the release of Star Wars: A New Hope. In honor of this momentous occasion, we recast the original movie with NBA players, because #yolo.
40 years ago, right here on this planet….
Star Wars: A New Hope was released.
I am not yet 40, and thus, not quite a man. I do not have mind blowing memories of the original Star Wars. I saw it when it was re-released in theaters years later and thought lightsabers were really cool. I still think lightsabers are really cool. If I had to fight someone to the death and could only choose one weapon, I would choose a lightsaber.
It wasn’t until years later that I realized just how influential Stars Wars was and is. The idea of a summer blockbuster, the special effects, the combination of genres, the endless parodies, the wall of text. Everything you’ve ever known and loved was influenced by Star Wars. Memes exist because of Princess Leia, social media exists because of R2-D2, Migos ad-libs exist because of Chewbacca, heroes and villains exist because of Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader, and the Golden State Warriors exist because of the Star Wars.
The 2016-17 NBA season wasn’t about basketball at all. You thought you were watching some of the greatest athletes to ever grace the planet put a ball in a hoop, but you weren’t. You were simply watching, and continue to watch, a 24/7 live action version of Star Wars.
Casting the original Star Wars with NBA players implies that one entity is fiction. This is unfair to the NBA and Star Wars. Some may view the NBA as fixed and others may view Star Wars as a scripted movie, but neither is true. Both live in their own reality of realism. I am not casting NBA players for roles in Star Wars. I am creating a guide that brings the two forces together.