Fab Five

Speaking of videos that are two years old, ESPN's 30 for 30 crew produced a documentary that aired two years ago on the the Fab Five--Michigan five freshmen who started together, went all the way to the national championship game (twice) and started new trends in shorts, socks and on-court demeanor.  I hadn't shown the video to any class until last week.

It was interesting to see reactions to the video, especially mine.  I figured my students would enjoy a story about a group of brash young trash talkers, who turned out to be nice guys.  What I didn't expect is that I would gain an appreciation for the group.

The Fab Five arrived in Ann Arbor in the fall of 1991, the same semester I went off to college, so we're all the same age.  And I liked to follow the careers of people who were the same age as me, like Marshall Faulk.  The Fab Five were an anathema to me, though, for all of the reasons my students today liked them--baggy shorts and the trash talking...especially the trash talking.  I was overjoyed to see them lose to Duke and UNC in the tournament (and I now know I would never root for those two schools in that manner again).

Why the change? I'm not sure.  Maybe I'm more tolerant of self-expression.  Maybe we all grew up.  In any case, it was an entertaining tale all the way around.

Not So Fab?

ESPN's fabulous 30 for 30 series recently aired a documentary on the Fab Five, Michigan's vaunted freshmen who played in two national title games. The doc was great, and it brought back many memories from my time in college--I went to college the same year those guys did.

I never rooted for the Fab Five. I disliked all of the theatrics and baggy pants (I did buy a pair of black adidas hi-tops and black socks, though). One comment made in the movie that made waves were the comments of executive producer (and Fab Five member) Jalen Rose, who said he felt at the time that the blacks that played for Duke were "Uncle Toms."

Needless to say, there were people that were not happy with Rose's comments, especially Grant Hill. Hill fired off an editorial that called out the attitudes of the Fab Five.

I understand why Hill reacted the way he did, but I think he missed the context of Rose's quote. Rose didn't say he still thought that the Duke players are still Uncle Toms, he just thought that back then. I know there are things I thought when I was 18 that I definitely don't think now. I'm sure all of us can say the same.