Above the Rim

Above the Rim is a 1994 American sports drama film co-written and directed by Jeff Pollack in his directorial debut. The screenplay was written by Barry Michael Cooper, adapted from a story by Benny Medina. The film stars Duane Martin, Tupac Shakur, Leon and Marlon Wayans. Considered the conclusion to Cooper's "Harlem Trilogy" (the preceding films being New Jack City (1991) and Sugar Hill (1994), the film tells the story about a promising New York City high school basketball star and his relationships with a drug dealer and a former basketball star, now employed as a security guard at the high school he was a promising young star at years ago. The film mostly took place in Harlem, with various scenes filmed at the Manhattan Center for Science and Mathematics in East Harlem. Some of the basketball scenes were filmed at Samuel J. Tilden High School in Brooklyn, New York. Plot Kyle-Lee Watson is a talented basketball player who is about to graduate from high school. While he waits to find out if he will receive a scholarship to Georgetown University, he finds himself in a difficult dilemma over a playground basketball tournament. He must decide whether to play for and follow his widely beloved basketball coach Mike Rollins or Birdie, a local drug dealer in the neighborhood. Thomas "Shep" Sheppard, a former standout player himself, now works as a high school security guard. Kyle feels resentment towards the security guard, because Kyle's own mother is falling in love with Shep.