The Harlem Globetrotters, the world’s most famous exhibition team (and arguably the most well-known sports team, period) kicked off their national Canadian tour in style this week.
I caught up with the longest-tenured Globetrotter, Herbert Lang aka Flight Time, to talk about the tour, perks of the job, Steph Curry, the Pope, Wilt Chamberlain, and what it takes to suit up for the red, white, and blue:
Sportsnet: I can’t really spin a basketball on my finger very well. Are my dreams of being a Globetrotter dead?
Lang: Absolutely not! People think we come in knowing all the tricks, and that’s not the case at all. Myself, I came onto the team from college after winning the NCAA dunk contest in 1998. The last thing I could was spin a basketball on my finger—I had never really even attempted it. You grow up with your coaches teaching you the fundamentals, you know, “Dribble properly”, “no behind-the-back passes”, and all of that. When new guys come in the first thing I tell them is “Remember when your coach in high school told you couldn’t go behind your back? You can do that now. Remember when your coach told you to focus on the court and not look into the stands? Forget all of that. You’re with the Globetrotters now. We encourage you to wave to the crowd and go behind-the-back. You’re learning a new brand of basketball.
So you’ve been on the team for a while now…
I’m the only Globetrotter who’s been playing since the last millennium. I started in 1999 so this is my 17th year.
The Globetrotters are celebrating their 90th anniversary this year. It’s wild to think about the evolution of the team and the different roles it’s played in the basketball landscape. I always think about Wilt Chamberlain’s tenure with the team and the fact that there was once a time the Globetrotters were considered an alternative to the NBA.
The Globetrotters started out as a barnstorming team, just willing to play against anybody. But it wasn’t until the late 40’s/early ‘50s that the Globetrotters began travelling to different countries and playing against pro teams like the Minneapolis Lakers. So when you bring up guys like Wilt Chamberlain, who played with the Globetrotters before he went to the NBA, the story goes and I’ve heard from guys like Curly Neal that Wilt said it was the best time of his career.
We’ve now been to 122 countries and territories. It’s interesting, in the ‘70s and ‘80s the Globetrotters were some of the first professional basketball that a lot of the international players in the NBA had ever seen when they were younger.
Anyone in particular?
Yeah, Yao Ming brought that up when we were in China. There’s an influence and a memory from seeing the Globetrotters in person.
Where do you guys find players?
We have a couple of scouts that go around to different colleges and universities, and we also have several mini-camps over the course of the year where we’ll bring guys in for tryouts. Plus we have one big training camp each year, it’s been in Long Island but I believe we’re relocating it to Atlanta next year. And, like myself, we’ve actually had quite a few guys come from the college dunk contest that happens at the Final Four each year. We look for good players, good people, but we really value athleticsm—people with extraordinary physical abilities.
Have you seen the video of the guy trying to dunk over the Denny’s pancake mascot at the contest last night?
Not yet, I’ll have to get on YouTube and check it out.
It’s worth a look. I don’t think you guys should be incorporating into your show anytime soon, I’ll leave it at that. Who are the iconic Globetrotters you looked up to?
Of course you have to go with Meadowlark Lemon. I grew up watching ‘Sweet’ Lou Dunbar, who’s been with the organization for forty years and is one of our coaches as well as the head of player personnel now. And of course Curly Neal is an all-time favourite. I was fortunate enough to be able to wear his #22 for my first seven years on the team until we held a big ceremony at Madison Square Garden about ten years ago retiring his number. To be a part of that was an honour.
What NBA player would be most suited to join up with you guys. I think we both know the answer is pretty obvious…
Yup, yup. I have to go with the people, because you know they want me to say Steph Curry. When you think about the fact that we’ve added the 4-point shot in our games, and the 4-point line is 12 feet behind the 3-point line, it’s a 35-foot shot and he’s taking those in NBA games regularly—and sinking them.
It’s been really cool to see his development since he came into the NBA. It’s actually a lot like being a Globetrotter. His skills have improved and he’s able to shoot the ball deeper and deeper, but also when he first came into the NBA he wasn’t doing a lot of dancing and celebrating, but as he’s gotten more comfortable and become a better player his swagger is, like, on another level. He definitely goes on and puts out a show every night. Add the four point shot and the way he shoots the ball, he’d be a great Globetrotter. We might have to make Riley our new unofficial mascot.
Runner up: Jamal Crawford?
Oh yeah, definitely. He’s the closest thing to a so-called streetball player, doing things in an NBA game that aren’t supposed to be done. And he’s an older guy, too. Myself being 39, I think he’s 36, 37, so I would definitely enjoy seeing him put it to those young guys.
What’s the biggest perk of the job?
I grew up in a town in Arkansas with 3,000 people. Before I joined the Globetrotters I had never left the country. Now I’ve travelled to 85 different countries; next month when we go to Alaska I’ll have been to all 50 states; I’ve been on television shows like Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader, the Bachelorette, the Amazing Race, talk shows; I’ve met the President, twice; Last May at the Vatican I spun a basketball on the Pope’s finger. I can’t imagine working another job where the doors would be opened for me like it has been with the Globetrotter organization.
The Globetrotters have two shows this weekend at the Hershey Centre in Mississauga and will be at the Ricoh Colliseum in Toronto on Sunday. For a full schedule and more information on their 18-city, six-province Canadian tour click here.