Blue Chips (1994)

Too many sports movies talk down to fans, using the game as window dressing for a bland story line. But William Friedkin's Blue Chips, about the seedy underbelly of college hoops, is an exception — a basketball film with street cred. Nick Nolte plays the hot-tempered Bobby Knight-like coach who caves in to pressure to recruit top players by buying them. And while his gut-wrenching ethical gymnastics will keep nonfans interested, jocks will delight in the movie's quick-cutting game sequences (which play perfectly on the small screen) and its cast of real-life b-ball stars, such as Shaq, Anfernee Hardaway, and Larry Bird. B+