Swagger is the new Friday Night Lights

Los Angeles Times

Apple TV+'s Kevin Durant-inspired high school basketball drama shares similarities with Friday Night Lights, says Greg Braxton. "Like that beloved series, which premiered in 2006 and lasted five seasons, Swagger has much more on its agenda than the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat," says Braxton. "Fractured Black families, racism, sexual misconduct, the overwhelming impact of social media and the lucrative intrusion by major sporting goods companies into youth athletics are among the themes explored. It’s also a story about redemption, as illustrated by the struggles of Isaac Kennedy Edwards, a.k.a. 'Icon,' a former championship player whose path to greatness was derailed. Barely holding it together with a meager job and a baby on the way, Edwards is seeking his own salvation while also trying to steer his talented young players, including Jace, away from temptations that could knock them off track."