STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — An independent filmmaker who grew up on Staten Island has decided to take a stroll down memory lane as he explores the triumphs and challenges of a high school basketball team he played against during the early 1990s.
Ex-McKee/Staten Island Tech hoopster Jawara “Jay” Fragher is the director of the documentary “New Dorp: It’s Central Time”. The doc examines the New Dorp boys’ varsity basketball team primarily during the 1991-94 seasons.
Those New Dorp teams featured highly touted players like Willie Spellman and Bomani Kinard and, naturally, there were high expectations locally and beyond. The doc explores how the Centrals experienced a measure of success, but didn’t quite reach their full potential.
Fragher, a 1993 McKee graduate who later spent 20 years in the Air Force, always found the Centrals’ story intriguing despite being an opponent. After retiring from the Air Force, he remained in Delaware (he was stationed at Dover AFB) before reuniting with Spellman and ex-New Dorp player Raheem Whitted. That’s when wheels started turning about doing a doc on the Centrals.
“This project was deeply personal, as it reflects both my era and the players I grew up with,’’ explained the 50-year-old Fragher, who said the documentary took about six months to complete. “I remember them as freshmen being on varsity. It was a very unique situation being they were all moved up immediately. So naturally, they were projected to take the Island by storm.
Ex-New Dorp basketball star Bomani Kinard, center, battles a pair of Beach Channel players for a loose ball during the 1991-92 season.(Advance/SILive.com)
“What was even more unique is that they didn’t win anything, yet two years later, after they all graduated, a less talented New Dorp team led by Demond Batts won the Staten Island High School League Tournament,’’ Fragher continued. ”That’s why I felt there needed to be a story about New Dorp’s boys’ varsity basketball team from the class of 1994.“What went on behind the scenes and what prevented them from getting a title always intrigued me.’’
Spellman, Kinard, Whitted, Batts and Fred Sims are all featured in the documentary, as well as Omar Jenkins, a former opponent from Curtis.
The narrator for the documentary trailer refers to the former New Dorp players as ‘older, wiser and brutally honest.’ For a look at the trailer, please click here.
The documentary was officially completed and released last month and is now streaming on Relay. While the service costs $4.99/month, there is also a free trial available.
To watch, download the app and simply search for “New Dorp: It’s Central Time.”
The documentary received great reviews from the Macroproject Film Festival (Honorable Mention, Movie of the Year), Dumbo Film Festival (semifinalist) and the Philadelphia Film Awards Festival (selection).