While Netflix's The Last Dance was an acclaimed insight into Michael Jordan and the dominance of the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s, it barely mentioned Australian Luc Longley.
Key points:
- Twenty-five years on from the Chicago Bulls' three-peat, the NBA is making sure the West Australian's part is recognised
- With the release of heritage jerseys and Foundations, Longley is becoming more comfortable with the limelight
- A Wollongong filmmaker and videographer on Foundations says he was conscious of not bugging Longley about his NBA fame
The 218-centimetre centre was the first Australian to play in the NBA and was a major part of the Bulls' golden era alongside Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, and Steve Kerr.
Twenty-five years since the team's second three-peat, the NBA is making sure the West Australian's part in basketball history is being formally recognised.
First they released a merchandise run of Longley's #13 Chicago Bulls jersey.
Now comes a documentary titled Foundations, featuring unseen footage from his team's dominant era.
"I've seen the documentary and it's cool to see some of the old, original The Last Dance footage," Longley said.
"Probably the playing footage was what I enjoyed the most, and there's some bits and pieces of family footage.
"I don't know why it went into the archives for a long time, but it was good to see, and it's cool for the NBA to recognise me and my part in that team and history.
"With the documentary and the T-shirts and jerseys, for me that's top-shelf flattery."
Stepping back into the limelight
Not long after the release of The Last Dance, the usually low-profile Longley agreed to a two-part ABC Australian Story about his life.
He has also recently become more active in the Australian basketball scene as a special advisor to the Sydney Kings.
Now with the release of the heritage jerseys and the Foundations documentary, Longley said he is becoming more comfortable with the limelight.
"I'm never sure where the line between me avoiding building a profile and not caring about having a profile was," he said.
"I'm not sure what combination of factors it was when I finished playing, but I knew I wanted to be away from the game for a bit.
"I've been flattered by the appetite for people to hear more about my story and it's cracked open a door for me that I've chosen to step through and I've enjoyed."
He has also taken on some public speaking which he said he never thought he would do.
Friendship with Wollongong filmmaker
Wollongong filmmaker Sam Tolhurst has known Longley through his work producing videos and photos for the Sydney Kings, and was a videographer on Foundations.
"I've always been conscious of not trying to bug Luc about his time in the NBA and asking questions about MJ [Jordan] because I know a lot of people want to know about his time in Chicago," he said.
"When the opportunity came up to work on this documentary, I was taken aback by the gravity of what it meant.
"He's got a commanding presence, but not in a way you're intimated by him. You want to take in everything he says and I was captivated the whole time [we filmed]."
It turns out, the respect was mutual.
"When I called him [before the shoot] I expected him to say he's stuck with me again, but he said he was proud of me and that we get to work together because we're a package deal now and that meant a lot," Mr Tolhurst said.
"He's shown a genuine interest in me and we share a healthy love of banter, which I can take, but I don't have much choice when the guy is seven foot two."
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