Uncut Gems is About Sam Hinkie.
I warn you now SPOILERS for Uncut Gems Beyond this point, I recommend seeing the movie before reading this article. Just bookmark the page, I’ll wait here.
Glad to see you’re back, I hope you enjoyed the movie., where was I?
Oh yeah, Howard Ratner is the spiritual embodiment of the Sixers organization under the control of the NOTORIOUS Sam Hinke.
I know that the Safdie brothers are huge Knicks fans and I don’t believe it was their intention to write a movie about former GM of the 76ers, but they did.
I’m going to write two sentences and you’ll decide in which one I’m talking about Sam Hinkin and in which one I’m talking about Uncut Gems protagonist Howard Ratner Played by Adam Sandler.
“A Ballsy man bets his well being on the success of an NBA big man.”
“A closed-off businessman makes the biggest gamble of his life, he succeeds but pays dearly for it.”
Not convinced? Let’s continue.
In the movie, Uncut Gems Howard is a family man who is in the process of divorcing his wife while also in a toxic relationship with one of his employees, half his age.
His ex-wife represents the
The stable family Howard is separating himself from, represents the average Sixer fan no longer sticking around for the Process.
His Exciting dumb in love new girlfriend represents the die-hard group of fans that stuck it out through all the loosing. (Specifically The Rights to Ricky Sanchez fans)
Still, not convinced yet? Ok.
Howards lowest moment comes when he’s stripped naked and shoved into the trunk of his own car, his wife comes to let him out but this moment changed the way she sees him.
Just like how many a takesman would say because of how embarrassing Hinkie has made the Sixers, “the fans will never be back”
Howard comes right back inside the next scene and sits down to watch at his daughter’s wonderful performance in her school play because he knows the lows will be low but that just means the highs will feel that much higher.
You’ve gotta lose 66 games sometimes, to make the back to back 50+ seasons feel even better.
Later in the film, Howard pushes the envelope when his opal for sale by auction is appraised at a significantly lower price than he expected. Howard has a relative of his bet against the highest bidder, with no intention of buying it, to raise the price. Howard was forced to make a bad decision by the auctions appraisal.
When Hinkie was given a top 3 pick in the 2015 NBA draft he was forced to make a bad decision by drafting Jah, pressure from the owners to draft a safe choice, Hinkies last 2 seasons had yet to produce a playable first-round pick. I’d say Jah has a significantly lower value than when he was fist appraised.
A little bit of a stretch I know but this is how you build a case.
The climax of the movie sees Howard winning the biggest bet of his life. But to see the bet even get placed he has to enlist the help of his girlfriend and trap the antagonist the man he owes a lot of money to, and his hired goons, in a security doorway locked on both sides. She takes a helicopter to the Mohegan Sun Casino to place the bet, Howard and his antagonists watch him win the bet, but when he lets them out of the box, one of the hired goons shoots Howard in the head, his fate was sealed since the beginning of the game. His Girlfriend who stuck with him through all the crazy gets to walk away rich, but without the one she loves.
Hinkies gamble was to get an average team to a contending team by playing with what he could control. That means throwing it all away, drafting injured prospects, overseas egg timers, and giving minutes to g-league projects, for the slim chance that one of these bets hits big. Sam bet it all on Joel Embiid, but as soon has his plan was set in motion he was doomed, no owner group or commissioner would alow an NBA team to lose ON PURPOSE, Hinkie made fool of the league and they used him to send a message. Now he’s gone and we’re big winners, but all we want is to share our winnings with him.
Uncut Gems is a movie that features the last playoff series the Sixers would play in until 2018, is a movie that was supposed to star Joel Embiid, is a movie about Sam Hinkie…
…written by two die-hard Knicks fans.
Oh and Elton Brand plays a surprisingly big role in the film and I guess in real life too.
