NBA Legend Tells Hilarious Story Behind Landing Role In White Men Can't Jump

Shandel Richardson | Feb 14, 2025

Former Bucks teammates Marques Johnson (left) and Sidney Moncrief were both named finalists for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Friday. 1983 Press Photo Milwaukee Bucks Players Marques Johnson And Sidney Moncrief / John E. Biever, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

NBA great Marques Johnson says he was always ready for the moment.

In 1992, he landed a role in the iconic film White Men Can't Jump starring Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes. But Johnson, who spent most of his NBA career with the Milwaukee Bucks, was already in the acting business.

"I was trained as an actor from the time I was 12 or 13 in middle school through high school through college, theatre arts major at UCLA," Johnson told Back In The Day Hoops On SI. "I was locked into the character. That scene was like real to me."

Johnson played "Raymond" in the movie based on a pair of streetball hustlers. He had arguably one of the greatest scenes when he pulled out a razor on Sidney Deane (Snipes) and Billy Hoyle (Harrelson) after losing a game of 2-on-2.

Johnson sold himself during an epic audition with Snipes in front of director Ron Shelton.

"I had seen a movie called "J.D's Revenge" with Glynn Turman and there was this cold scene where he pulls out a razor blade," Johnson said. "He does this thing with a blade with one hand. My dad was a barber. He had a barber box full of straight razors. I practiced for a week for on that one-handed maneuver."

So Johnson wanted to make the audition real as possible to impress Shelton.

"I go in and do the audition, do a good job," Johnson said. "It gets time for me to pull the blade on Wesley Snipes. I reach into my pocket and pull out this real razor blade. I snap it open with one hand, `[expletive] I'll kill you and chase him around the office. So Ron Shelton stopped me and was like, `Hey, enough, enough, you got the part but next time leave that [expletive] blade at home. We got props here for that kind of stuff. You're gonna kill somebody.' We all laughed. It turned out to be one of the greatest experiences of my life."'

Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Back In The Day Hoops On SI. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com

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