seconds on the clock ticking down, Schlots passes the ball instead of trying to take the final shot himself, per his usual self, leading to the Lions scoring the winning basket. The entire school celebrates, and Lamont's wife and son enter the gym and announce plans to stay with Lamont, who reveals to the Lions that he plans to become their full-time coach. In the end, Schlots has convinced his mother to let him play basketball and in fact only showed up at the end of the game so she could bring Lamont's family to him while Lamont helped the Lions. The final scene of the movie consists of Schlots and Lamont's families playing a game the basketball with Julie, and Schlots' mother turns out to be a pretty good player. Rabbi Lewis' story of Hanukkah and how it relates to the basketball game plays over the scene. Cast Alex D. Linz as Alex "Schlots" Schlotsky Richard T. Jones as Lamont Carr R. H. Thomson as Rabbi Lewis Sean Marquette as Ben "Big Ben" Swartz Erik Knudsen as T. J. Murphy David Sazant as "Joker" Levy Sheila McCarthy as Mrs. Klein Linda Kash as Cynthia Schlotsky Jason Blicker as Marshall Schlotsky Cassie Steele as Julie Jack Manchester as Tyler Ron Gabriel as Coach Simowitz Stan Coles as Larry Sean Loucks as Bob, The Referee Gina Kash as Sarah Lewis Dan Willmott as Tow Truck Driver Elle Downes as Charmaine Jerome Williams as Himself Reception Laura Fries of Variety was critical of the film, writing that director Stuart Gillard "misses a prime opportunity to present a poignant and entertaining multicultural alternative to the usual holiday viewing". She wrote that Gillard "lays the groundwork for a meaningful drama but inconsistently intersperses fantasy elements and slapstick comedy". Joe Eskenazi of JWeekly found the adult characters one-dimensional but applauded the younger actors. He called the film "cheesy" but nevertheless "sort of liked it". References External links American basketball films Disney Channel Original Movie films Films about Jews and Judaism 2000s English-language films 2003 television films 2003 films Films directed by Stuart Gillard Hanukkah films Films set in Philadelphia Films shot in Toronto 2000s American films