In the world of sports shows, we usually focus on coaches and players. They’re the ones deep in the game for every crucial moment. The action and drama naturally follow them. Netflix’s Running Point dares to ask the important question: What about the lowly team owner? Sure, all that actual sport is gruelling and fun to watch, but what about the obscenely wealthy people in charge of day-to-day operations? Let’s see what hijinks they get up to!
Running Point is the latest project from Mindy Kaling, along with co-writers Ike Barinholtz and David Stassen. Kate Hudson stars as Isla Gordon, a member of the family that owns the Los Angeles Lakers Waves, a prestigious basketball team for a legally unnamed professional basketball league. Isla’s three brothers hold prominent positions within the company, but her role is limited to community outreach. That changes when oldest brother and president of the company, Cam (Justin Theroux) steps down and appoints Isla as his successor. With the help of her dutiful assistant Ali (Brenda Song), Isla must learn how to navigate the problems that come with running the team.
There are about a half dozen other characters that round out the cast. You have a previously unknown 4th brother, the Waves’ sexy coach, who definitely won’t be getting with Isla, and Chet Hanks as himself in a basketball jersey among others. It’s a lot of characters to keep track of when you only have 10 half hour installments to work with. The cast all do admirable work, but it’s hard not to feel like everyone apart from Hudson is a little underdeveloped.
Basketball fans might instantly recognize the parallels between Hudson’s Isla and real-life Lakers owner Jeanie Buss. They’ll certainly notice her name in the credits as an executive producer. This explains why Isla always appears morally right. She’s the only person worthy of the job and it’s everyone around her that causes problems. It’s a hard act to pull off when you have a cast full of quirky characters. Thankfully, Hudson is more than up to the task. Her charm and energy make Isla someone worth rooting for. It’s almost enough to make you forget about the extreme wealth on display.
Running Point is not a show interested in taking the piss out of the wealthy. This is not Succession, it’s not even Arrested Development. The writers aim for light and breezy, hoping you check everything you’ve ever heard about sports team owners at the door. It’s an approach that potentially works with enough fine-tuning. Unfortunately, Running Point doesn’t have that kind of time. I could easily see this turning into a fan favorite show if the team has the space to work out the kinks. As it stands now, though, this is too scattershot to land anything meaningful.
Running Point is currently streaming on Netflix.