During the last college basketball season, director Kristen Lappas and her production team received unprecedented access to the lives of three top college basketball players. The four-part docuseries, “Full Court Press,” which debuted on ABC last weekend and is now available on ESPN+, takes viewers behind the scenes into the lives of these three players, who faced huge expectations and pressure.
Produced by Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions, the series chronicles not only the final college season of University of Iowa megastar Caitlin Clark, but also the experiences of Kamilla Cardoso of University of South Carolina, now a two-time NCAA Champion and Most Outstanding Player of the 2024 Final Four, and UCLA sophomore point guard Kiki Rice. Lappas said producers wanted a range of perspectives among the players.
“Kamilla Cardoso has such a rich backstory. Obviously, I would argue her stakes were the greatest of anyone,” said Lappas, who also directed the 2022 docuseries “Dream On” about the 1996 U.S. Women’s Olympic basketball team.
Cardoso is from Brazil and grew up with a single mother who worked at a spice stand and dreamed of a better life for her two daughters. At 6-foot-7 with court skills, Cardoso had the opportunity to come to the U.S. for high school. Leaving home, learning English, attending college, and achieving success came at the sacrifice of being with family.
While the series depicts Clark as making bank on name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals, Cardoso, as a foreign student, was not able to take advantage of NIL.
“Kiki Rice kind of represents the next generation,” said Lappas. “She was the first college athlete to get a deal with the Jordan brand…She also comes from a fascinating background, with her aunt being Susan Rice (former U.S. national security advisor). I felt her world was so far from the world that Kamilla or Caitlin existed in that there wouldn’t be repetition between all of their stories.”
The series includes footage of teams in practice and in the locker room, sometimes at heated moments. “Coach [Lisa] Bluder (Iowa) in the beginning was a little skeptical; of course, why wouldn’t she be,” said Lappas, noting producers build trust with each program. “You’re asking this person to open the most sacred spaces of her program to cameras…By the time we got to the [NCAA] Tournament, they were all in. It was really remarkable.”