When Rock “Wham” Middleton started playing with the Harlem Globetrotters, he had to learn to perform just a little bit less.
Middleton comes from a family of performers; his father was a rapper, and his cousin is actor and comedian Chris Tucker, so when he first started playing for the team, he found himself focusing on performing as a solo act rather than with the group.
It’s been eight years since the metro Atlanta native joined the Harlem Globetrotters, and he’s long since nailed that balance of entertaining crowds and playing a great basketball game.
On March 22, the 32-year-old will return to his hometown in metro Atlanta for the Globetrotters’ 100 Year Tour.
“I love playing at home, because I get to see all my family and friends, and it’s really like it gives me a superpower, because I always have my best games at home. So I can’t wait to see what I’m gonna do next weekend,” he said. “Hopefully I’m not jinxing myself,” he added with a laugh.
Credit: Courtesy of the Harlem Globetrotters
Credit: Courtesy of the Harlem Globetrotters
Middleton grew up in Stone Mountain and attended Parkview High School in Gwinnett. When he isn’t touring the world with the Harlem Globetrotters, he lives in Atlanta.
His childhood in the metro area influenced his creativity in basketball. His dad taught him the technical, disciplined side to the sport, but it was Atlanta that influenced his style.
“It was me playing in those streets. That’s where all the real fun and creativity came along,” he said.
Middleton has been playing basketball for as long as he can remember, starting with the Fisher-Price net in his living room.
He played ball in high school but remained mostly a benchwarmer — in fact, he said he was probably better at baseball.
“It was just the love for basketball that I had that let me stay here,” he said.
Middleton attended college at Savannah State University, where he played semi-pro basketball while in school. After, he went to Spain and competed overseas for a few months before returning to Atlanta.
He spent the next two years working in restaurants as he tried out for the NBA G League and honed his skills. One fateful day, he unknowingly shared a basketball court at Lifetime Fitness gym with a Harlem Globetrotter associate who was so impressed with his game that he suggested Middleton reach out to a recruiter.
Throughout his life, people had mentioned that his “play style” looked like it could fit into the Harlem Globetrotters, he said.
“I’m very tricky. I have amazing handles, I like to play around, you know, try to cross people up,” he said. “I’m just a trickster on the court.”
Middleton tried out for a spot and made it onto the team. He found himself off the bench and on the court, surrounded by iconic players like Corey “Thunder” Law, Jahmani “Hot Shot” Swanson and Brawley “Cheese” Chisholm and part of a legacy that stretches all the way back to 1926 when Abe Saperstein founded the league.
Credit: Courtesy of Harlem Globetrotters / Jimmy Strong
Credit: Courtesy of Harlem Globetrotters / Jimmy Strong
Over the course of a century, the organization helped to integrate the NBA in the 1950s and visited the Soviet Union in 1959 during the Cold War. Several players also traveled to North Korea in 2013.
“I feel like any organization that’s been going on for 100 years, they’re definitely doing something good on and off the court,” he said. “We’ve done so much for history, and just being a part of something like this, I mean, it’s amazing.”
During his first year, he practiced constantly to learn the tricks Harlem Globetrotters are known for, and he ended up winning rookie of the year.
“To become a Globetrotter, you have to be an amazing basketball player. If you want to stay a globetrotter, you gotta learn all the tricks,” he said.
Besides entertaining fans around the world, he has earned several Guinness World Records. Some weren’t particularly difficult, he said, but others, like being named the fastest dribbler, were challenging.
“I put hand weights on, and I had a weighted basketball, and I just kept on dribbling every day,” he recalled. “It took me three years to get that record.”
Credit: Courtesy of Craig Hunter Ross
Credit: Courtesy of Craig Hunter Ross
The life of a Harlem Globetrotter is filled with travel; Middleton estimates he’s been to around 40 or 50 countries. Each time the team heads to a new location, they try to learn bits and pieces of that language so they can speak it throughout the game, he said.
During the summer, the Globetrotters will head overseas to Australia, New Zealand and cities in Asia and South America.
“This is a dream job,” he said. “I get to play basketball, I get to entertain people and I get to travel all over the world.”
If You Go
Harlem Globetrotters
3 p.m. March 22. $39.50-$197.35. Gas South Arena, 6400 Sugarloaf Parkway, Duluth. harlemglobetrotters.com/world-tour/schedule/gas-south-arena
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