Harlem Globetrotter Julian Zeus McClurkin helps a young boy spin a basketball on one finger at Champion Teamwear in Manhattan, Jan. 24, 2019. (Nick McNamara/KMAN)
The Harlem Globetrotters are coming to Bramlage Coliseum on February 11th, but one team member stopped by Manhattan early on Thursday.
Julian Zeus McClurkin stopped by Champion Teamwear in part to commemorate their uniform deal with the Globetrotters, but also to preview the upcoming match. Tickets went on sale Wednesday — they can be purchased online with the promo code “MATT”, or by calling Matt Hartman at 678-497-1885 or emailing him at Hartman@harlemglobetrotters.com. Kansas State University faculty and staff along with their families are eligible for a 34 percent discount per ticket.
Manhattan area residents and Champion employees lined up for a chance to meet Zeus, snap a selfie, as well as try out some ball tricks.
Manhattan Mayor Mike Dodson was there to welcome Zeus and the Globetrotters to the city. He recounted his memories of historic Globetrotters teams of the past and says the team bands together to help the communities they visit. He says “you can’t find a better group of people to represent America.”
“This organization, from the time I was a young kid, have been ambassadors for all of us,” Dodson says. “They toured around the United States, brought people together. They toured around the entire world and they’ve been doing that for about 95 years.”
Dodson also got help from Zeus twirling a basketball on one finger.
Harlem Globetrotter Julian Zeus McClurkin helps Manhattan Mayor Mike Dodson spin a basketball on one finger at Champion Teamwear in Manhattan, Jan. 24, 2019. (Nick McNamara/KMAN)
Zeus agrees that while the team is centered around entertainment, what they do off the court is important as well.
“Just yesterday I was at an elementary school, we shared an anti-bullying message with a group of kids and we also went to a rehabilitation center and children’s hospitals,” Zeus says. “We do this in every single market that we’re in.”
Zeus, a member of the team for eight years, says he’s honored to be aligned with two great brands.
“In eight years I’ve been in 25 countries and provinces around the world, but I was actually born and raised in Manhattan,” Zeus exclaimed to the crowd. “…Ohio. Manhattan, Ohio. It’s a small city in Ohio, I’m surprised you’ve heard of it.”
Actually a Columbus, Ohio native, he also talked about some of the accolades he’s received over his career — including four Guinness World Records.
“I have the most behind the back three-pointers in one minute, the most bounced three-pointers in one minute, the most slam dunks in one minute and the most blindfolded slam dunks in one minute — before Bird Box.”
They’re set to take on the Washington Generals, their long-time rivals, when they come to Bramlage in February.
