Trick shot star films on UCF-area courts

By Erika Esola

Bruce Manley spends his days standing behind a counter at a U.S. Bank branch counting money and helping customers as a teller.

When he gets off work, he trades in his professional attire and dress shoes for basketball shorts and sneakers. He’s played almost every day since he was about 5 years old.

Manley, 26, who lives in Parker, Colo., frequently travels to the U. Central Florida area to film his trick shots.

Most UCF students would be able to recognize the Waterford Lakes and Jefferson Village courts in a few of his videos on YouTube.

“I don’t know what it is, but I just have a natural ability for trick shots,” said Manley,  whose basketball trick shot videos have more than 1 million views.

Many viewers think Manley’s videos are fake or edited.

“Bruce was always so much better on the court than anybody else because he always spent more time on the court than anybody else,” said Thomas Litteer, Manley’s promoter, video editor and childhood best friend. “That’s what it all boils down to.”

Litteer helps promote Manley’s trick shot abilities so Manley can make a name for himself in the basketball world.

Manley flies to Orlando so that Litteer and his camera crew, which are based in Orlando, can film Manley’s trick shots.

“A lot of people count out Bruce when they see him on the court,” Litteer said. “But then after they see him play, they think he should be a [Harlem] Globetrotter.”

After injuring his shoulder while playing baseball when he was young, Manley found new ways to get creative on the basketball court.

“It wasn’t some catastrophic injury or anything, but it was just enough discomfort that [my shoulder] popped every time I tried throwing or shooting overhand,” Manley said.

Manley started to improvise shots to prevent any further injury to his damaged shoulder.

When he started to improvise, he discovered his hidden talent.

“When I was playing basketball and when I had to make a far pass, I started to throw it behind-the-back because for some reason, it wouldn’t put any strain on my shoulder,” Manley said. “Then I started to practice shooting like that.”

He has caught the attention of many eyes on the Internet thanks to his famous behind-the-back shot.

Shaquille O’Neal challenged him to a game of HORSE, Ashton Kutcher gave him a shout-out on Twitter and he recently won a $1,500 Spalding iHoop in a contest sponsored  by NBA player Gilbert Arenas called “iDrop Jaws.”

“I’ve been in a few contests before where I knew I had the best entry but I got screwed over,” Manley said. “It was great winning because Arenas picked me, but I’m going to sell the hoop because I need the money.”

Manley has decided that his new goal is to set a record for the world’s longest behind-the-back shot. There hasn’t been a record officially established, but Manley has already contacted Guinness World Records and plans to attempt a full-court shot.

“It would be pretty cool to say that I have a world record,” Manley said. “I just want to prove to everyone out there that what I do is real.”

He hopes to attempt the record sometime later this year, and surprise his millions of viewers on YouTube, just like he has been surprising people on the basketball court his entire life.

“It’s pretty fun, surprising people,” Manley said.

Read more here: http://www.centralfloridafuture.com/trick-shot-star-films-on-ucf-area-courts-1.2235354
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