Saint Paul – October 29, 2026 -- PBS will air the documentary Medicine Ball on November 9 at 8 pm CST, during Native American Heritage Month. The film follows two Native college basketball players at the University of Minnesota Morris.
Two athletes play on a former boarding school site
Dakota/Diné filmmaker Leya Hale directed the film. It tracks Lexus Redthunder and LeRoy Staples Fairbanks IV through college life and basketball on a campus built on the site of a former Native boarding school. The film shows basketball as a way to carry culture forward, build community and find joy amid adversity.
Hale said: "Medicine Ball is about more than basketball."
Redthunder's family history connects her to the campus
Redthunder, from the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate, played for the Cougars women's basketball team. She graduated with degrees in Native American and Indigenous Studies and Political Science. Her great grandmother attended the Morris Industrial School for Indians, which once stood on the present-day campus.
Staples-Fairbanks plays two Cougars sports
Staples-Fairbanks, of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, is a senior studying Sport Management. He competes on both the Cougars basketball and golf teams. He encourages students from reservation communities to pursue higher education and athletics.
Hale has won a 2026 state filmmaker award
Hale, who is Sisseton Wahpeton Dakota and Diné, received the 2026 Minnesota Filmmaker Award at the Zeitgeist Minnesota Film Festival. She is a multiple regional Emmy Award-winning producer for Minnesota PBS. Her earlier films include The People's Protectors and Bring Her Home (both PBS), and The Electric Indian (APT).