Movies like The Basketball Diaries: 20 to watch next
If you loved The Basketball Diaries (1995) — a drama and crime film directed by Scott Kalvert — these 20 movies are the closest matches.
The first picks are what fans of The Basketball Diaries most often go on to watch; the rest share its genres and themes like new york city, sports and heroin. 8 of them are streaming in India right now — each entry shows where.
Where to watch The Basketball Diaries →·Get picks for your whole taste →
- 1
A Million Little Pieces 2019★ 6.2
Shares: Drama
A young drug-addled writer approaching the bottom of his descent submits to two months of agonizing detox at a treatment center in Minnesota.
Not on subscription streaming in India right now
- 2
Above the Rim 1994★ 7.1
Shares: Crime, Drama
Story of a promising high school basketball star and his relationships with two brothers, one a drug dealer and the other a former basketball star fallen on hard times and now employed as a security guard.
Not on subscription streaming in India right now
- 3
Beautiful Boy 2018★ 7.6
Shares: Drama
After he and his first wife separate, journalist David Sheff struggles to help their teenage son, who goes from experimenting with drugs to becoming devastatingly addicted to methamphetamine.
Stream in India on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
- 4
Adulthood 2008★ 6.2
Shares: Crime, Drama
After serving six years for killing his schoolmate, a young man learns that someone is out for revenge.
Not on subscription streaming in India right now
- 5
Trainspotting 1996★ 8.0
Shares: Drama, Crime
Heroin addict Mark Renton stumbles through bad ideas and sobriety attempts with his unreliable friends --Sick Boy, Begbie, Spud and Tommy. He also has an underage girlfriend, Diane, along for the ride. After cleaning up and moving from Edinburgh to London, Mark finds he can't escape the life he left behind as Begbie and Sick Boy come knocking.
Not on subscription streaming in India right now
- 6
Kids 1995★ 6.9
Shares: Drama, Crime
A group of bored, disaffected New York City teenagers spend a day skating, smoking, drinking, partying, deflowering virgins, and getting into fights.
Not on subscription streaming in India right now
- 7
Less Than Zero 1987★ 6.4
Shares: Drama, Crime
A college freshman returns to Los Angeles for Christmas at his ex-girlfriend's request, but discovers that his former best friend has an out-of-control drug habit.
Not on subscription streaming in India right now
- 8
White Boy Rick 2018★ 6.4
Shares: Crime, Drama
The story of Richard Wershe Jr., a teenager who became an undercover informant for the police during the 1980s, and was ultimately arrested for drug trafficking and sentenced to life in prison.
Not on subscription streaming in India right now
- 9
Valley of the Dolls 1967★ 6.1
Shares: Drama
Lured by their dreams of fame and fortune, three ambitious young women enter the world of show business and discover how easy it is to sink into a celebrity nightmare of ego, alcohol and pills — the beloved "dolls."
Not on subscription streaming in India right now
- 10
Half Nelson 2006★ 6.7
Shares: Drama
Despite his dedication to the junior-high students who fill his classroom, idealistic teacher Dan Dunne leads a secret life of addiction that the majority of his students will never know. But things change when a troubled student Drey makes a startling discovery of his secret life, causing a tenuous bond between the two that could either end disastrously or provide a catalyst of hope.
Not on subscription streaming in India right now
- 11
My Friend Dahmer 2017★ 6.5
Shares: Drama, Crime
Jeffrey Dahmer struggles with a difficult family life as a young boy. During his teenage years he slowly transforms, edging closer to the serial killer he was to become.
Not on subscription streaming in India right now
- 12
Heaven Knows What 2015★ 6.4
Shares: Drama
A young heroin addict roams the streets of New York to panhandle and get her next fix, while her unstable boyfriend drifts in and out of her life at random.
Not on subscription streaming in India right now
- 13
Once Upon a Time in America 1984★ 8.4
Shares: Drama, Crime
A former Prohibition-era Jewish gangster returns to the Lower East Side of Manhattan over thirty years later, where he once again must confront the ghosts and regrets of his old life.
Stream in India on VI movies and tv
- 14
Bully 2001★ 6.7
Shares: Crime, Drama
A group of teenagers in South Florida enact a murder plot against their mutual bully, Bobby, who has emotionally, physically, and sexually abused them for years.
Stream in India on Movie Sphere+
- 15
The Smashing Machine 2025★ 6.4
Shares: Drama
In the late 1990s, up-and-coming mixed martial artist Mark Kerr aspires to become the greatest fighter in the world. However, he must also battle his opioid dependence and a volatile relationship with his girlfriend Dawn.
Stream in India on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
- 16
River's Edge 1986★ 6.6
Shares: Crime, Drama
A group of high-school friends must come to terms with the fact that one of them, Samson, killed another, Jamie. Faced with the brutality of death, each must decide whether to turn their friend in to the police, or to help him escape the consequences of his dreadful deed.
Stream in India on MGM Plus Amazon Channel
- 17
Palmer 2021★ 8.1
Shares: Drama
After 12 years in prison, former high school football star Eddie Palmer returns home to put his life back together—and forms an unlikely bond with Sam, an outcast boy from a troubled home. But Eddie's past threatens to ruin his new life and family.
Stream in India on Apple TV, Apple TV Amazon Channel
- 18
Get Rich or Die Tryin' 2005★ 6.9
Shares: Drama, Crime
A tale of an inner city drug dealer who turns away from crime to pursue his passion, rap music.
Stream in India on Netflix
- 19
Rise of the Footsoldier 2007★ 6.4
Shares: Crime
Carlton Leach rises from one of the most feared generals of the football terraces to becoming a member of a notorious gang of criminals who rampaged their way through London and Essex in the late '80s and early '90s.
Not on subscription streaming in India right now
- 20
American Gangster 2007★ 7.6
Shares: Drama, Crime
Loosely based on the criminal career of Frank Lucas, a gangster from La Grange, North Carolina, who smuggled heroin into the United States on American service planes returning from the Vietnam War, before being detained by a task force led by Newark Detective Richie Roberts.
Stream in India on JioHotstar