Must See TV c. 1981

The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island, a 1981 made-for-TV film featured the Globetrotters alongside Bob Denver and the rest of the cast of Gilligan's Island. The film's plot follows the first animated series' formula to a degree with a conflict that ends with an unusual basketball game against an opposing team made up of robots. The Globetrotters decide to play with standard moves in the first half, which the robots are able to counter, until Gilligan unwittingly comments that they have not done any fancy tricks, which make the Professor advise the team to use their comedic style of play to win, which hopelessly confuses the machines. However, a couple of Globetrotters suffer injuries, and Gilligan and the Skipper have to be substitute players.

- Wikipedia

Please note that among the honorary members of the Harlem Globetrotters were Henry Kissinger and Pope John Paul II. This makes me wonder if the HGTs are in fact an alternative world government, and have been since their inception in the 1920s.

Please also note that Meadowlark Lemon, one of the all-time great Globetrotters, once said "I wanted to be the best comedic basketball player of all time."