Key & Peele 'Obama handshake' sketch modeled after Durant & Westbrook interaction
One of the more infamous comedy sketches in recent history was brainstormed thanks to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The "Key & Peele" show lasted five seasons from 2012-15. The show served as the springboard that launched Jordan Peele's and Keegan-Michael Key's careers. One of their more popular sketches involved former President Barack Obama.
Peele -- who imitated Obama -- completed a speech and began to shake the hands of those who attended. The funny bit was how Peele did it. If they were white, it was a textbook, business-like handshake. If they were Black, it was more of a dap-up that turned into an affectionate hug. The full sketch can be watched below:
As the saying goes, sometimes life imitates art.
During the 2024 Olympics, Obama spoke about Team USA's run in the men's basketball tournament. The group dominated and eventually won gold. After his speech, the former president gave handshakes to the coaches and players.
It was hilarious to see him do the same thing Peele did in the decade-old sketch. For the players, he dapped them up. For most of the coaches, it was a traditional handshake. As expected, the clip went viral on social media due to the similarities.
Barack Obama dapping up the players on Team USA pic.twitter.com/pqy8GdIOnq
— 2Cool2Blog (@2Cool2Blog) July 10, 2024
While on "The Rich Eisen Show," Key further peeled back the infamous sketch. He revealed the origins of it being based on what Obama did when he met with the Thunder.
"When we did that sketch it was because he had gone, I think he was in Oklahoma City," Peele said. "The sketch was based on an earlier piece of footage where he was dapping up KD and I think Westbrook was still on that team and then he shook the coach's hand. So we wanted to just do it in a political rally."
It's a little surreal to learn one of the best comedy pieces in recent history originated in OKC. Add this feat to the long list of accomplishments the Durant and Westbrook Thunder squads achieved.
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Key & Peele 'Obama handshake' sketch modeled after Durant & Westbrook
