Happy New Year !
May 2014 bring you health, success and tons of great NBA basketball. I finished 2013 in beauty by running away to the country with THE BIG BOOK OF BASKETBALL, 700 hundred pages of cultural history of the game we all like, wrtten by my favorite hoops journalist Bill Simmons. Now, this is not a book-oriented pop culture blog, so I cannot write a conventional book review for this book that's anything but conventional. Instead, I'll try my best to break down the best reasons why you should or shouldn't read this book. Long story short, you should. For the extended version, you'll have to click through.
1) Is THE BOOK OF BASKETBALL too Celtic-green?
Short answer, no. It's not TOO Celtic-green, but it has shades of it. Maybe the only offense is to have written an overemotional 10,000 words chapter on the Wilt Chamberlain vs Bill Russell era, when (to Simmons' own admission) it could've been resumed in one sentence: ''Chamberlain was more talented, but Russell wanted it more.'' It's ultimately OK though because it is placed right after the introduction where Simmons explains why he loves the Celtics so much. Part of why he is so beloved as a sports writer is that he doesn't hide his allegiances. You can call him a RAGING FANBOY and he won't disagree.
2) What is the main point of focus?
Basketball is a large subject. It's easy to make a hoops book about nothing in particular. Half of THE BOOK OF BASKETBALL is dedicated to creating a 5 levels shrine for the 96 best players who ever lived. Bill Simmons' very own bizarro-world hall of fame, shaped like the Luxor, yet situated in French Lick, Indiana. That alone, and the subsequent debate it might trigger, is worth the price of admission.
3) Will it teach me anything?
Of course. It taught me several fascinating things. Here are a few : Rick Barry was an asshole, Rick Barry wore a wig during one complete season because he was a sensitive asshole about his receding hairline, Artis Gilmore was just a beta clone for Moses Malone, the aforementionned Moses Malone was pretty awesome (maybe he was the most awesome role player of all time), David Robinson was never as good as I remembered him to be,David Thompson existed and was one of Michael Jordan's heroes. There is so much information in THE BOOK OF BASKETBALL, it will find ways to enhance your basketball knowledge.
4) Will I eventually get jarred out of reading?
Maybe, but you have to keep in mind this is not a novel, so it's OK to skip parts. I thought there were way too many play-by-plays of games I haven't seen and will probably never see. Too much statistical analysis too. But it's all good. See, I'm a bit of an experienced book reviewer and I'm telling you: it's impossible to write a book this long and make it perfect. Could it have been shorter? Probably, but not by much. Maybe 50 pages shorter max.
THE BOOK OF BASKETBALL is first aiming at the fans of long-wnded Bill Simmons basketball columns, such as myself. It's the length of columns Simmons writes when you're in heaven. If your basketball pleasure is just to sit through games and enjoy the show, THE BOOK OF BASKETBALL will not convince you to do otherwise, but if you're a nerd/information junkie like I am. This is pretty much the best thing ever written in the history of everything, despite the abstract play-by-plays and the overbearing statistical analysis.
Because Moses Malone.
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