tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415181827260955292024-03-17T23:00:03.490-04:00Sports Book Review CenterReviews of sports books from the past five years from Budd Bailey.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger228125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-79990250548952123712024-03-14T12:00:00.001-04:002024-03-14T12:01:26.127-04:00Review: Present at the Creation (2017)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAuxZ8kjN2KiQ7acrh0-7gv5irGmhIG2_u_eanCsZHRThWDt9x5WTrzg99Gpuxo3etwivXHnj39hYZsgqoyhkDHIDS5mme64Ixp8lo-ullcI-D_4u8YDONIH0sB3o_j1-fATO4bbtKQbnDrf-Uo-1DBrQTzdjWG8nKSMdLb0Ak_QKr0qaTo0EPefOQ-VwB/s1500/031424.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAuxZ8kjN2KiQ7acrh0-7gv5irGmhIG2_u_eanCsZHRThWDt9x5WTrzg99Gpuxo3etwivXHnj39hYZsgqoyhkDHIDS5mme64Ixp8lo-ullcI-D_4u8YDONIH0sB3o_j1-fATO4bbtKQbnDrf-Uo-1DBrQTzdjWG8nKSMdLb0Ak_QKr0qaTo0EPefOQ-VwB/w266-h400/031424.jpg" width="266" /></a></b></div><b>By Upton Bell with Ron Borges</b><p></p><p>The name of Upton Bell probably doesn't ring much of a, ahem, bell with many of the sports fans of today. Yes, he was in the sports media for a few decades in the Boston area, which probably is how he is best remembered.</p><p>However, that was his second go-around in the sports business. It was his first that might be of more interest, at least from an historical perspective. Bell's time in football is nicely chronicled in his book, "Present at the Creation." You can break that portion of his career into four different sections, which are covered here.</p><p>* He was the son of the former NFL Commissioner Bert Bell. </p><p>* He was part of the front office of the Baltimore Colts during much of the 1960s.</p><p>* He was the general manager of the New England Patriots for a couple of years in the early 1970s. </p><p>* He was the operating manager of the Charlotte franchise in the World Football League, an operation that lasted a mere two years in the 1970s. </p><p>That is a rather intriguing resume, at least in terms of football history. It should be enough to draw some people in.</p><p>Bell's father probably ranks with one of the unsung heroes in the history of the NFL. There's a tendency to believe that Pete Rozelle deserves much of the credit for the growth in the league starting in the 1950s. However, Bell established a foundation for that growth in the 1950s. Granted, Upton's version is a little biased - as well it should be. But Bert seems like a man of integrity, and he took several steps that placed the sport of football on a national stage. Sadly, Bert essentially dropped dead during a game in 1959, just after he was making plans to try to step out of the Commissioner's job. Upton at least had an inside look at how pro football administration worked even before he graduated from college.</p><p>Upton eventually moved over to a job with the Baltimore Colts, showing an ability to find talent in the nation's colleges and thus having several drafts that helped propel the Colts to a contender's status throughout the 1960s. Baltimore had an interesting team in that era, led by a couple of strong personalities in quarterback John Unitas and head coach Don Shula ... who didn't really get along too well. While the Green Bay Packers are considered the dominant team of that era, it wouldn't have taken much to flip that script. The Colts lost key games to the Browns in the 1964 NFL championship, to the Packers in a 1965 playoff game (featuring a missed call on a field-goal attempt in the final minutes), and famously to the Jets in the 1969 Super Bowl. </p><p>Indeed, the best part of the book might be the one devoted to that Jets' game. Bell said the Colts had figured out that New York not only had a better quarterback (Joe Namath vs. Earl Morrall) for that matchup, but also had better running backs and better wide receivers. In addition, age had caught up with Baltimore on the right side of the defense, and Jets' coach Weeb Eubank - the former head coach in Baltimore - knew it. Even so, the Colts probably would have won the game more than half the time; they just picked the wrong day to have a stinker. </p><p>Still, the Colts' good run of success made Bell an attractive candidate for a promotion elsewhere, and he received it when he was named the general manager of the Boston/New England Patriots in 1971. As Bell writes, it seemed like a good idea at the time. The Patriots had been a mess for the previous several years, but Bell didn't realize how much of a mess it was. I'm fond of saying that sports teams lose for a reason, even if that reason isn't apparent from a distance. In this case, the team's Board of Directors was hopelessly fractured, and authority was scattered throughout the company. That rarely works. Bell lasted almost two years before the end mercifully came. The problems continued for a couple of more decades.</p><p>Bell received one more shot at pro football glory, taking an opportunity that became available in the World Football League. Stories of new leagues are always entertaining in a somewhat tragic sort of way. Bell helped move a franchise from New York to Charlotte, the opposite direction of what you might think was a path to success. However, the overall problems of the league overwhelmed Bell and the Hornets didn't need much of a push to be caught up in it. The WFL was dead before its second and final season ended in 1975, and so was Bell's football career.</p><p>"Football men" are notorious for having a limited focus on life, concentrating completely on the game rather than the world around it. One of the joys of this book is that Bell doesn't seem to suffer from that. He offers some good stories about what it was like to scout players in the South of the 1960s, where he had a first-hand look at the changes that were starting to take place. </p><p>Bell probably could have fit a few more stories about his media days into the book, but what he offers is quite interesting. It already is closing in on 400 pages as is. Anyone who picks it up in the first place probably is looking for stories about football history, so this doesn't really date for what might be a somewhat limited audience. The pages go by quite quickly. </p><p>In hindsight, it's easy to see why Bell had some success in the sports world. He's a smart, articulate man, and "Present at the Creation" reflects that. Those who fit into the proper demographic will find the book worth their time.</p><p><b>Four stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/149620039X/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p><i>(Be notifiied of posts on this site on X.com via @WDX2BB.) <br /></i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-38436081498920495772024-02-19T11:34:00.003-05:002024-02-19T13:51:31.570-05:00Review: Draft Day (2023)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAbAI3swsB6SSGhSys5cu9CGbjYqJQwsXjG2zO3lCJfug8wjxKtLkCapuPLGc49iPncP5e1mxaT9khqhkUJGbiesmqM3_dpBxin8Mx_MUhXA_ILjv_AT04dmr_mZTnTHj8oJTRBoEnrCg0OM_mIgdP9_l7ZNTz7YKhyphenhyphendHBiGDpdq7hbOoIcM02Ph5CxxbY/s1500/021924.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1003" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAbAI3swsB6SSGhSys5cu9CGbjYqJQwsXjG2zO3lCJfug8wjxKtLkCapuPLGc49iPncP5e1mxaT9khqhkUJGbiesmqM3_dpBxin8Mx_MUhXA_ILjv_AT04dmr_mZTnTHj8oJTRBoEnrCg0OM_mIgdP9_l7ZNTz7YKhyphenhyphendHBiGDpdq7hbOoIcM02Ph5CxxbY/w268-h400/021924.jpg" width="268" /></a></b></div><b>By Doug MacLean with Scott Morrison</b><p></p><p>It's an age-old question. How do you build a winning team in professional sports?</p><p>Ever since the free-for-all days of signing players on your own ended at various stages (it depends on the sport, but mostly it was in the 1950s or 1960s), the draft has been the key component. That's where the biggest talent influx arrives each year. If those selections work out, one way or another, a team can add to its base of good players and start moving up the ladder in wins. In hockey, for example, teams that win Stanley Cups often have about 10 of their own draft choices on their rosters. </p><p>Some of the other picks contribute in different ways, as they are sometimes traded elsewhere to strengthen a particular spot in the lineup. If a team has some depth at defense but not much talent at center, a swap concept begins to form with a team with the opposite problem.</p><p>When watching the draft, there's always a scent that much more is going on than we know about it. Happily, veteran hockey executive Doug MacLean takes us through his career in the behind-the-scenes book, "Draft Day." </p><p>MacLean has had a variety of hockey jobs over the years. He's best known for his work as coach of the Florida Panthers and as the president and general manager of the Columbus Blue Jackets. MacLean always has come across as a smart, interesting person. Here he pulls back the curtain on what goes into the draft, which is the subject of a year's worth of work that comes down to only a couple of days of selections in the summer. No pressure, eh? There's a little wandering in the story that makes this read like an autobiography for a while, but it's not a big problem.<br /></p><p>It's striking from the start just how close-knit the hockey family is. MacLean came out of Prince Edward Island in Canada. He played hockey there, but wasn't good enough to get a whiff of the NHL. However, he decided to work his way up the coaching ladder rather than taking what could be called "a real job." You get to meet a lot of people in the game that way, and the circles often intersect along the way. It's something of a fraternity, and friends are made for life. Those friends often turn out to be crucial in advancement. </p><p>A book like this needs to have good stories to make it work, and MacLean comes through nicely in that department during the nearly 300 pages. One of the highlights is how MacLean as the general manager at Columbus managed to trade up to acquire the first overall pick. There he scooped up Rick Nash, who proved to be a top goal-scorer in the NHL. </p><p>There's a skill to that, of course, but luck plays a hand in a team's fate as well. MacLean points out several cases where the lottery was particularly unkind to the Blue Jackets when he was there. A different ping-pong ball, or whatever is used in the lottery, would have made a big difference in the fortunes of the Columbus team. But when there are four particularly great prospects in a draft and you have the fifth pick, things aren't going to go well. </p><p>MacLean devotes a chapter to what he calls "the curious case of Nikolai Zherdev." He was a top prospect in terms of talent from Russia, but there were a few character issues floating around that were tough to decipher. MacLean and Co. put plenty of effort into due diligence when it came to finding out what the full story was. Eventually the choice came down to Zherdev or Thomas Vanek. It turned out that personal issues never allowed Zherdev to realize his talent. By the way, the Buffalo Sabres "settled" for Vanek, who turned out to be a solid pro. GM Darcy Regier told MacLean at the time that the Sabres would have taken Zherdev had they had the chance. </p><p>Speaking of the Sabres, there are a couple of little items in this book that are of interest. In 2015, MacLean tried to console Buffalo general manager Tim Murray for losing the lottery by saying that even if he couldn't get Connor McDavid, he'd at least get someone good. The reply was, "Doug, it's not even close." And back in 1991, the New York Islanders were shopping talented center Pat LaFontaine in a contract dispute. They talked to the Detroit Red Wings, and MacLean worked for the Wings at that point. He writes that the Red Wings were ready to deal Steve Yzerman to the Islanders in a package for LaFontaine. The deal eventually fell through, and LaFontaine ended up in Buffalo. If that original deal goes through with Detroit, hockey history goes in all sorts of different directions in the three cities involved.</p><p>This is all told in a down-to-earth style. Not only does MacLean comes across well, but he's in good hands in terms of assistance with Scott Morrison. The latter has been one of the most respected names in journalism for several years. </p><p>The pages on "Draft Day" may not fly by for those who aren't good-sized hockey fans or for those looking for a more indepth look at the draft process, but those that qualify (in other words, the majority of potential readers) will find this more than satisfying. They should pick it up sooner rather than later. </p><p><b>Four stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1982149949/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> <br /></span></p><p>Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com @WDX2BB.<span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-69654042863140650282024-02-08T14:50:00.000-05:002024-02-08T14:50:31.520-05:00Review: The Early Days of ESPN (2024)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN7OeOOm0hdV0DYcKmlreX-F4cSIsyeVRXGLDR81u1vOVMa0N01C_GNcz6PlCZGYl8jvdPz2TsxqXzxXGjkC03P86GkLbNs8ZWjl2HHL0cXyXuey0jPgPhP57OpaxDOk8qLoGn_z-MUVoPCD-HTB973u38JiNUVX0gOAAURInijJEZ3LI6CiGjw3dlzaDb/s1500/020824.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN7OeOOm0hdV0DYcKmlreX-F4cSIsyeVRXGLDR81u1vOVMa0N01C_GNcz6PlCZGYl8jvdPz2TsxqXzxXGjkC03P86GkLbNs8ZWjl2HHL0cXyXuey0jPgPhP57OpaxDOk8qLoGn_z-MUVoPCD-HTB973u38JiNUVX0gOAAURInijJEZ3LI6CiGjw3dlzaDb/w266-h400/020824.jpg" width="266" /></a></b></div><b>By Peter Fox</b><p></p><p>The lives of sports fans changed drastically on September 7, 1979. That's when a new television network called ESPN signed on the air, with sportscaster Lee Leonard doing the honors. </p><p>It hasn't signed off since that moment - with the exception of a few technical problems, no doubt - and since then it has lived up to its promise that it would show nothing but sports programming for 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 (or 366) days a year.</p><p>While plenty has been written about those early days of the network's programming, ESPN didn't simply appear out of the ether one day. Several months of planning went into the debut. In fact, the first broadcast by the network took place 10 months earlier in November of 1978. The opening game was an exhibition basketball matchup between the University of Connecticut and Athletes in Action, a tourimg squad. </p><p>Peter Fox was there at the beginning, as ESPN's founding executive producer. He's finally gotten around to putting some of his (and others') memories on those start-up days on paper, and the result is "The Early Days of ESPN."</p><p>The idea for the network came almost accidentally. Bill Rasmussen was interested in transmitting Connecticut basketball games around the state by satellite, and discovered that he couldn't just rent the time for a few hours a week. No, he had to agree to use it 24/7. A family member half-jokingly suggested to fill the time with other sports, and they plunged into it. </p><p>After setting the scene a bit, Fox mostly relies on the memories of those who worked there in those early days. Some came from Hartford television, while others were from the immediate area of the Northeast. As you'd expect, the start-up was rather chaotic, with rented offices and potential clients (cable companies and advertisers) wondering how ESPN would fill all that time. Come to think of it, the employees wondered that too.</p><p>But eventually, it all came together. The big steps in personnel came when Chet Simmons and Scotty Connal - two big names in television production - were hired. Then the Getty Oil Company, which was sitting on piles of cash at the time, decided a television network would be more fun to own than drilling a dry hole in the ground. </p><p>As you'd expect, the new employees mostly were young people who really didn't have much to lose professionally and loved sports. So there are stories of long hours, equipment breaking down, visits to local watering holes, office romances, more visits to local watering holes (hey, work hard, play hard), etc.</p><p>That all sounds like it has the elements of a reasonable book. However, the finished product has a couple of good-sized flaws attached.</p><p>For starters, this is part oral history and part personal narrative. The problem is that the material is not presented particularly well. It's rather disorganized, and sometimes it's tough to figure out where on the timeline of ESPN's story we might be at a given page. That's a good-sized drawback in a book like this. There are a few sections along the way that are simply tough to read for that reason. It's also a short book, checking in at under 200 pages with some filler along the way. Readers may not feel they will get their $29.95's worth of information from this. </p><p>Fox comes off as a good and interesting guy, and he probably would be good company for lunch and diet colas. But "The Early Days of ESPN" comes across as something that might appeal to a very small piece of the audience. There are other books out there that might be more satisfying to someone looking for a quick overview of the start of the popular broadcasting outlet.</p><p><b>Two stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1493079573/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p><i>Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com @WDX2BB.</i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-54948514585079091822024-02-05T17:03:00.000-05:002024-02-05T17:03:26.070-05:00Review: The Bill James Handbook: Walk-Off Edition (2023)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUbweX6jSKgYSGS93AAloal8PxPICyABwsJCQOfUNfCBRnndDlGvY7N_rAEQJ-ff-TOsFGqla4yHjO17kNfh2h9zxL_xKqwmDrjxMwExKRwc6qeAazMuqdRhtuSya-7gpMW16TuBdeICdHBU5LPe49MIfq82VJ9wVbGpx_Rr01018h2At1bzJdhtKgG3aT/s1500/020524.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1156" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUbweX6jSKgYSGS93AAloal8PxPICyABwsJCQOfUNfCBRnndDlGvY7N_rAEQJ-ff-TOsFGqla4yHjO17kNfh2h9zxL_xKqwmDrjxMwExKRwc6qeAazMuqdRhtuSya-7gpMW16TuBdeICdHBU5LPe49MIfq82VJ9wVbGpx_Rr01018h2At1bzJdhtKgG3aT/w309-h400/020524.jpg" width="309" /></a></b></div><b>By Sports Info Solutions</b><p></p><p>All good things must come to an end ... particularly in publishing, where the landscape seems to change by the hour. </p><p>Such is the case for "The Bill James Handbook," which has concluded a nice run that has lasted for more than three decades. The story of the book's history needs a little explanation first.</p><p>Back around 1990, baseball statistics had started to blossom as a subject for study. Bill James, the patron saint of baseball analysis, had started the idea (more or less) with his Abstracts in the late 1970s. That led to an advancement of the subject, through the work of a small but devoted group of individuals who have pushed the research along. </p><p>By 1990, there was a demand for information that just wasn't out there for most of the public. So James and his friends started a book that contained all of those numbers - and not just the ones that were in the Baseball Register by The Sporting News every year. Even better, the book was available by Christmas, which was a good holiday gift for those who couldn't wait until the spring or so when the Register came out. The book not only had those numbers, but also some essays on the game. </p><p>Fast forward to today, and all of those numbers are available almost instantly through other sources on the Internet. So it was easy to guess that the days of the Handbook had to be numbered, and here we are. But the people behind the publication decided to go out with a bang of sorts. So they came out with one last book filled mostly with essays, and called it the "Walk-Off Edition." </p><p>I hadn't bought the book before, as I didn't have a great deal of need for the extra numbers in my life. But as a reader of James' abstracts, I found the concept of an anthology with contributions by and about James to be tough to resist. Sold. </p><p>Sure enough, there are a bunch of articles here, and James has five bylines and is the subject of a question-and-answer story. My favorite story of the bunch was one by James, in which he talks about how the changes in the way baseball is played these days (more relief pitchers, emphasis on home runs by hitters and strikeouts for pitchers, etc.). One of the unexpected aspects of those changes is that statistical standards have been more or less broken. That means the 300-game winner has become extinct, and that a certain type of player who doesn't hit for power has been left behind. There aren't many guys like Wade Boggs out there any more, and perhaps that hasn't helped the game's popularity with the public. Food for thought, at the very least. </p><p>The people behind this book have done a lot of work on fielding statistics over the years, and have picked the year's best again. Fielding probably gets more coverage here than anything else. It's obviously well-researched material, written by smart people.</p><p>There's a catch here, though, and it's worth noting. This is a rather short book, and technical in spots. So it's not going to take long to read this, particular if you find yourself skimming over some stories because they are a little hard to follow. </p><p>Is "The Bill James Handbook: Walk-Off Edition" worth $24.95 to you? Each reader will have to make that determination. If baseball is one of the biggest parts of your life, then you might enjoy this. Less rabid readers who prefer information on current teams and seasons might be willing to waiting for the Baseball Prospectus annual, which is always a favorite in this space.</p><p><b>Three stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0879467509/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> <br /></span></p><p><i>Be notified of new books in this space via X.com @WDX2BB.</i> <br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-73864829058062142952024-01-31T12:46:00.001-05:002024-01-31T12:46:13.013-05:00Review: The Formula (2024)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinchI3M195tWi5e1Q-_FbXPyX9tdH0UcwJ2iq-ldtCCDJty1a_iXG0pVaMyt52wyURWk3ZEJxZ3-cjdhXDTnX4TZtdm49bV7hLnNMFYOkD_GZDOlGEL-ZSdSD-sU2S8JVlvh4e1tSz38CS-gpQYrssyhqqC5wcQuWmhoqcMZAJFnXStgn8NOyqeeNPSzSu/s500/013124.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="331" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinchI3M195tWi5e1Q-_FbXPyX9tdH0UcwJ2iq-ldtCCDJty1a_iXG0pVaMyt52wyURWk3ZEJxZ3-cjdhXDTnX4TZtdm49bV7hLnNMFYOkD_GZDOlGEL-ZSdSD-sU2S8JVlvh4e1tSz38CS-gpQYrssyhqqC5wcQuWmhoqcMZAJFnXStgn8NOyqeeNPSzSu/w265-h400/013124.jpg" width="265" /></a></b></div><b>By Joshua Robinson & Jonathan Clegg</b><p></p><p>For years, Formula 1 auto racing held a very small niche in the American sports scene. Yes, enthusiasts knew that the sport was popular around the world, particularly in Europe. Admittedly, watching the annual race on Monaco was something of a curiosity, thanks to the unique nature of the course. But the Grand Prix circuit took a back seat (sorry) to Indy cars and NASCAR events for the most part on this side of the Atlantic. Champion drivers weren't well known unless they made a stop in Indianapolis for the month of May. </p><p>All of that has changed in the past few years. Formula 1 racing has boomed in the United States in the past few years. The races are on television (ESPN) constantly now, and a documentary series on Netflix has proven to be a great way to collect publicity and fans. </p><p>The transformation probably left some people here interested in the history of this particular divisions of the sport of auto racing. Joshua Robinson and Jonathan Clegg are here to fill in that gap with the book, "The Formula." And they have a great story to tell.</p><p>The authors offer something of a course on the business side of the Grand Prix circuit. If this sounds like it could be a little dry, well, don't worry. Robinson and Clegg really made the characters come alive. It's an international cast with great stories involved. </p><p>Heck, Bernie Eccelstone could be a book all by himself. This former driver took over financial control of a team on the circuit, which led to him buying the television rights to the series, which led to him taking over control of the entire Formula 1 operation ... which made him very rich. Some of that money was lost in 2023, when a tax fraud conviction cost him more than 800 million dollars. </p><p>The book offers one key insight into the sport that is a valuable tip for the uninitiated. Why does it seem that Formula 1 teams have stretches where they just dominate the competition, race after race? It turns out that it has a lot to do with the rules. While there are pages and pages of regulations about how the cars are designed and built, it seems that designers are constantly looking for ways to bend those regulations in a way that couldn't be called outright cheating. Perhaps the tires are made of a new material, or the car design leads to more downforce that keeps the vehicle on the road at higher speeds. </p><p>That can lead to a bit of an advantage, and that's important in a sport when a second per lap can be a huge edge in the competition. A team runs off some wins, and the rest of the field than either copies that change or the rules are rewritten to level the playing field again. Then the process starts all over again. </p><p>A couple of fabled moments in the history of the series receive plenty of attention too. One centered on the time a driver was ordered to crash his car into a wall so that his teammate could take advantage of the yellow flag and move up in the field. The other concerned the time when a ruling on where lapped cars would be placed on a restart would determine the outcome of a season-long championship. Those may be well-known to longtime fans, but they are amazing moments for the more casual reader. </p><p>Robinson and Clegg do a fine job of telling this as a human story for the most part. In other words, you won't get lost in the text even if you don't know the difference between a carburetor and wheel axle. They also give plenty of details of how Liberty Media came in as the new owners of the circuit and essentially revolutionized how the sport was presented to the public, which is greatly responsible for the current boom in interest (and, naturally, revenues).</p><p>You don't have to be a gearhead to enjoy "The Formula," which is a first-class job. You'll want to give it the checkered flag when you're done.</p><p><b>Five stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0063318628/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""><i>Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com @WDX2BB.</i></span> <br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-28879135947224777182024-01-26T12:01:00.003-05:002024-01-26T12:04:23.938-05:00Review: The Real Hoosiers (2024)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1RlPpfTX1nbsGhszYLcqq8xi_4uyPOSycklm68E4B0VGOOtnnAcauDM16eCLg4yTLUHH4u2NSj82OITn9V0sZgSzhithKGoUEEXcdryqdrsDvxmgt-afJN0u9MFM8CLzlVyHkqqi6uPeINRqyH7Q32DDVUJXLbGrSyhLqpcw2ScYEC1U_jcbsFeXftQZZ/s1500/012624.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="994" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1RlPpfTX1nbsGhszYLcqq8xi_4uyPOSycklm68E4B0VGOOtnnAcauDM16eCLg4yTLUHH4u2NSj82OITn9V0sZgSzhithKGoUEEXcdryqdrsDvxmgt-afJN0u9MFM8CLzlVyHkqqi6uPeINRqyH7Q32DDVUJXLbGrSyhLqpcw2ScYEC1U_jcbsFeXftQZZ/w265-h400/012624.jpg" width="265" /></a></b></div><b>By Jack McCallum</b><p></p><p>The 1950s certainly were an interesting period for high school basketball in Indiana.</p><p>If you are a hoops fan, you've certainly heard of the team from Milan High School. It won the state title in 1954, despite coming from a very small town with the corresponding small population of students who could potentially play for the team. It was a story ready made for Hollywood - and Hollywood came up with a popular movie, "Hoosiers," in 1986 that was "inspired" on Milan's championship run. (If truth be told, Milan was considered a very good team entering the season, so it wasn't really that much of a Cinderella story.) </p><p>Along the way, Milan defeated Crispus Attucks High School of Indianapolis. That turned out to be a mere speed bump for the Tigers, who blasted their way to winning the next two state championships. As Jack McCallum points out in his book, "The Real Hoosiers," Milan might have been the most dramatic story, but Attacks provided the more significant tale in the larger scheme of things.</p><p>That's because the Tigers were the first all-Black team in the entire United States to win a state high school title. In the process, the team opened up some possibilities for the sport. For much of the previous years, basketball had been an over-coached, don't-run, run-the-plays sport. Attacks did it differently. The Tigers were full of athletes who could run and jump, and they played that way. </p><p>The result was one-sided. Attucks lost one game in two years, and ran its way to two state titles in 1955 and 1956. Of course, it helped to have a superstar on their side, and the Tigers certainly had one of those in Oscar Robertson. You might remember him as the man who once averaged a triple-double in the NBA before anyone noticed that it should have been a big deal, and was a perennial All-Star. Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan might have overshadowed "The Big O" in terms of publicity about basketball's best all-time guards these days, but Oscar could play. Check out the videos of him on You Tube if you don't believe it. It was his game and his basketball, and he seemed to be letting the others play once in a while. No wonder John Wooden - himself a superstar guard from Indiana back in the day - once said that Robertson could have made the jump from high school all the way to the pros. That's quite a statement for someone playing in 1956.</p><p>As you'd expect from the description of those two championship seasons, there wasn't a great deal of drama along the way. Attucks had a few close games, but not very many. They took care of business, and moved on to the next contest. In fact, the team members realized that the officiating in that era was not going to do African Americans any favors, so it was to their advantage to put the game away early and not allow a single call determine their fate.</p><p>Even so, McCallum finds plenty to write about here. Indiana in the 1950s was an interesting place in terms of race relations. The state had those Midwestern roots that left the people there somewhat reserved. But Indiana also was the birthplace of the Ku Klux Klan, and it was called America's most northern Southern state at one point. </p><p>Crispus Attucks High School was itself something of a monument to those racial pains. It was built in the Black part of town, as integrating the schools was a little too much too soon for Indianapolis. There were all sorts of snubs along the way, even dealing with fears about how "that part" of the city might celebrate a simple high school championship. Remember, the 1955 championship was won only months after the Brown v. Board of Education decision by the U.S. Supreme Court. </p><p>The research is first-rate, with plenty of voices supplied either directly or through quotes from other sources. Interestingly, Robertson turned down the chance to talk about those days. He did his business and moved on, which sort of describes his approach to life. But Oscar did write an autobiography and has given a few interviews, so he's certainly represented here. </p><p>McCallum always was the proverbial good read when working as the main basketball writer at <i>Sports Illustrated</i>. He was always good at turning a phrase and making the reader smile. McCallum still has those skills, but this shows he can handle the more serious stuff as well.</p><p>"The Real Hoosiers" does justice to the team and the time. You can't ask for more than that in a book like this. Well done. </p><p><b>Five stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0306830752/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p><i>Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com @WDX2BB. <br /></i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-56425095658523869752024-01-18T11:41:00.001-05:002024-01-26T12:01:32.531-05:00Review: Making Waves (2016)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Al77dX1BhaKv_1Tz4f1HuggdfsKH8aofnLboU_bzRz0Rqbd-qzMIEWVluz6QFrTTGrEHbEbes_VCHp8_MrkNmwhVMyaGs6REOVerSBnxKDfwtJzkmVJi3NCVoc4MgYQ1qRSNofPGOvd2FW28jPKrk_ZvaqLy0uM5akarkuDjDDk0NbHINsVXHjS-5S1K/s1000/011824.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="676" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Al77dX1BhaKv_1Tz4f1HuggdfsKH8aofnLboU_bzRz0Rqbd-qzMIEWVluz6QFrTTGrEHbEbes_VCHp8_MrkNmwhVMyaGs6REOVerSBnxKDfwtJzkmVJi3NCVoc4MgYQ1qRSNofPGOvd2FW28jPKrk_ZvaqLy0uM5akarkuDjDDk0NbHINsVXHjS-5S1K/w270-h400/011824.jpg" width="270" /></a></b></div><b>By Shirley Babashoff with Chris Epting</b><p></p><p>It's unusual to review a book that's more than five years old in this space. The reason is that one of suppliers of books, NetGalley, included it in its offerings recently, and the publication sounded interesting from a distance. </p><p>It was interesting at close range too. In other words, "Making Waves" is worth your time even now.</p><p>Shirley Babashoff should be remembered as one of the greatest swimmers in American history. She won just about everything in sight at a variety of distances leading up to the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. With Mark Spitz's seven gold medals in swimming not too far back in the rear-view mirror, there was talk that Babashoff could be something of a successor to him as America's swimming superstar. </p><p>But during the build-up to the '76 Games, a problem was lurking for Babashoff and the American team. It came in the form of the squad from East Germany. The women's team was improving its times at a rate beyond comprehension. It didn't take much effort to Babashoff to notice that something was wrong - one look at the East Germans showed their muscles were getting larger and their voices were getting deeper. It wouldn't have been a surprise if they needed to shave each morning. Today we'd instantly look at steroids and other drugs as the causes of the changes, but the 1970s were more of an innocent era in that sense.</p><p>Babashoff performed spectacularly well by her own high standards at the Games, but for the most part couldn't keep up with the East German machine. When she went public with her views that something wasn't quite right with all of this, she was criticized for being a bad sport and picked up the nickname of "Surly Shirley." Babashoff did have the satisfaction of serving as the anchor of a relay team that had a perfect race to win the gold medal.</p><p>Babashoff went off to live the rest of her life, admittedly without the hoopla that would have come had she won multiple gold medals. But once the Iron Curtain fell in 1989, news about an East German drug program for athletes started to leak out. Eventually, those women were revealed to be either guinea pigs or pharmacies - pick your metaphor - and suffered physical damage that lasts until this day. </p><p>Babashoff gets to take a few well-deserved "I told you so" moments in telling the story in the book. She's still a little bitter than the media, etc. didn't make more of a fuss about the East Germans back in the day, although in fairness it wasn't exactly easy to investigate anything going on in the Communist bloc in that day. In addition, Olympic officials weren't exactly inquisitive in those days. </p><p>It hasn't been an easy life for Babashoff. The problems began as a child, with parents who had a strict Russian heritage and never did fit in too well in America. Shirley's father was a sexual predator, and her descriptions of that era are very painful to read; it's difficult to imagine how hard it was to write. Her only refuge was in the pool, and her drive mixed with athletic ability made her a champion every step of the way. </p><p>Obviously Babashoff's post-Olympic life would have been different if she had brought home a bunch of gold medals from Montreal. But she eventually started working for the Postal Service, and seemed content with her life as of 2016 when the book was written.</p><p>While there have been attempts to rewrite history by stripping the East Germans of their gold medals retroactively (and such actions have been taken before), the International Olympic Committee has chosen not to take that step in this case. That's too bad, because that wrong can still be righted. Babashoff did receive the Olympic Order, the IOC's highest honor, but that's not the same as having those gold medals in the safe. <br /></p><p>"Making Waves" is something of a mixture, then. It's part victory lap and part a story about the search for ultimate justice. The book goes by quite quickly, and it doesn't get bogged down in swimming minutia, so a general audience will find it interesting. Don't let any more time go before you get to it.</p><p><b>Five stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1595800875/sportsbookreview." target="_blank">Amazon.com.</a> (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p></p><p><i>Be notified of new posts on this site on X.com via @WDX2BB.</i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-40449295313420319592024-01-15T21:36:00.000-05:002024-01-15T21:36:08.895-05:00Review: The Speed Game (2020)<p><span style="font-size: small;"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9RCWRNx_SnXydiIBTV5KfhcDXzGLMKwGejaV-pqCtOtdb9H3joZI5QtfqrewNYq0ir5P8vgxZ33l847tVz-3iHYYCwXUC3klnW3mTszPucUWsYf5LPMIVsDmAdU6oNtLYh4c_rAMYM7ufJSgf-cqo6yJqm77nuoBsU_-RhX3qUHUMKTejm7xDfUbU3iiC/s400/011524.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="267" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9RCWRNx_SnXydiIBTV5KfhcDXzGLMKwGejaV-pqCtOtdb9H3joZI5QtfqrewNYq0ir5P8vgxZ33l847tVz-3iHYYCwXUC3klnW3mTszPucUWsYf5LPMIVsDmAdU6oNtLYh4c_rAMYM7ufJSgf-cqo6yJqm77nuoBsU_-RhX3qUHUMKTejm7xDfUbU3iiC/w268-h400/011524.jpeg" width="268" /></a></b></span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><b>By Paul Westhead</b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Paul Westhead had quite a long career in basketball. He held a number of jobs in the college and professional versions, reaching some admirable heights and hitting a few stunning lows. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">That makes him a good candidate to tell his life story when it comes it comes to roundball. He's done exactly that in his book, "The Speed Game," which suffers from its relatively small size. <br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">I followed Westhead for quite a bit of his ride. He was a college coach at LaSalle in the late 1970s, and his team used to come to Buffalo every so often when I was a radio reporter. Westhead had some decent players and teams, and seemed quite sharp in interviews, so he turned out to be memorable. I even saw him at a small Catholic high school one night, watching a potential recruit while chatting with then St. Bonaventure coach Jim Satalin. Neither landed Mark Rzemek, who went to Canisius. I kept an eye on him from a distance after that when I could. <br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Then Westhead received a couple of unexpected breaks. He left LaSalle to take a job as an assistant coach with the Los Angeles Lakers. When the head coach, Jack McKinney, was in a bad bicycle accident in the fall of 1979, the Lakers needed a coach, and fast. Westhead was about the only logical choice, even if he had very limited experience in matters of the NBA. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">That Laker team had plenty of star power - and plenty of egos, but somehow he guided Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, and Company to an NBA title. Life was pretty good for a while, but sooner rather than latter Westhead got caught up in some of the egos involved with that organization, and unexpectedly (to him) exited a bit more than a year after winning the title.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Part of the problem in Los Angeles was that Westhead had an idea for a brand-new approach to basketball. To put it in ancient terms, he wanted to speed the game up to something like 78 revolutions per minute on the record player, while the rest of the world literally was playing at 45 or 33 rpm. Innovators always have it difficult, but Westhead was crazy enough to think it could work. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">It did work, more or less, but it took a few more stops for him to make his point. It came about 10 years after the title when he was coach at Loyola Marymount. The idea was to have a fast break on every offensive play, taking the first available shot after a few seconds. If the other team didn't want to play that fast on offense - and it usually didn't - Westhead's team would put on a full-court press to increase the tempo. The scores were usually in the 100s, and frequently the other team would run out of gas along the way. The comparison that comes to mind is with "Mouse" Davis, a football coach who used the so-called "Run and Shoot" offense that was very wide open and high-scoring. <br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">By the 1989-90 season, the Lions had accumulated such players as Hank Gathers and Bo Kimble, who were perfect for that system. LMU won a lot more than it lost, and accumulated some honors and records along the way. By the arrival of the postseason, no one wanted to play the Lions. But then Gathers collapsed during the conference tournament, and died that night. Loyola Marymount still almost made the Final Four, but fell short against UNLV. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">I count 12 jobs that Westhead had after leaving the Lakers. He even won a WNBA championship with the Phoenix Mercury in 2007. The veteran coach never lost faith in his system, even if it didn't always work out for him.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">As you'd expect, Westhead is an interesting man who has had quite a career. He has some good stories to tell, particularly about the two-plus years with the Lakers. But the book has a couple of flaws to it. The first is that the hard cover version came out in 2020. That was 40 years after the Lakers' championship and six years after his last job (women's basketball coach at Oregon). It probably should have been written sooner so that more people could relate to the stories. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Second, a lot of his coaching experiences go unreported. This checks in at under 200 pages, and several years and jobs are simply ignored. The uptempo system is the star of half of the book, not Westhead. So it feels incomplete. There was room for more. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">"The Speed Game" is a pleasant enough if brief read, and basketball scholars certainly will enjoy one man's attempt at a revolution. Just don't expect much more than that. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Three stars</b></span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1496233123/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. </span>(As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;"><i>Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com @WDX2BB.</i> </span><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-52912432879052843842024-01-13T13:28:00.005-05:002024-01-13T13:29:36.019-05:00Review: A Whole Other Game (2024)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBJwhvCOZMExOc4biiQJvHUvz0ybOmkuDQWAlukcT5YnWRygbp0lhghWNGMypb7oSmA6zx-Jdc9Z1wyUCk5aeo1CTZcovs3P5PaNMfSNfOl4GQMVpn6i7prNkWLOYSyn6DSJspfais7gOEbMRG3K4yzJCLBiMMh2vXpsk9WGqWgmGpd3JilN09IZGWf1m8/s1500/011324.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBJwhvCOZMExOc4biiQJvHUvz0ybOmkuDQWAlukcT5YnWRygbp0lhghWNGMypb7oSmA6zx-Jdc9Z1wyUCk5aeo1CTZcovs3P5PaNMfSNfOl4GQMVpn6i7prNkWLOYSyn6DSJspfais7gOEbMRG3K4yzJCLBiMMh2vXpsk9WGqWgmGpd3JilN09IZGWf1m8/w266-h400/011324.jpg" width="266" /></a></b></div><b>By Neil Longley</b><p></p><p>The title of Neil Longley's book doesn't tell you much about what's inside. "A Whole New Game" could be about practically anything, and not just about sports.</p><p>However, the subtitle does a better of describing the context. "Economics, politics, and the transformation of the business of hockey in Canada" sounds like we're going to have some serious discussions about hockey on the pages, and indeed we do.</p><p>The author seems well qualified for such discussions. He's a retired professor at the management school of the University of Massachusetts, and has a PhD in economics from Washington State University. Longley also has done some writing about sports economics. Maybe the arrival of the Vegas Golden Knights inspired this Las Vegas resident to do some thinking about hockey in regard to Canada. </p><p>So you'd expect something well done here, and the good Professor has come through with some unique and valuable information in his relatively short book.</p><p>There are five different essays of sorts here that cover some specific areas. Describing them briefly isn't too fair because of the scope of the writing, but it will have to do here. We have the story of how the Montreal Canadiens became just another team in the NHL. There's the matter of how French-Canadians are doing in hockey as a whole. The story of pro hockey in Alberta is examined, as its two NHL teams' success seem to mirror what the economy and politics of the province have done. There's a chapter on how the composition of National Hockey League rosters changed starting with the expansion of the NHL in 1967 and the existence of the World Hockey Association in the 1970s. Finally, there's the matter of junior hockey and how it used cheap labor and monopoly status to become a much bigger financial enterprise. </p><p>This is all mixed together with the culture and politics of Canada at the time. The first two chapters obviously share some information because they are intertwined. The Canadiens have been a symbol of French Canada since the 1940s or so; Ken Dryden once pointed out that Maurice "Rocket" Richard was the first player of that group to become a super star and thus created a lot of pride in the community. The French speakers always have been in the minority in Canada, and the efforts by those people to have their voices heard have been a subplot in Canadian politics from time to time for a few decades. The Canadiens went on to put together one of the greatest dynasty in sports in the years after World War II. They were helped by a system that allowed them to mine the best players Quebec had to offer. But when the universal draft was phased in during the 1960s, that pipeline eventually dried up. It was somewhat inevitable at that point that the Canadiens would become just another team at some point, and they essentially have been exactly that since 1980 or so. Longley also reveals how French-Canadian players have found more or a home in the United States than they do in other parts of Canada. </p><p>The chapter on junior hockey in Canada might be the most infuriating. Way back when, NHL teams used to sponsor junior teams as a way to tie up future talent. But those sponsorships died off once the league went past six teams. But junior leagues now have a draft of talented 15-year-olds, forcing players to move hundreds of miles in some cases to play hockey at that level. What's more, they aren't really paid anything at all, even though Longley's research indicates that if they received half of the team's revenues (as NHL teams must give to players as part of the Collective Bargaining Agreement), they'd earn something like $100,000 each. As a group, it sure sounds as if the junior players need the equivalent of Marvin Miller to level the playing field. If college athletes can start getting paid indirectly, there must be room for changing the system in junior hockey.</p><p>And every so often, the book drops a very surprising bit of information. For example, Longley reveals that there were more Canadian-born players in the NHL in 1970 than there are today ... even though there were either 12 or 14 teams (depending on what time of the year you count) in the NHL then, and 32 now. <br /></p><p>Admittedly, this is not for every taste - even among sports readers. The writing leans to the academic rather than the popular style as you'd expect. There's a little duplication of facts along the way. The descriptions of regional politics in a particular era in Canada, while no doubt necessary, may leave some a little cold.</p><p>Still, "A Whole Other Game" makes some conclusions that are worthwhile and yet don't pop up in the morning newspaper. Longley is after bigger points, and he makes them quite well. Those looking for some wider perspective on hockey and Canada will find plenty of ponder here.</p><p><b>Four stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1771623802/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p><i>Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com @WDX2BB.</i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-66638458919465583892024-01-10T11:24:00.001-05:002024-01-10T11:24:25.911-05:00Review: Boston Ball (2023)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOLq3_r0vM5ySRhQOlNO229SgJV1QejSiHdeSCUD3XEvmaKhps0ezYqImm4Or-4C0GcVg8HYvHcldo47_tm48JQO1mIqRKZyiEPPfuJkFaXxMYPJMuz3YJmYDqjHNhDjTLG9e6mPgWBF5N1p5yhCh3LEstXdl8s5nglfJPxwYZOJdDV66VOGYtvw6rS_b7/s1500/011024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOLq3_r0vM5ySRhQOlNO229SgJV1QejSiHdeSCUD3XEvmaKhps0ezYqImm4Or-4C0GcVg8HYvHcldo47_tm48JQO1mIqRKZyiEPPfuJkFaXxMYPJMuz3YJmYDqjHNhDjTLG9e6mPgWBF5N1p5yhCh3LEstXdl8s5nglfJPxwYZOJdDV66VOGYtvw6rS_b7/w266-h400/011024.jpg" width="266" /></a></b></div><b>By Clayton Trutor</b><p></p><p>Here's a bit of a history lesson about college basketball in the Northeast, a necessary ingredient before diving into Clayton Trutor's book, "Boston Ball."</p><p>It starts with the fact that college sports there were relatively decentralized in that part of the country until relatively recently. </p><p>In much of the country, the big state schools dominated the landscape. There are other colleges besides those universities in Alabama, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Colorado, for example, but the big ones attract all of the attention - particularly in sports. Who played in the championship game in college football in January, 2024? Michigan and Washington, two institutions that fit the description nicely. </p><p>But that's not true in the Northeast. The states are smaller up there, and there is a tradition of private schools. Penn State and Connecticut are the exceptions to that, although Rutgers is trying hard to move into that territory in New Jersey. The big state school in New York probably is the University at Buffalo, at least in football and basketball. </p><p>Just as an example, here are some teams that played Syracuse in men's basketball in 1976-77: Colgate, Boston College, Canisius, Penn State, Cornell, Fordham, American, Buffalo, St. John's, Temple, Pittsburgh, Northeastern, West Virginia, St. Bonaventure and Niagara. Some of those teams have been quite good in the past decade or two, but some haven't.</p><p>That all changed in 1979. The Big East Conference was formed in an attempt to link the region's top basketball programs. The idea was to play good games in big arenas before big crowds .... that, oh by the way, was ready-made for television. It worked. </p><p>But while the Big East proved its point relatively quickly, it took some time for everything else to settle down. There were still some good teams floating around in the East in late 1970s and most of the 1980s. While the Big East was starting to grab the best players, there was enough flux in the rest of the sport to make winning more than possible - if you had the right coach to collect the talent overlooked by the Big Shots.</p><p>As it turned out, the city of Boston collected three of those coaches in the same era. Jim Calhoun landed at Northeastern, Rick Pitino went from a Syracuse assistant's job to head coach at Boston University, and Gary Williams landed at Boston College - one of the Big East schools, but not a powerhouse at the time. The three were considered up and coming coaches, but few could have predicted that all of them would land in the Basketball Hall of Fame.</p><p>But that's what they did. Trutor tells their story in great detail in this book.</p><p>The author gets good marks for researching the subject. He interviewed two of the three coaches that play the major roles of the story, and spoke with many others from that era. Take it from someone who covered Canisius and Niagara basketball during the early 1980s - that was pretty good basketball back then, and coaches like Calhoun and Boston's Mike Jarvis were always interesting in interviews. And since the level of play was more or less the Big East and Everyone Else, it was relatively easy to find some good players who had been overlooked. It was good fun to read some of the names mentioned here, even if they weren't future NBA players. </p><p>But this comes with some drawbacks. Trutor gives a great deal of detail to games and names from about 40 years or so ago. That's going to have trouble finding an audience, particularly since a relatively small audience followed the teams and their players in that era. Meanwhile, the author organizes the book in a slightly odd way. We ping-pong from Calhoun to Pitino to Williams through the first 15 chapters. They don't cover the same time period, and their stories only occasionally overlap. Sometimes it's easy to get confused with the time line of a particular story.</p><p>For those who do remember those days in the late 1970s and in the 1980s in college basketball fondly, this will strike a nice chord. But it's easy to wonder if a book concentrating more on the three coaches might have worked a little better at this point. <br /></p><p><b>Three stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1496233352/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p><i>Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com @WDX2BB.</i> <br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-17851753155405935702023-12-31T09:57:00.004-05:002023-12-31T09:57:44.717-05:00Review: Star With a Broken Heart (2020)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjef4Qprln0J0RTTKb536orCYR1B8aTHL186qJRVmGXmLlgx2hb7KdL2QsL3b30gZz_woKK67tDoBQEPfYJvALcHqwRZgmqce1ZtEnexRwtWl3PLVto701IJjX0RQj2NFjhAgucbCmIeGHewZJitjzANyqIB1-Ac2nGs3rP4F-k9h_Fit3gAcoFQvlIvGId/s1649/123123.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1649" data-original-width="1184" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjef4Qprln0J0RTTKb536orCYR1B8aTHL186qJRVmGXmLlgx2hb7KdL2QsL3b30gZz_woKK67tDoBQEPfYJvALcHqwRZgmqce1ZtEnexRwtWl3PLVto701IJjX0RQj2NFjhAgucbCmIeGHewZJitjzANyqIB1-Ac2nGs3rP4F-k9h_Fit3gAcoFQvlIvGId/w288-h400/123123.jpg" width="288" /></a></b></div><b>By Ernie DiGregorio</b><p></p><p>The story of Ernie DiGregorio's book, "Star With a Broken Heart," might be as interesting as the book itself, based on a limited amount of information. </p><p>When I was writing a book on the Buffalo Braves of the NBA (Ernie D played for that team), I found a reference or two to a book that DiGregorio had written. A search on line for it proved futile though - although I was prompted to try again when basketball writer Peter Vecsey said he had a copy of it. Still, no luck.</p><p>My Braves' book came out without the help of using that as a reference source, and DiGregorio even came to Buffalo for a launch party. (Thanks, Ernie.) Shortly after that event, the announcement came from Providence College that it was selling "Star With a Broken Heart."</p><p>Naturally, I immediately ordered a copy, and it came in relatively short order. (If you are curious, it's not available on Amazon.com.) The book held a few more surprises. It was written in 2020, although the copy that arrived proudly announced "First Edition" on the front cover. There's no sign of a publisher within the book's pages, so I guess we can assume it was self-published. </p><p>That's all rather odd, but it's nice to have Ernie's take on the events of his life on paper. It was quite a ride for a while, and the book centers on Ernie's relationship with Marvin Barnes and Dave Gavitt. </p><p>DiGregorio came out of North Providence, a six-footer who was an absolute wizard when it came to passing the basketball. There were always doubters along the way, but he kept climbing the ladder of success in the game. DiGregorio eventually landed at Providence College to play at the next level, and it was there where he met two people who were instrumental in his success.</p><p>One was the coach, Dave Gavitt, who achieved a string of successes during a career in basketball. Not only were Gavitt's teams usually good, but he also was the key member in the creation of the Big East Conference and played a part in the growth of basketball nationally and internationally. The other was another player from Providence, Marvin Barnes. He was a freakishly talented big man who came out of difficult circumstances to become one of the nation's best players. </p><p>DiGregorio's relationship with those two men is at the center of the book. It proved to be immediately beneficial to all of them, as Providence reached the Final Four in basketball in 1973. The Friars had hopes of knocking off UCLA that year - admittedly a tall order - but an injury to Barnes in the national semifinal essentially ended those hopes. Along the way, DiGregorio and Barnes became very close friends - an odd couple if there ever was one. Both men relied on Gavitt for advice while they were in college and beyond. </p><p>Both players reached the pros and had some success before their careers were derailed. For DiGregorio, it was a knee injury that he suffered early in his second season. For Barnes, it was drug addition. The big man battled those demons for the rest of his life, and Ernie D did his best to provide support. (He also knew how to make an assist.) But Barnes' victories proved to be temporary, and he died too young in 2014. </p><p>By the way, DiGregorio doesn't spend much time on the rest of his basketball life. His time in the NBA receives a few chapters, and there's nothing about what happened after he left basketball. <br /></p><p>There are some problems with "Star With a Broken Heart" that probably could have been solved with a coauthor. A few facts are wrong along the way, some material is duplicated, and a handful of the sentences don't make a great deal of sense. With those "buyer beware" warnings in place, this comes across as having a nice, long personal conversation with DiGregorio. That means that you may wander a bit along along the way and some of the details don't quite work, but hearing his stories - especially about this Providence trio - will keep you interested from start to finish. </p><p>In other words, "Star With a Broken Heart" ought to keep the interest of anyone interested in that era of Providence basketball. That no doubt was the goal, and it's a success in that sense. </p><p><b>Three stars</b></p><p>Learn more about <a href="https://www.golocalprov.com/sports/legendary-pc-friar-ernie-digregorio-release-new-book-star-with-a-broken-hea" target="_blank">this book</a>.</p><p><i>Be notified of new posts on X.com via @WDX2BB. </i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-69874535169031317822023-12-25T13:36:00.001-05:002023-12-25T13:36:39.957-05:00Review: Bingo (2022)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTBN_tA5RDsaj8JfXk9UCGB3NQ4A7Sb2pSnw4ON8ZO-9wbrpuU67mzVBugRfrAabUi6l0narcKlCi4Rr0zl5gwfb_fm74lF1TSq3X85QQwG65EECl4B9BIAGhGXEUyow6qYL0R4v67WO6wETo4qzOjSrAZr44y8r7hUztiWG2akSZ-D1wH97M6IOZhWhsk/s1500/122523.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1012" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTBN_tA5RDsaj8JfXk9UCGB3NQ4A7Sb2pSnw4ON8ZO-9wbrpuU67mzVBugRfrAabUi6l0narcKlCi4Rr0zl5gwfb_fm74lF1TSq3X85QQwG65EECl4B9BIAGhGXEUyow6qYL0R4v67WO6wETo4qzOjSrAZr44y8r7hUztiWG2akSZ-D1wH97M6IOZhWhsk/w270-h400/122523.jpg" width="270" /></a></b></div><b>By Ralph Lawler with Chris Epting</b><p></p><p>Here's a tough basketball trivia question, at least for the good people in Buffalo:</p><p>Who succeeded Van Miller as the Voice of the Buffalo Braves?</p><p>Yes, it's a trick question. When the Braves moved to San Diego in 1978, Van stayed in Buffalo. Ralph Lawler picked up the microphone for the brand-new Clippers, and spent most of the next 40 years or so describing that team's play in San Diego and Los Angeles.</p><p>Lawler lasted until the age of 80 or so before finally retiring. It took him a few years, but eventually he came out with his life story in the form of "Bingo!" Yes, that was one of his catch phrases as a broadcaster. The book is another pleasant enough entry in the category of autobiographies from sports broadcasters. <br /></p><p>"The Voice of the Clippers" grew up in central Illinois, attending Bradley University. While he says he would have been quite content to be the broadcaster for the Braves for his entire lifetime, fate had other plans for him. He moved to Southern California, and except for a small detour to Philadelphia early in his career, stayed in the San Diego/Los Angeles area for the rest of his career. When the Clippers moved to Los Angeles, Lawler had the chance to follow them. </p><p>Now it's time to discuss the elephant in the room when it comes to the book and the Clippers. If you've followed the NBA for a few decades, you know that for most of that time, the Clippers have been mediocre at best and terrible at worst. They have never even reached the NBA Finals, let alone won a championship. It's almost as if someone in Buffalo put a curse on the team when they moved out of town; well, it wasn't me - although I might have thought of it at the time. </p><p>That fact dictates where the book goes for the most part. Usually such publications contain details of what championships are like, which offer good memories to the readers. But there's nothing like that here, thanks to decades of poor play. So Lawler, with the assist going to coauthor Chris Epting, has to go to other places to fill up the pages in the book.</p><p>As you'd expect, the topics range from funny things that happened on the air to in-person encounters with NBA personalities. It's all handled well enough. Some of the best ones concern Bill Walton, a Hall of Fame player and Lawler's partner on broadcasts for quite a while. It's fair to say that it's never boring to have Bill Walton as a friend. Walton even contributes an article for the book, as does Chris Paul and Doc Rivers. <br /></p><p>Lawler has some honest moments along the way, particularly when talking about the team. That certainly applies to "controversial" owner Donald Sterling. If you need more evidence that Sterling didn't have the slightest idea how to build a basketball team, there's some provided here. Sterling, as you might remember, was forced out of the league for some racist remarks that were recorded. The Clippers seem to be headed in the right direction now. They are getting their own arena (they've been sharing the Staples Center with the Lakers and Kings) in the near future, and have strong ownership. </p><p>There are a few typos that were contained in my Kindle version that probably should have been cleaned up. The Clippers were rarely good enough to gain national attention, and that probably hurt Lawler's chances at receiving a national profile in broadcasting. But he's received all sorts of honors in California, and he comes off here as a nice man who seems worthy of the praise.</p><p>In other words, you don't have to be a Clippers' fan to enjoy "Bingo!" - but it probably helps. It's a nice trip down Memory Lane for all concerned, and will work well for those who remember (and who are trying to forget) names like Michael Olowakandi. </p><p><b>Three stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1595801103/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p><i>(Follow Budd on X.com via @WDX2BB) </i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-83494522741428244912023-12-19T13:05:00.001-05:002023-12-19T13:07:27.234-05:00Review: Behind the Mask (2023)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-xievzMsrHe0jFbWgrJgL7enWjFhPr69nEPM0anoKseUl5vh_BRYJRuoDQ0FWyxq0kn_288O_SSZvAZs9_XxOGpki40LdIsBkiIABowTKpiAT35NDAg5yrzucQEGZ4x7ortq_GI0zwi4aqpT30gVIdoZ2oBHuPqxTMq7C2lBOhiyQBwQde9WrY2H7lJfN/s1500/121923.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="971" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-xievzMsrHe0jFbWgrJgL7enWjFhPr69nEPM0anoKseUl5vh_BRYJRuoDQ0FWyxq0kn_288O_SSZvAZs9_XxOGpki40LdIsBkiIABowTKpiAT35NDAg5yrzucQEGZ4x7ortq_GI0zwi4aqpT30gVIdoZ2oBHuPqxTMq7C2lBOhiyQBwQde9WrY2H7lJfN/w259-h400/121923.jpg" width="259" /></a></b></div><b>By Randi Druzin</b><p></p><p>Ah, goaltenders. They are a different breed. </p><p>They work under tremendous pressure, since their only job is to prevent something negative from happening. Goaltenders can't win a game, but they can sure lose it. And when a mistake is made, a red light comes on behind them, and thousands of people at the workplace react accordingly. </p><p>It takes a certain type of person to want that sort of job, and that's why there are references to a "goaltenders union." Many are a little, well, different in the personality department.</p><p>Toronto writer Randi Druzin already had some success at mining this particular area with a 2013 book called "Between the Pipes." But that look at 12 goalies hardly was the last word on the subject, as more have come along since then while others no doubt just missed the cut the first time around. So Druzin is back with another professional job called "Behind the Mask." </p><p>The tough part from the start, no doubt, is deciding who should be included. Druzin went back into the 1950s and 1960s to include such greats as Terry Sawchuk, Glenn Hall and Jacques Plante in addition to more "modern" goalies like Dominik Hasek, Martin Brodeur and Patrick Roy. </p><p>Here are the 12 goalies she picked for Book Two: Roger Crozier, Rogie Vachon, Gerry Cheevers, Ed Giacomin, Tony Esposito, Vladislav Tretiak, Mike Palmateer, Grant Fuhr, Roberto Luongo, Marc-Andre Fleury, Henrick Lundqvist, and Carey Price. It's hard to quarrel with too many of those choices. Most are either in the Hockey Hall of Fame, going to be in the Hockey Hall of Fame, or are/should be at least a strong candidate for such honors. It could be argued that Mike Palmateer might be the outlier in the list, but we know that hockey fans in Toronto do buy books. </p><p>All 12 goalies receive a good-sized profile. The articles take up an average of 20 pages of text, with Crozier's lasting 14 pages and Fleury's going for 29 pages. That's enough space to allow more than just hockey to appear, as the individual personalities are allowed to come through. That's a particularly good idea in the case of someone like Cheevers, who was quite a character during his long career on and off ice ice. </p><p>Points go to Druzin for research. She hits a variety of sources, and interviewed many of the subjects. That helps the profiles to remain interesting all the way through. She also can have some fun with turning a phrase along the way, which is a nice part of the story.</p><p>"Behind the Mask" is not a book for advanced hockey historians, since there probably isn't too much that is surprising to such students of the game. But it's not designed for that audience. Those who simply are seeking a full introduction into some top goalies in history ought to find that quite satisfactory in meeting that goal.</p><p><b>Four stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0BYRKLGNT/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p><i>Follow Budd on X.com via @WDX2BB.</i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-56520882632787131862023-12-10T15:03:00.003-05:002023-12-10T15:05:29.481-05:00Review: Kingdom on Fire (2024)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuSwc7sXx7szdbaaRNN00JK56BxteMoU7eBl40PHBKGg8-JRY8-96vnlcWkJ-ifY-taI29kGWVXAk4rVWQF2lqX93sAy7s1RAagAUKMnDNCw548QOnV4m2lpEgCDGKXx8hGZKGa58g3821hW63iZ48j9noCzTIoqkH_6dSTcTDqVCMSs-PQ9SPnhAWwK9v/s1500/121023.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="994" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuSwc7sXx7szdbaaRNN00JK56BxteMoU7eBl40PHBKGg8-JRY8-96vnlcWkJ-ifY-taI29kGWVXAk4rVWQF2lqX93sAy7s1RAagAUKMnDNCw548QOnV4m2lpEgCDGKXx8hGZKGa58g3821hW63iZ48j9noCzTIoqkH_6dSTcTDqVCMSs-PQ9SPnhAWwK9v/w265-h400/121023.jpg" width="265" /></a></b></div><b>By Scott Howard-Cooper</b><p></p><p>I figured I'd meet the demographic to read and enjoy Scott Howard-Cooper's book on the UCLA basketball dynasty. I was a fan of the Bruins in my youth (I decided to pick a team to follow in 1966, and chose wisely), and it was a nice pairing with my interest in the Boston Celtics in that same era. In addition, I just wrote a basketball book on the NBA of the fascinating 1970s, and some of the names overlap.</p><p>Still, "Kingdom on Fire" topped of all my expectations. The story of that compelling dynasty era is fully told here, as tales familiar and surprising come crashing down like waves on the reader. There are plenty of names here, but three stand out: John Wooden, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton. <br /></p><p>UCLA had won national championships in 1964 and 1965 under coach Wooden, but the two titles feel like a different era here. Howard-Cooper essentially starts with a fellow named Lew Alcindor, who became known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The high school sensation was perhaps most heralded prospect to come out of high school when he graduated from Power Memorial in 1965, and the recruiting battle was unprecedented and intense. UCLA somewhat unexpectedly won the right to have Alcindor on its team; Wooden rarely recruited east of the Mississippi, let alone in New York. </p><p>The pressure on Alcindor started right away, when he led the freshmen team to a win over the top-ranked and defending national champion varsity in a preseason contest. That pressure never really went away until the final win of his career wrapped up the third of three straight championships in 1969 (and for the school, five out of six). There wasn't a ton of joy in winning games that everyone assumed you'd win, but in hindsight Alcindor and Wooden probably handled it as well as it could be done.</p><p>By the end of the 1960s, UCLA was doing more selecting of players than recruiting. The Bruins had more than enough to win championships in 1970 and 1971, but they weren't done winning. Walton had grown up a UCLA fan while living in San Diego. He was a little bit under the radar at first, but that took about a half to change. In terms of expectations, the Bruins were back to Alcindor-levels of expectations. And for two years, they met all of them but not losing a game. </p><p>Finally in 1974, the dynasty showed some cracks. The biggest one was that Walton had injured his back in a game, and the problem was misdiagnosed - causing the center problems for the rest of the season, and really, the rest of his life. The team also became a little full of itself, in part because of the turbulent times. Wooden admitted later that he didn't do his best coaching with that group, maybe because he simply wasn't that good at bridging the "generation gap." UCLA still could have won a national title, but fell in the Final Four to North Carolina State. After the departure of players like Walton and Jamaal Wilkes, the Bruins had enough "leftovers" to win one last title in 1975. Then Wooden, tired of battling the pressures of the job, retired. </p><p>By this point in time, all of the principles have had their say in one medium or another - books, videos, etc. Howard-Cooper talked to Abdul-Jabbar and Walton, among others. He also obviously went through a ton of sources to fill up the book with often fascinating material. Who knew that H.R. Haldeman, one of Richard Nixon's "henchmen," was one of UCLA's biggest basketball fans? Who has heard that Wooden became friendly enough with Jerry Tarkanian enough to recommend him for jobs? And who realized how ridiculously underpaid Wooden was? (He earned more in his first two years of retirement than he did in his entire tenure at UCLA.) This book offers a complete picture of the dynasty, which includes some not-so-flattering "photos" of Sam Gilbert, the UCLA "booster" who broke several chapters worth of NCAA regulations in supporting the team. </p><p>Howard-Cooper also takes an interesting approach in that he doesn't write about the games very often. They obviously come up at certain points along the way, but the author is more concerned with the people involved. There's even a happy ending in that sense. Abdul-Jabbar and Walton couldn't have been more different than Wooden in personality, but they worked out their differences and became close friends during Wooden's long and fruitful retirement (he lived until he was 99). </p><p>The Bruins were at their best a long time ago, but they still have the ability to fascinate. "Kingdom on Fire" shows that all of that winning wasn't as easy as we thought, and maybe we've found a new reason to appreciate those teams and a run that will never be duplicated. </p><p><b>Five stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0C7RKM2NT/sportsbookreview/">Amazon.com.</a> (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> <br /></span></p><p><i>Follow Budd on X.com via @WDX2BB. <br /></i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-51308746310973294392023-12-01T17:16:00.001-05:002023-12-01T17:17:39.492-05:00Review: Frank Grant (2022)<p><span style="font-size: small;"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUCcYiVaY9VW5GybPDICPrM5v_4RZsv8vDI8yZRTuqEIUDGSweBVPEOpdhx-CBbUthyphenhyphenIBEQ9gmLk_s4VtYYg7SNG7jQJQ89dwaAzI1zNLL_AMo9jT7wrAN9-dDtSP8WR8HvpRk3DyKMAFzGZzLhkjuHH6jQsjVjgMI7AnXUyXzxFd8BMU9Q5t8CeMdYO06/s2004/120123.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2004" data-original-width="1396" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUCcYiVaY9VW5GybPDICPrM5v_4RZsv8vDI8yZRTuqEIUDGSweBVPEOpdhx-CBbUthyphenhyphenIBEQ9gmLk_s4VtYYg7SNG7jQJQ89dwaAzI1zNLL_AMo9jT7wrAN9-dDtSP8WR8HvpRk3DyKMAFzGZzLhkjuHH6jQsjVjgMI7AnXUyXzxFd8BMU9Q5t8CeMdYO06/w279-h400/120123.jpg" width="279" /></a></b></span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><b>By Richard Bogovich</b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Frank Grant has one of the most interesting stories in Buffalo's long athletic history. It's too bad more people don't know it. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Grant grew up in Western Massachusetts, and quickly displayed the ability to be a top-flight baseball player by the 1880s. You might remember that the National League started in 1876, and so for most people of that description at the time, Grant might have been given a chance to turn a pastime into a profession. But Grant was an African American, and ballplayers of that particular race were few and far between in the majors. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Still he did darn well under the circumstances. Grant played some semi-pro ball, and joined the professional ranks in 1886. That led him to a contract with Buffalo's team for the second half of the season, and he stayed through 1888. The International League featured some good baseball in that era, but even so Grant became a star. What would you call a 5-foot-7, 155-pound second baseman who was one of the top batters (he even led the league in homers), and was considered the best fielder at his position in the entire sport - white or black? Today you'd probably say he was the spiritual ancestor of Joe Morgan or Jose Altuve - smallish players who excelled. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Alas, by the end of 1888, white players were becoming more and more militant about the idea of playing against or with black players. That left Grant's days with the Bisons numbered, even if several teammates went public with their admiration of his skills. Grant was forced to drop to a lower level of play, and eventually had to resort to playing with all-Black barnstorming teams. The infielder, who also played other positions at time in his career, spent 20 years as a pro ballplayer. Even at the end of that run, people still talked about his skills - past and present. Several contemporaries described him as the finest African American baseball player of the 19th century. <br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">The problem, of course, was that few people were paying attention. Coverage of baseball games didn't exactly offer a ton of feature stories back then, and the Black teams were at the end of the line for such stories. Therefore, we don't know that much about the players. But thanks to the efforts of Richard Bogovich, we know a lot more than we used to know about Grant. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Bogovich is the author of a book called "Frank Grant - The Life of a Black Baseball Pioneer," and he obviously put in an absolute ton of research into the book - to the point where he probably needed an eye exam when he was finished. Bogovich looked through miles of newspaper clippings and census data, among other records, to try to put together at least an outline of Grant's story. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Is it successful? It's fair to say that Bogovich did as good a job as could be done. If Grant's name popped up in a box score or a story, it is represented here. The author did an exceptional job figuring out some information about the quality of the opposition. Grant had the chance to play against major league players at times, and he almost always showed that he belongs in that company. Grant's family situation is a bit more sketchy, but Bogovich makes some good guesses as to how events played out in his life. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">The biggest drawback to the book is that the story almost has to be very choppy. It mostly consists of descriptions of games and events without many themes running through it. That is unfortunate, since it might drive most potential readers away. Perhaps skimming would work best for them. Still, it's part of the package. I can't imagine the story being any more thorough, and thus gives baseball fans of that era an idea what the fuss was about. Therefore, "Frank Grant" works on that level quite nicely.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">What's more, the work of baseball historians has not been in vain when it comes to Grant. He was inducted into the Buffalo Baseball Hall of Fame in 1988 - 100 years after his last game in Buffalo. Even more impressive was his induction to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown in 2006. His grave in Clifton, New Jersey, was unmarked until 2011, when he finally received his own gravestone with a brief inscription outlining his baseball accomplishments. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Now we'll have to work on getting him into the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Four stars</b></span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;">Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/147668460X/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. </span>(As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""><i>Be notified of new posts on X.com via @WDX2BB. </i></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-80711657497035858502023-11-22T19:49:00.001-05:002023-11-22T19:49:38.604-05:00Review: Brave Face (2023)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWpPV27d4X8wek4BA4yYAH8YedI316UO79YPVZZvK3aqmYEDFoBkptHpvOMg-o6RY3gNZy5MJWMwdT43-mwQUXe8UUpSRoc-CcvZlnLBt43pdV0yGE2u2ft6iAdLHjxc3kINSDuBi6K1lf49wEo-9CLkvkp3Tgfb7KM2N_ZacDBhiyMpaWomZ5Zxj90HjH/s1000/112223.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="675" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWpPV27d4X8wek4BA4yYAH8YedI316UO79YPVZZvK3aqmYEDFoBkptHpvOMg-o6RY3gNZy5MJWMwdT43-mwQUXe8UUpSRoc-CcvZlnLBt43pdV0yGE2u2ft6iAdLHjxc3kINSDuBi6K1lf49wEo-9CLkvkp3Tgfb7KM2N_ZacDBhiyMpaWomZ5Zxj90HjH/w270-h400/112223.jpg" width="270" /></a></b></div><b>By Ron Vanstone</b><p></p><p>Once upon a time, hockey goaltenders didn't wear masks. </p><p>That idea may sound like a fairy tale these days. After all, skaters have been known to shoot pucks at more than 100 miles per hour. You might have guessed what happened when vulcanized rubber traveling at that speed strikes the head of a human being. The puck usually wins, and so do doctors who are paid to sew up the damage. </p><p>But it wasn't always that way. As ridiculous as it sounds now, no one between the pipes used to wear masks - even in the NHL. That raises the question, what happened?</p><p>That's what is at the center of Ron Vanstone's book, "Brave Face" - a title that probably will force you to start humming the Paul McCartney song of a similar title, "My Brave Face."</p><p>As the author points out here, the hockey mask went through something of an evolutionary process. In the good old days of hockey's beginnings, no one shot the puck particularly hard ... or particularly high. While accidents certainly did happen, there weren't enough cases of injuries to cause people to search furiously for a cure for the common puck to the face. </p><p>But by the 1950s, the shots were getting faster and the risks were growing quickly. Finally, in 1960, all-star goalie Jacques Plante had had enough. He started wearing a mask full-time and started a revolution. The early masks weren't great. They weren't well ventilated, the goalies sometimes lost the puck at their feet, and the equipment didn't offer that much more protection. Besides, some coaches didn't like the idea of them for some reason. Inertia is a powerful force in life sometimes. But eventually, one goalie wearing a mask turned into two, and two turned into three, and so on. By the late 1970s, mask-less goalies had become extinct.</p><p>Vanstone's story is wisely broken into sections. The first goes back to the pre-mask's days and Plante's decision to wear one regular in games. The second covers the great goalies of that era, who eventually came around to the idea that reducing the chances of losing an eye was a good idea. The third reviews the final holdouts, featuring such names as Joe Daley and Andy Brown. Vanstone tips his hat to Dave Dryden, a goalie in the 1960s and 1970s who helped push the revolution along. </p><p>Credit must be given to the author to the amount of work that goes into this. Vanstone tracked down several of the goalies who were mentioned here for interviews, and found out plenty of other information about all of them. He also has the definitive word about several milestones in the history of goalie masks, which ought to solve a few arguments. Vanstone also has plenty of fun along the way here, showing a nice command of the language. You'll definitely smile a few times while reading this. </p><p>This adds up to a good book on the subject ... for a while. In the second half of the book, there are some details of goaltenders' lives, featuring injuries and decisions about wearing a mask. After a while, they start to seem to go down the same path. It's rather easy to go from reading to skimming. The problem is that this is not a particularly long book, and some deletions of material probably would put it under the amount of type needed for a decent-sized publication. </p><p>To be fair, the subject of goalie masks is a rather small niche in the world of hockey. If you have an interest in it, then "Brave Face" will be worth reading. The guess is that most sports fans probably don't want something so detailed. A good-sized article probably would cover their curiosity about it. Still, authors often come up with books like this, complete with a personal drive to tell the full story. Vanstone deserves plenty of credit for putting this together.</p><p><b>Three stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1637272162/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> <br /></span></p><p><i>Be notified of new posts on this site on X.com via @WDX2BB.</i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-88965563071754967952023-11-20T13:19:00.002-05:002023-11-20T13:19:57.207-05:00Review: The Football 100 (2023)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUpjtAgU2-4wrMIlLqO6dFbfKAWDgRGs8WAyTOk72DGovjnJ_2-H9DjasnhSS9xikSZKKVLRBD1unr4mU6RbEdQpuKSdUB9DzLjKGWdvQudPEqGgTwMBuEox__4oo3x9UAgy_HWVEJZ6yNElWx6wVFWMfiI2k9wZi8uxSCC_KQeX4yEucCwag4aizleBZa/s1838/112023.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1838" data-original-width="1246" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUpjtAgU2-4wrMIlLqO6dFbfKAWDgRGs8WAyTOk72DGovjnJ_2-H9DjasnhSS9xikSZKKVLRBD1unr4mU6RbEdQpuKSdUB9DzLjKGWdvQudPEqGgTwMBuEox__4oo3x9UAgy_HWVEJZ6yNElWx6wVFWMfiI2k9wZi8uxSCC_KQeX4yEucCwag4aizleBZa/w271-h400/112023.jpg" width="271" /></a></b></div><b>By Mike Sando, Dan Pompei, and The Athletic NFL Staff</b><p></p><p>It was easy to see this book coming from, well, somewhere. </p><p>Joe Posnanski wrote a book on "The Baseball 100" last year, as he "sort of" ranked the top 100 players in the sport's history. The "sort of" part of the book centers on the fact that he didn't take the rankings that seriously. If there was a particular number that applied to a certain player and was roughly around where he should be ranked (i.e. Joe DiMaggio, No. 56), then that number was assigned to him. That book worked really well because of Posnanski's dedication to finding out facts about all of the players that weren't common knowledge, and presenting them in an entertaining way. He succeeded in those goals beautifully.</p><p>And then ... well, with the success of that book, it was natural to assume that other sports might receive the same treatment. The Athletic's staff went to work on it, and the result is "The Football 100" - a massive project that will help fill that empty spot on the bookcase with its 656 pages. </p><p>The stories start with Fran Tarkenton at No. 100, and run through No. 1 (no spoilers here, although you probably can guess the top four in some order rather easily). There are some similarities in the profiles as we march through the greatest in football history. The stories are all about the same size. Some of their statistics are presented when available, including Pro Bowl appearances, all-league and all-decade teams, etc. </p><p>All of the stories have some backing support information and stories and quotes from the player himself or other people that usually show the greatness of that player in some way. Most of these athletes are beyond criticism, at least on the football field. Otherwise, they wouldn't be here. There are no real complaints to be found in each of the profiles. They serve the purpose well enough. </p><p>However, something odd happens along the way after a few dozen of these articles. Since a few different people contributed to the book, the stories by nature have to be self-contained. In other words, there's no connection between the players profiled. They stand alone. </p><p>For example, Merlin Olsen, Bob Lilly and Alan Page are grouped together in the top 100, and all are deserving of superlatives. Was there any reason why one was ranked a little better than the other? There must have been one, but all three greats receive nominations as great players. Along those lines, Jim Parker, Bruce Matthews and Larry Allen also have a literary blanket thrown over them. </p><p>In my neighborhood, O.J. Simpson is the chapter that probably will receive the most attention. He was ranked No. 52, which struck me as a little low. For five years Simpson was as good as any running back in football history, and was the league's brightest star. Personally, I'd put him above Gale Sayers, Eric Dickerson and Bronko Nagurski, which would put him in the low 30s. Admittedly, Simpson's life after football has taken some terrible turns. Tim Graham's worthwhile profile addresses Simpson's full lifetime legacy, but it's tough to know where Simpson might have been ranked in, say, 1993. </p><p>It would have been interesting to have some pages devoted to the ranking process in some detail here. Failing that, I'd listen to a podcast with the authors discussing their thinking at certain points of the discussion. </p><p>If you are looking for a well-researched review of football's all-time greats, then "The Football 100" will do the job nicely enough. But the lack of fun and flow along the way might drag down your enthusiasm level after a while.</p><p><b>Three stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0063329093/sportsbookreview" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span> </p><p><i>Be notified of new posts on this site on X.com via @WDX2BB.</i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-84619640890002061892023-11-12T17:25:00.000-05:002023-11-12T17:25:09.025-05:00Review: George Allen (2023)<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4jdluZ2e4cqKsSh8PpFguTaQjzS06ymQjEauRgz2gTbTkz8XdHwZdE1iyEelLE77bU3P1nxAr6xSOl8jfm0SxRJCgsC9gPBN6Zyb_TY8FDSa7t2pOtWom5swD805QP4B6QcYupSG1TkKV-lug05FiSyiK0eO_UpezbPheVHbeE-u9KEjXMG_bIXtGdtLt/s1500/111223.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4jdluZ2e4cqKsSh8PpFguTaQjzS06ymQjEauRgz2gTbTkz8XdHwZdE1iyEelLE77bU3P1nxAr6xSOl8jfm0SxRJCgsC9gPBN6Zyb_TY8FDSa7t2pOtWom5swD805QP4B6QcYupSG1TkKV-lug05FiSyiK0eO_UpezbPheVHbeE-u9KEjXMG_bIXtGdtLt/w266-h400/111223.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>By Mike Richmond</b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">For a while in the late 1960s and early 1970s, George Allen might have been the most interesting man in the National Football League.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The story about why that's true probably is justification for Mike Richmond to write this full-fledged, detailed biography, naturally called "George Allen."</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Our subject had a great run in the football spotlight. Allen first became known as the brains behind the Chicago Bears' defense on their 1963 NFL championship team. After a couple of more years in that role, he was offered the job of head coach of the Los Angeles Rams - and Bears' owner/coach George Halas wouldn't let him out of his contract to advance professionally. That wouldn't happen today, but Halas won the lawsuit ... and promptly released him from the deal. Allen wound up in Los Angeles after all, although the relationship between the two men was never the same. </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The Rams quickly turned around their fortunes under Allen, becoming a very good team throughout the rest of the 1960s. They were 32-7-3 in the final three years of the decade. But he never did get the Rams into the Super Bowl, and he was an odd mix with Los Angeles owner Dan Reeves. They finally parted company after the 1970 season.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Then Allen immediately landed with another team had enjoyed little recent success, the Washington Redskins. It was there where he established his reputation as an unusual operator - one who was unafraid to do what ever it took to win, even if meant trading the same draft choice twice or spending the owners' money freely. Allen traded draft choices for veterans as fast as he could to win immediately, and it worked. The Redskins reached the Super Bowl in second year in Washington. It's indicative of how good people thought Washington was that season that the team was favored in the Super Bowl against Miami, which had won all of its games in 1972-73. The Dolphins made it a perfect season by beating the Redskins, who might have run out of gas after two emotional playoff wins.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Allen stayed in Washington through 1977, but by the end he was butting heads with ownership frequently by then. He jumped back to Los Angeles to coach the Rams in 1978, but didn't even last the preseason there. Somewhat surprisingly, George never coached in the NFL again. Allen never had a losing season in 12 tries in the NFL, and is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Richmond highlights those years, of course, but the origins and endings are interesting too. Allen worked his way up the coaching ladder in the usual way, taking small steps forward and then moving to the next job before reaching the top of his profession. On the downside, he did some of that in reverse, coaching a USFL team and then a bottom-feeder of a Division I college football team at Long Beach State (he even had a winning record there). </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The Allen family seems to have fully cooperated with this book's research, supplying some helpful details of Allen's life - particularly off the field. A number of other people chime in with quotes from fresh interviews or old stories. It's all done rather nicely.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The resulting book is on the massive side. Including notes at the end of the book, this checks in at more than 600 pages. Without the notes, it still approaches 500. That's a lot of material about someone who hasn't been around for more than 30 years. Certainly the reader will find himself wondering if some of those pages could have been edited out.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Those who are old enough to remember and follow the veteran coach certainly will find plenty to enjoy in "George Allen." The guess here, though, is that this may be a little slow-going for the rest of the football audience. </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Three stars</b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b> </b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0803249683/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. </span></span> (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com @WDX2BB. </i></span></span><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-71354965745477683422023-11-01T11:41:00.000-04:002023-11-01T11:41:35.219-04:00Review: The Year's Best Sports Writing 2023<p></p><p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZX_cgOrPFjbWMvs3H-glwQkI5s6lKm9mZeUyirFvLBe0KneIQbB-rK1eO83T6UfvPGu4ncTFPWU5YK0Ap-honUcfNT9K9p327G8sQS2ladFGXNTCIBrO_7M914CNToaU-QutHWby0SvyIhyphenhyphen0YNZ6fhuPdsJwOQwDUbrP8pox5XsFDtWiTpq9JipURYQAM/s1685/110123.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1685" data-original-width="1070" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZX_cgOrPFjbWMvs3H-glwQkI5s6lKm9mZeUyirFvLBe0KneIQbB-rK1eO83T6UfvPGu4ncTFPWU5YK0Ap-honUcfNT9K9p327G8sQS2ladFGXNTCIBrO_7M914CNToaU-QutHWby0SvyIhyphenhyphen0YNZ6fhuPdsJwOQwDUbrP8pox5XsFDtWiTpq9JipURYQAM/w254-h400/110123.jpg" width="254" /></a></b></div><b>Edited by Richard Deitsch</b><p></p><p>My personal streak of reading every different copy of "The Year's Best Sports Writing" takes a very small personal turn with the 2023 issue. Richard Deitsch is the editor of the new version. I knew Rich slightly when he was more or less just out of school in the Buffalo area, as our paths crossed a few times. </p><p>He's obviously done quite well for himself. Deitsch's career is mostly noted for a 20-year stay at Sports Illustrated, where he did some coverage of the media as well as working on college sports, Olympics and tennis. Now he's doing media stories out of Toronto for <i>The Athletic</i>. </p><p>In the introduction, Rich raises the basic problems of being an editor of a publication like this. The first is the "Am I worthy?" question, considering the talented list of people who have preceded him in this annual position. Then there's the chore of picking out the articles that belong in the anthology. Chore is a carefully chosen word in this case, because there is a great deal of fine material out there and picking one story over another is agonizing. </p><p>But Deitsch does what all of would do in this situation. He received some help from several esteemed contributors. From there Deitsch tried to narrow down the candidates for publication. He writes that he asked questions like "Which pieces stayed with me days after I let them go?" and "Which pieces demanded I read them again and again?"</p><p>Any insecurities about the picks should be gone at this point. It's another worthwhile collection, for the upteenth straight year. (It depends on how you count.)</p><p>If there's a theme here, it's that sometimes the line between sports and the rest of the world sometimes is blurred. For example, baseball only touches on "She Made Us Happy." It simply a way to introduce the subject of the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas. The same could be said about Michael Rosenberg's story about of a school shooting in Michigan. The sports connection might be even more blurred as sportswriter Jonathan Tiarks describes his eventual losing battle with cancer, leaving a son behind in the process. You probably can argue whether the stories belong here, but they will stay with you. </p><p>There are other stories that if you read them in the original form, you'd know they'd probably appear here. The great Wright Thompson checks in with the tale of the Ukrainian national soccer team, men trying to find a little sanity through a game while the rest of their lives have turned to chaos because of the war there. David Remnick's tribute to Roger Angell hits all the right notes. Some good investigate work on such subjects as Deshaun Watson and the killing of Auburn's iconic trees on its campus take a bow here too. <br /></p><p>Then there are the surprising topics that draw the reader in just by the subject. Stone skipping? The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders? Cornhole? Port-A-Potty?</p><p>Not surprisingly, Deitsch ends with a tribute to Grant Wahl, the former <i>Sports Illustrated</i> writer who died while covering the World Cup. Wahl was incredibly liked and respected, based on the outpouring of stories upon his passing. He was said to have been very proud of his piece on the migrant workers of Qatar - again, another story that only touches on sports but shows an excellent mixture of fine reporting and fine writing. </p><p>I may not have gotten through every single story here in its entirety, but few books bat 1.000 in that sense. "The Year's Best Sports Writing 2023" is a worthy addition to the series.</p><p><b>Four stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1637274459/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> <br /></span></p><p><i>Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com @WDX2BB.</i><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-77283001471311101852023-10-27T14:09:00.000-04:002023-10-27T14:09:12.591-04:00Review: The Game That Saved the NHL (2023)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO3JsVSN5mep2RStyFl4-IXqgDWmm2J6ZfqciF7BzWYpi9XORvpCdj2cBdx70bQm8ooFivSDN2IPWmdXb-fQJBsXqKa4DjhGhEZOiWmyZk_uMgeIbKOML6CKhsRS0wkgtARmmUPQnVTz86rBeJhyphenhyphenZJw90jxAftx8ZKDa6-iGv3cbmfByaCPFgtPcN8RgqV/s1500/102723.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO3JsVSN5mep2RStyFl4-IXqgDWmm2J6ZfqciF7BzWYpi9XORvpCdj2cBdx70bQm8ooFivSDN2IPWmdXb-fQJBsXqKa4DjhGhEZOiWmyZk_uMgeIbKOML6CKhsRS0wkgtARmmUPQnVTz86rBeJhyphenhyphenZJw90jxAftx8ZKDa6-iGv3cbmfByaCPFgtPcN8RgqV/w266-h400/102723.jpg" width="266" /></a></b></div><b>By Ed Gruver</b><p></p><p>Amy discussion of Ed Gruver's book probably starts with the title. </p><p>The publication is called "The Game That Saved the NHL." That's a rather powerful statement that begs the question, "From what?" We're going to need a little background information about that moment in time before discussing how it is covered. </p><p>The game in question was played between the Red Army team of the Soviet Union and the Philadelphia Flyers of the NHL in January, 1976. Hockey fans certainly remember the unique moment in 1972 when the all-star teams from the Soviets and the NHL met in an eight-game series which was barely won by the North Americans. That generated interest in the potential of a series of "exhibition games" between NHL teams and their Soviet counterparts in midseason.</p><p>The USSR sent two of their best teams, the Red Army and the Wings, to play a total of eight games. Both of the Soviet teams picked up a couple of reinforcements from other teams, which meant it wasn't exactly a true test of comparative abilities. Through the first seven games, things had not gone well for the NHL. The two Soviet squads had five five games, while the NHL had one win (Buffalo over the Wings, the lesser team of the two). The other game was a tie between Montreal and the Red Army.</p><p>Going into Game Eight, then, the Flyers were the NHL's last chance for a win over the perennial power of Soviet hockey. Philadelphia also was a two-time defending champion of the Stanley Cup. It certainly figured to a contrast in styles. They didn't call the Flyers the "Broad Street Bullies" for nothing. While they featured some terrific skill players in Bobby Clarke, Reggie Leach, Rick MacLeish and Bernie Parent, they were more known for a rough and tough playing style that often left opponents intimidated. Essentially, the Flyers perfected an approach that had started in the expansion era because the new teams didn't have the talent to keep up with the Original Six ... and thus had to try something different in an attempt to win and sell tickets. </p><p>Flyers' coach Fred Shero had studied Soviet hockey, and came up with a game plan that worked well. It probably was helped by the fact that an NHL referee worked the game, since a Soviet official might have not let some infractions go unpenalized. At one point late in the first period, the Red Army squad was furious enough at the Flyers' tactics to leave the ice and to threaten to leave the building. It took a while, but eventually the Soviets returned ... and little changed. Philadelphia poured on the shots and came away with a 4-1 win. It might have been the team's signature performance of that era. <br /></p><p>Gruver covers the bases well enough here. He reviews the international hockey situation during the 1970s, which the game started to become more of a melting pot than its previous status as one that practically had a "North Americans Only" sign at the front door. Graver has mini-bios of anyone who played a role in the series. The second half of the book is mostly dedicated to the game itself. It's not easy to devote a lot of space to the play-by-play of a sports event that has been over for almost 50 years, particularly in the case of a free-flowing sport like hockey. There's a little repetition along the way, and it's a little surprising that the Soviet walkout wasn't a bigger deal in the story.</p><p>Still, this book essentially comes down to perspective and legacy. Those Flyers teams are very well remembered in the Philadelphia area, and Gruver comes off as a fan of them. After all, they won the only two Stanley Cups in team history. That's enough to make names like Clarke and Parent legends, and then some. But the team's playing style generated a lot of debate about whether the ends justified the means, and whether the intimidation tactics were good for hockey as a whole. </p><p>If there was a game in that international series that might have "saved" the NHL, it might have been the one between the Canadiens and Red Army. It was an instant classic in terms of quality of play, and taught many people how exciting and beautiful the game could be played in a certain style. (The book, "The Greatest Game," by Todd Denault, covers the contest well.) The Flyers' approach when done without all of the wins turned off some potential fans by the amount of violence involved. The transformation of hockey took a long time, but the game today features much more skill and speed than ever before. The players are better, and the game is better to play and to watch.<br /></p><p>Yes, the Flyers did beat the beat the Soviets had to offer on that January afternoon. That means that the NHL's three best teams - Philadelphia, Montreal and Buffalo - all did not lose to squads from the USSR. That was good for some debating points, especially since the Soviet teams had extra weapons. But it is tough to argue that its effects were long-lasting. <br /></p><p>If you have fond memories of those Flyers' teams and that day in 1976, you'll certainly enjoy the look back at "The Game That Saved the NHL." Others are going to have trouble with the premise.</p><p><b>Three stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1493074970/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""><i>(Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com@WDX2BB) </i></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-51042790436088212332023-10-24T11:34:00.002-04:002023-10-24T11:34:59.600-04:00Review: The Last Miracle (2023)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir9e1wMxtPReln0HkLHzEfK_XNjoqK-UGpI51jYsHIDDUw19Z1xtFoesc4G4vKaEsULtgxUYSf1Vu3REdUJ0CuYGG2jglfHoD8eH4l6YJq1uzShln_TG-d4Hk_6TfQgwcb1wlqfY7Q6AoeUfKngUZyHBAKGphNy6d-OmK5728rQTe8pu7lLMWAnWPPfZ5v/s1808/102423.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1808" data-original-width="1220" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir9e1wMxtPReln0HkLHzEfK_XNjoqK-UGpI51jYsHIDDUw19Z1xtFoesc4G4vKaEsULtgxUYSf1Vu3REdUJ0CuYGG2jglfHoD8eH4l6YJq1uzShln_TG-d4Hk_6TfQgwcb1wlqfY7Q6AoeUfKngUZyHBAKGphNy6d-OmK5728rQTe8pu7lLMWAnWPPfZ5v/w270-h400/102423.jpg" width="270" /></a></div><b>By Ed Kranepool with Gary Kaschak</b><p></p><p>Most fans of the New York Mets of a certain age have a soft spot in their heart for Ed Kranepool. </p><p>After all, he was part of the original Mets in 1962. Kranepool was signed right out of high school, and had some at-bats for those lovable losers who lost 120 of 160 games in that initial season. The difference was that while everyone else from that team soon moved on, Kranepool hung around..</p><p>And hung around, and hung around. He stayed through 1979, which means he spent 18 seasons wearing the orange and blue of the Mets. Kranepool was part of the furniture for a long time, and you can build up a lot of good will that way.</p><p>Therefore, it was a bit of a surprise to read "The Last Miracle." It turns out that Kranepool was always something of an angry young man during his playing days. Billy Joel would have been proud of him.</p><p>Ed grew up in New York City and was a good-sized prospect out of high school. In those days, players could sign with any team - a decision that often came down to money. The fact that Kranepool had ties to New York City made it easy to want to stay home and play baseball. Besides, the Yankees were rather loaded with talent then, while the Mets were running on empty. The National League team offered the quickest path to the majors possible. </p><p>In fact, it was probably too quick. Kranepool did play in three games for the '62 Mets before he had even turned 18. He also spent time in Triple-A, Class A, and Class C. But realistically, Kranepool should have gone to the low minors and learned how to be a pro ballplayer. It was the same story a year later, when the first baseman/outfielder split his time between New York and Buffalo (AAA). For a guy who hit .209 with the Mets in 1963, he seemed to carry a grudge over the assignment to the minors. He seemed to take it out on the city of Buffalo, even turning down a chance to work on the movie "The Natural" in the 1980s after retirement.</p><p>From there, Kranepool became a regular through 1967, and usually hit around .260 in that span. Eventually the Mets figured out that Kranepool was better off platooning. That was his role on the 1969 Miracle Mets, who ended several years of frustration with a surprise World Series championship. Those players will walk together forever, and Kranepool has some stories about that amazin' season in the book.</p><p>But the magic soon wore off, which usually happens in baseball as players age or get shuffled. New York did get back to the World Series in 1973 despite a mediocre regular season. Soon Kranepool was left filling a pinch-hitting role that kept him employed in the big leagues but apparently wasn't too satisfying. He finally retired after the 1979 season.</p><p>The possibilities for a good book seem obvious enough, but Kranepool's attitude drags things down quite a bit. It's interesting how Ed didn't seem to appreciate manager Gil Hodges much until Hodges took Kranepool's side in an argument with Tim Foli. Suddenly Hodges could do no wrong. In the meantime, Kranepool didn't think much of the managerial abilities of Hodges' successor, Yogi Berra. Ed is still angry over the fact that George Stone wasn't picked to start Game Six of the 1973 World Series over a less than fully rested Tom Seaver. To be fair, he might have a point, especially since Berra's plan didn't work out. </p><p>The anger comes out in other places. Kranepool thought he deserved more consideration for a Gold Glove at first base, even though perennial winner Wes Parker of the Dodgers played a lot more games. Ed thought he could be a player-coach once Joe Torre took over as manager. When Torre had other plans, his stock dropped with Kranepool. At the end of his career, Ed thought he was ready to move into a front office job - perhaps general manager. That didn't come true either, although considering the way the Mets handled things in the late 1970s, Kranepool couldn't do any worse than those on the job. </p><p>Oddly, Kranepool sticks to the old belief that winning the close games is the sign of a champion. According to most of the research, the good teams usually have a one-sided record in the blowouts ... because you are only doing bad opponents a favor by letting them hang around. Luck has a lot more to do winning the close ones. The '69 Mets went 41-23 in one-run games, even better than the 21-12 in blowouts. A year later, the Mets were under .500 in close games, and the team turned mediocre. Everything went right, including the breaks for the Mets in 1969. <br /></p><p>Adding to some bad feelings about the book was that the fact that there were some typos and other mistakes along the way, and sometimes the story jumped in some odd directions. One more read of the manuscript by an outside source probably would have helped a lot. </p><p>Autobiographies often rise and fall on how the person at the middle of them come across. "The Last Miracle" suffers because of that. If you carry warm feelings about the Mets of that era, maybe you'd better go elsewhere.</p><p><b>Two stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1637272707/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p><i>Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com @WDX2BB.</i> <br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-50089196674565765772023-10-19T13:06:00.003-04:002023-11-15T14:39:22.539-05:00Review: Life in Two Worlds (2023)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid9iQ0_ivWOvEn70Thf8N7mY6wG3J40AeooZ0I0DRyhyphenhyphenAaUjwqYJl8pnj7XXxZYsel3ZRbQHJ7niYzxLkT1DQ8TbcjFkziyCjIYBKM29i2zy1hExpi4QleIaJ_uKkJkWkDt8abh-TwQZfcOGBuJgoNyXVKdCpE4YkH2CgJEmfdoynALycZLZ92nrJCIWhu/s1500/101923.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="991" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid9iQ0_ivWOvEn70Thf8N7mY6wG3J40AeooZ0I0DRyhyphenhyphenAaUjwqYJl8pnj7XXxZYsel3ZRbQHJ7niYzxLkT1DQ8TbcjFkziyCjIYBKM29i2zy1hExpi4QleIaJ_uKkJkWkDt8abh-TwQZfcOGBuJgoNyXVKdCpE4YkH2CgJEmfdoynALycZLZ92nrJCIWhu/w264-h400/101923.jpg" width="264" /></a></b></div><b>By Ted Nolan with Meg Masters</b><p></p><p>One of the problems with big-time sports these days is that it is difficult to obtain explanations for behind-the-scenes activities even well after they happen. The money has gotten bigger, and the stakes have gotten higher. That's led to non-disclosure agreements in many cases, the equivalent of a gag order that would be costly if ever broken.</p><p>But sometimes, we do hear a version of what went on - even if takes a while. In this case, Ted Nolan gives his life story in th3e book, "Life in Two Worlds." And it's positively fascinating, particularly those who are old enough to remember a particular era of hockey.</p><p>The centerpiece of the book is the story of Nolan's time with the Buffalo Sabres. He was hired by the team after only one year as an assistant coach in the NHL in 1995. Nolan lasted two seasons in Buffalo, and it sometimes seemed like every day was a soap opera ... with the tension building as the end of his tenure approached. </p><p>There's only a couple of chapters on this part of his life, but it's really the centerpiece of his hockey career. Nolan won the Jack Adams Trophy as the NHL's coach of the year in 1996-97, only to lose his job that summer when he turned down something of a token contract offer from new general manager Darcy Regier. </p><p>But there's one central fact to Nolan's first time around in Buffalo. John Muckler was kicked upstairs to be a general manager only after the 1995 season; he had been the coach as well before that. Basically, he wanted someone he could control as the head coach. Based on the book, I'm not sure Nolan realized that. But clashes were almost inevitable in that situation, and they eventually happened. </p><p>Nolan writes about those unpleasant moments that in hindsight don't make a whole lot of sense. For example, Nolan became an instant fan of his best player, Pat LaFontaine, upon his arrival. Pat was the captain, and Ted was immediately impressed about how his star worked the room. That what made, and makes, it so puzzling that Muckler asked Nolan to strip LaFontaine of his captaincy. It's hard to know what happened between the GM and star. I do know that once when Muckler was asked about LaFontaine's leadership abilities, Muckler supposedly replied (more or less) than LaFontaine couldn't lead a prostitute to bed. </p><p>Eventually, Nolan developed a reputation as a "player's coach." That usually meant he tried to be someone who took the time how to figure out what was best for the player and his development. Muckler was more old school, and thought a good screaming session was necessary every so often. Muckler asked Nolan to be tougher, and Nolan refused. It was a basic difference in philosophy that probably should have come up in the interview process. <br /></p><p>Then early in the 1996-97 season, LaFontaine suffered a serious concussion on the ice. Nolan could see something was seriously wrong, even after some recovery time. Muckler tried to order Nolan to play LaFontaine, pointing out that Pat was cleared for play and was earning $5 million per year. Nolan wouldn't do it, saying LaFontaine wasn't healed. A few months later, a story circulated that Muckler wanted to fire Nolan and replace him with assistant coach Don Lever, but that the Sabres' front office told Muckler he'd have to coach too if wanted to make that change. So the idea died, and the frayed relationship between general manager and head coach continued. </p><p>The team still played well under Nolan, winning a divisional championship. But the rift grew. In the book, Nolan said that an opposing general manager had said he was drunk on the bench at times. An exhausting season ended with the only Game Seven victory in Sabres' history (still true), and a second-round loss to Philadelphia. Then star goalie and league MVP Dominik Hasek added to the story by saying he didn't want to play for a coach in Nolan that he had no respect for. Nolan writes that has no idea where that came from - but he did hear all the rumors that he was having an affair with Hasek's wife. Bizarre stuff. </p><p>Muckler exited right after the end of the playoffs, and Regier took over. He greeted Nolan in their first meeting without taking his feet off his desk. For someone who battled his entire life for respect, Nolan thought it got the relationship off to a horrible start. Nolan soon first heard from Buffalo News reporter Jim Kelley that he was going to be offered a one-year contract with no bonuses. Nolan eventually turned that down, and the Sabres eventually hired Lindy Ruff as coach. </p><p>Nolan's luck wasn't much better when it came to his other coaching jobs. The Islanders hired him as a head coach in 2006 after a long gap from his first departure from the Sabres. But New York hired a new general manager in Garth Snow shortly after that, and GMs always like to have their own man in such an important job. Later on, Nolan returned to the Sabres as coach in 2013. But later Tim Murray was hired as GM. Murray was in the process of guiding a tank in an ill-fated attempt to land Connor McDavid in the draft, and that tank ruined just about everything it touched within the organization in those years. When Nolan wouldn't hire Murray's uncle, veteran hockey coach Bryan, for his coaching staff, Tim fired Ted - at least in Nolan's version here - in 2015. The in-between periods might have been even tougher for Nolan. From what I've heard, Ted was in a rather dark place at times, and did a couple of things in trying to find a coaching job that didn't go over well with the rest of the NHL coaching fraternity. <br /></p><p>This is all quite interesting to hockey fans, particularly for those who follow the Sabres. However, the rest of the book is quite well done as well. That might be the biggest surprise of the entire publication. </p><p>Nolan overcame a lot to do as well as he could. The systemic problems of Native communities are quite well known, including such issues as poverty, racism and alcoholism. It's difficult for anyone to come from that environment into the world beyond the reservation and not be changed by it. Nolan was no exception. He came from a large family in Western Ontario, and has gone through more than his share of tragedy over the years. Nolan also has been a victim of stereotyping along the way, which was a large problem for Native players in hockey. But he overcame them, paid his dues, and reached the top of his profession. </p><p>It's really difficult to read some of this material. Then again, it's really difficult to understand what people are thinking when they hand out abuse to someone because he or she is a member of a particular group. Nolan comes across as an innocent during his youth, sometimes fighting back and sometimes giving in to temptations like alcohol use and quitting. He even had to deal with insults and abuse from his own teammates - such as "What are you doing here, ya stinkin' Indian?" Fans might have been worse. To his credit, Ted battled his way up the hockey ladder as a player and as a coach. Nolan rightfully thanks several mentors here who helped him along the way.</p><p>Nolan is 65 now - seems impossible at first - and lately he's been working on a 3Nolans program that's designed to help the youth of First Nations make their way in society. Ted is helped by his two sons, Brandon and Jordan, who also were pro hockey players. It sounds like he's somewhat at peace by end of "Life in Two Worlds," although he'll always wonder what might have been in a different world. </p><p>As will we. </p><p>(Footnote: There is one story from the book that needs to be told here
because I've never heard it anywhere else. Nolan was welcomed by a group of Native
Elders to Buffalo. He writes,<i>"Apparently,in the 1930s or 1940s, one
of the best First Nations athletes in the area tried out for a Buffalo
team, but because he was Indigenous the team wouldn't sign him. Upon
hearing of this injustice, some of the Elders put a curse on all sports
teams in the area. ... Now that I had arrived, however, these Elders
told me they were going to remove the curse.</i>" Did someone put the curse back on?) </p><p><b>Five stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0735244952/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> <br /></span></p><p><i>Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com @WDX2BB.</i></p><p> </p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-87422177913778651832023-10-08T09:26:00.004-04:002023-10-08T09:26:41.592-04:00Review: If These Walls Could Talk: Buffalo Bills (2023)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH0M71C6-J5f5MnX9HDRxc6RwzVcLNh8CiaSp7Btk1_uoWtSWCLLBQjr3PUH4bYUe0wqwrN1TllCyKojEWlGMdYlKxJyhFr-aZdYBiPnaQuCHRO1Oo6yeGZDPe82cJfPN6KFUKnZGzIe0AzGoQ8npHQxBU79FUvRWhJ70Qz4ZXronM9hwESVvfe0TqqmCD/s445/100823.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="445" data-original-width="288" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH0M71C6-J5f5MnX9HDRxc6RwzVcLNh8CiaSp7Btk1_uoWtSWCLLBQjr3PUH4bYUe0wqwrN1TllCyKojEWlGMdYlKxJyhFr-aZdYBiPnaQuCHRO1Oo6yeGZDPe82cJfPN6KFUKnZGzIe0AzGoQ8npHQxBU79FUvRWhJ70Qz4ZXronM9hwESVvfe0TqqmCD/w259-h400/100823.jpg" width="259" /></a></b></div><b>By John Murphy with Scott Pitoniak</b><p></p><p>This must have seemed like a simple enough task at the time.</p><p>John Murphy has been announcing the games of the Buffalo Bills on radio for many years. He started on the broadcasts as the color man for the legendary play-by-play announcer, Van Miller. When Van finally retired, John moved over a spot to take over those duties. A few different former Bills have worked with Murph on commentary over the years.</p><p>That's obviously a good starting point for a book. Murphy has been around the team for a few decades, and he knows several of the personalities involved in the game well. Certainly, Murphy and coauthor Scott Pitoniak had visions of sitting around with a beverage, cranking out some good stories, and publishing an entertaining book. The deal for "If These Walls Could Talk: Buffalo Bills" quickly came together. <br /></p><p>But fate got in the way. The Bills were preparing to play the Bengals in Cincinnati late in the 2022 season when Murphy started to have some physical problems. He never did make it to that game, which is also remembered as the one in which the heart of Bills' defensive back Damar Hamlin briefly stopped after a hit to the chest. Hamlin returned to action in 2023; Murphy wasn't so lucky. He was diagnosed as suffering a stroke, and he's been recovering from it since then. </p><p>From the writing sense, it must have been interesting to try to figure out how Murphy should handle the issue - especially since it figured to be a long-term issue that wouldn't be completely solved by the time the book was out. Murphy and Pitoniak chose to deal with it quite simply as part of the life story; it's not particularly highlighted but several pages are devoted to it. This was a wise move, since Murphy is something of a public figure in his role as the Bills' radio announcer and many people have been rooting for him to fully recover. </p><p>Otherwise, this is exactly what you'd expect in a book like this. The authors start with a chapter on Josh Allen, which is rather interesting. It probably shows just how popular the quarterback is in the Bills' community. Then Murphy spends a little time on his background. He reveals a few things that I didn't know, even though we've been friends for quite a while. We went to Syracuse University at the same time for three years, but our paths did not cross then. That had to wait when we bumped into each other at sports events in the Buffalo area some years later. </p><p>With that established, Murphy is off with his recap of the Bills over the years as he's seen it. The players, coaches and front office executives all get the once-over. There have been a lot of them, which isn't surprising since the Bills have been bad more often than they've been good during this tenure. As you'd expect he grew fond of the chief architects of the Bills' best run of success, Bill Polian and Marv Levy. </p><p>There are a couple of points told along the way that surprised me. The first is that Murphy is absolutely, positively convinced that "Home Run Throwback" - the play that gave the Titans a playoff win over the Bills in 2000 - was a forward lateral. Having looked at that play a few dozen times (it's tough to avoid when researching team history), I've concluded that at best it's too close too call, meaning the play stands. But if I had to pick a direction, I'd say it was a legal play as a lateral.</p><p>Murphy also writes a bit about the problems that developed between Polian and owner Ralph Wilson. John is clearly on Polian's side on most items. I'm not going to say that Wilson was faultless in that relationship, but everything I've heard indicates that Polian could have handled the situation better ... something Bill admits now. </p><p>Here's the key point, though, about Murphy. He's that rare individual who can take strong opinions, and still be universally liked. That's less common than you'd think. </p><p>Reading "If These Walls Could Talk: Buffalo Bills" is like sitting down and having a nice long chat with John. I've done that on several occasions, and it's always been a pleasure. The book is the same way. </p><p><b>Four stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1637271891/sportsbookreview/">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> <br /></span></p><p><i>Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com @WDX2BB.</i></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-88104075451654815662023-10-05T07:50:00.002-04:002023-10-05T07:57:47.673-04:00Review: Banana Ball (2023)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzyZdFzQ4p2eA-GT-_JZ-7A2eO436EO_vYEmQFqhFL-Lc0tsneJy8JRr16k7kPZIS0g310lIhdChxwlGYkekv6qjOGm8RJNnMhRUf_jOmr3CZ6PVPW8371SOuENoMOrsK7iALAC4q_kErWLeToQyfY0PrLEJ7YyRfuN2KOUZkr4BfWS3xdILQs-NOGXadv/s1500/100523.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="994" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzyZdFzQ4p2eA-GT-_JZ-7A2eO436EO_vYEmQFqhFL-Lc0tsneJy8JRr16k7kPZIS0g310lIhdChxwlGYkekv6qjOGm8RJNnMhRUf_jOmr3CZ6PVPW8371SOuENoMOrsK7iALAC4q_kErWLeToQyfY0PrLEJ7YyRfuN2KOUZkr4BfWS3xdILQs-NOGXadv/w265-h400/100523.jpg" width="265" /></a></b></div><b>By Jesse Cole and Don Yaeger</b><p></p><p>There's something going on in the world of baseball, and it's really difficult to describe from a distance. </p><p>After some modest origins, a new form of the sport has taken the business by form. The rules were blown up, with the emphasis on fun. Pitchers on stilts? Foul balls that are caught by fans in the stands becoming outs? Time limits? Bats literally on fire? Let's try them all and see how they work. </p><p>Now within a couple of years, the Savannah Bananas - and who doesn't love that name - has become something of a talk of the sports business world. It went on a national tour this summer, and packed in the crowds wherever it went. </p><p>A good promoter knows how to spread the word, and Jesse Cole certainly is that. He has a book out on how it all happened from his standpoint. "Banana Ball" is that story. </p><p>Cole was something of a prospect while growing up, good enough to reach the college ranks. Any chance that he had of turning professional essentially ended with an injury, so he had to find another way to scratch his baseball itch. Jesse found work in the world of organized ball, doing a little bit of everything. Eventually, he moved on to run a college-age summer league team in 2016. While Cole probably didn't realize it at the time, it was the perfect laboratory for his creative brain. After all, no one is paying close attention. </p><p>Slowly but surely, the concept grew a bit bigger, week by week. Concepts were tried and discarded like jokes in a late night television monologue. But do that enough, and you'll find out what works. And the fans responded nicely. </p><p>Cole and Company decided to take the act out on the road in 2022, turning the Bananas briefly into a barnstorming team. It seemed to work, and the concept was expanded in 2023. Yes, those bright yellow uniforms turned up even in Cooperstown this past summer, and trips to major league parks seems rather likely. It's easy to think of this as something along the lines of baseball's answers to the Harlem Globetrotters. The biggest difference is that both teams really are trying to win while putting on a show on the side. </p><p>And so Banana Ball seems destined to find a niche in the sports entertainment business in a good-sized way. But how is "Banana Ball," the book? It's easy to be less enthusiastic about that. </p><p>This is written as a straight autobiography. While the story has some charm - struggling young couple beats the odds - there is some repetition and some self-congratulating along the way. That makes it relatively easy to speed through the book. It's easy to wonder if an "outside in" approach would have been the better way to write this, as the other participants could have added some perspective on the experience. </p><p>There are video programs on the Bananas - ESPN did one - and the team itself has embraced social media to complete effectiveness. That's probably the best way to learn about the team. As for the book, it's quick and easy and spreads the word well enough. It's another tool in the promotional toolbox, and after finishing it you'll probably be curious enough to go to a game when the opportunity becomes available. </p><p><b>Three stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0593473418/sportsbookreview/" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p></p><p><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""></span></p><p><i>Be notified of new posts on this site via X.com @WDX2BB.</i><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1041518182726095529.post-80798765737208141262023-09-14T13:07:00.001-04:002023-09-14T13:07:50.333-04:00Review: Long Run to Glory (2023)<p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifl08HO3Qts0_1Ple5-KftfTusQDwkHyPXWc2D9P2s4yYsLTVSu1OMg9JGSdTfrPmjNSGhuA4vF1lB9_AuAraWuu_IIM9mi9Wv912NzoB783VNLuetkE17QapxU9_kn9isa8nSL8jszPV3mqs5bW2qju75VFnCPqMeEUGiRvidfhhvmz8appa4L42TCOcT/s1500/091423.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifl08HO3Qts0_1Ple5-KftfTusQDwkHyPXWc2D9P2s4yYsLTVSu1OMg9JGSdTfrPmjNSGhuA4vF1lB9_AuAraWuu_IIM9mi9Wv912NzoB783VNLuetkE17QapxU9_kn9isa8nSL8jszPV3mqs5bW2qju75VFnCPqMeEUGiRvidfhhvmz8appa4L42TCOcT/w266-h400/091423.jpg" width="266" /></a></b></div><b>By Stephen Lane</b><p></p><p>If your memories of the 1984 Olympic women's marathon are anything like mine, you probably remember a single person running almost by herself. </p><p>Joan Benoit pulled away from the pack fairly early in the race, and no one went with her. So Benoit was lacking in company as she maintained a good-sized lead through much of the 26 miles, 385 yards that comprise the event. That can happen in a marathon, in which more than two hours of running can be decided by a single moment at almost any point. Benoit always will be remembered for winning that race, particularly since she had arthroscopic knee surgery shortly before the Olympic Trials.<br /></p><p>With that in mind, it might seem ought to consider reading about a book that describes that race. After all, there wasn't much drama. But there were some dramatics just to get to a starting line, and author Stephen Lane wisely concentrates on that "run up" in his solidly written book, "Long Run to Glory."</p><p>The miracle of that Olympic marathon was not the race itself, but that it happened in the first place. It took a long, difficult battle over several years to allow runners of both sexes to go through the biggest test running has to offer on a large scale. </p><p>The problem was that women were considered too fragile and feminine to even consider running such a long distance. It took quite a while just to allow females to run farther than 800 meters at a time, as ridiculous as it sounds now. Those attitudes were still in place in the late 1960s, but cracks were starting to develop. You probably can credit the women's movement of that time with helping to change some minds. But more importantly, a few women simply liked to run long distances and were determined to do it. The walls eventually came down during the course of the 1970s, and a women's marathon was greenlighted for the Los Angeles Games of 1984. </p><p>After setting up the backstory, Lane moves toward the main event. We were lucky to have some great runners then who were really ahead of their time. They may not have had the depth of competition that today's runners do, but their achievements can hold up in any time period. Benoit joined with Grete Waitz, Ingrid Kristiansen and Rosa Mota to dominate the sport for several years. They combined to win all of the Olympic and World Championships in the 1980s. </p><p>They for the most part were generally unprepared for the rush of fame and publicity that hit them as the sport became more popular with fans. Running is often a solitary exercise, and glory probably was that last thing that all of them expected when they hit their final finish line as world-class athletes. But they did it anyway. </p><p>And they did it without often competing again the other top runners. It's fascinating to think that this group of runners all lined up on the same starting line once in their lives - and it came in Los Angeles in 1984. </p><p>Lane has the time and space to include some of the lesser players in the story. Other runners turn up as well, and some of the administrators - like the New York Marathon's Fred Lebow - are memorable in their own way. He talked to some of the principals as well as several others for the book, and he obviously did as much homework as he could under the circumstances. The one oddity I noticed is that for all of that research, there aren't many quotes in the story. But that won't affect your enjoyment.</p><p>It took a little more than 17 years to go from Kathrine Switzer, the first woman to be registered for the Boston Marathon in 1967, to Benoit's win in Los Angeles. Those years probably seemed endless to those involved then, but common sense eventually won out. "Long Run to Glory" is a good place to fine out how that happened.</p><p><b>Four stars</b></p><p>Learn more about this book from <a href="http://Amazon.com" target="_blank">Amazon.com</a>. (As an Amazon affiliate, I earn money from qualified purchases.) <span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""> </span></p><p><span class="author notFaded" data-width=""><i>Be notified of new posts on this site via "X" @WDX2BB. <br /></i></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0