Review of "Above the Noise"

There was a lot of pre-publication buzz about this book and after reading it, I believed it lived up to the hype.  Here is my review of "Above the Noise", the memoir of DeMar DeRozan. 

Title/Author:

“Above the Noise: My Story of Chasing Calm” by DeMar DeRozan

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (excellent)

Review:

When NBA star DeMar DeRozan made a simple tweet to state that he wasn’t okay, no one expected the outpouring of not only support but also the attention that it would lead to the mental health of athletes.  While that was probably the best part of his memoir, it is one of the better sports memoirs I have read and one that every basketball fan will want to add to their library.

The format of the book isn’t much different than any other sports memoir – stories about his childhood, who helped push him into the athlete he became, his successes and failures that he endured along the way to where he is now.  What made this one stand out from others to me was his refreshing humility.  He was raised in Compton and frequently mentions the hard day-to-day life in that section of Los Angeles. He never forgets his roots when he is now living a much different lifestyle and it’s clear from the writing that this isn’t just being told to sound good – he truly does care for that community.

DeRozan is also frank about his personal relationships, whether with teammates, coaches or his wife and children.  He is honest about the struggles in his marriage and while his commitment to stay together with her may come across as “staying together for the children,” it is clear that part of his process of dealing with his mental health matters includes ensuring his relationships are strong as well.

And yes, there is plenty of basketball in the book.  It was clear that despite changing teams twice (from Toronto to San Antonio to Chicago) when he did not want to leave either time, he was able to quickly adjust and not only be welcomed, but welcomed being in a new city with new teammates despite missing his family.  He talks about his all-star seasons in Toronto, his relationship with coach Greg Popovich with the Spurs and his new role with the Bulls in helping them regain some of the glory they had in the days of Michael Jordan.

It's the feeling of refreshing honesty that made this book a very good read and one that I completed fairly quickly.  Hopefully this book will not only be a good one for basketball fans, but also for anyone who is dealing with mental health issues.  Reading about DeMar’s story is something that hopefully will be able to help others dealing with similar issues.

I wish to thank Harmony Publishing for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own. 

Link: Above the Noise: My Story of Chasing Calm: DeRozan, DeMar, Zarum, Dave, Popovich, Gregg: 9780593581261: Amazon.com: Books

Review of "When the Game Was War"

While wishing all American readers a happy Independence Day today, I decided to write a review on a book about the American game.  No, not baseball or football, but basketball since it was invented by an American without roots from other games in other countries.  This book covered a great era of the professional game and for the most part, I enjoyed it.  Here is my review of "When the Game Was War." 

 

Title/Author: “When the Game Was War: The NBA’s Greatest Season” by Rich Cohen

Rating: 4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review: Just as there are many arguments between sports fans about who is the greatest team, athlete or event in a particular sport, this can also come up about the greatest season for a league.  This book by Rich Cohen makes the case that the 1987-88 season was the greatest for the NBA.  While it may not convince every reader that 1987-88 was the best season (including this reviewer – I chose another one in his honorable mention list, 1976-77), Cohen does make a compelling case for this argument.

The book reads better as a long editorial than as a history of that basketball season.  Not only does Cohen make his case about the 1987-88 season, he also makes a case for Isaiah Thomas to be included as one of the greatest players not only of that time – to be included in the conversation with Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan – but also of all time.  While I did see a point to the main topic of the book, I do not agree with this assertion and at times, it feels like Cohen is writing more as a fan than as an author or historian when talking about Thomas. Bringing up Thomas’ infamous quote about Larry Bird more than once and defending it by saying it was a thought many Black players had felt like a defense of Thomas.  Cohen does point out his own biases toward not only Thomas and for the reason he felt 1987-88 was the best one, hence why I called the book more of an opinion piece.

I will also note that I have read reviews that point out many factual errors, a few of which I caught without needing to verify them.  Because I read an advance review copy, these were not detrimental to the goal I had for this book, which was to see why Cohen felt this was the best season.  There is also the matter of referring to a season by the latter year (i.e. 1987-88 would be 1988) which is inconsistent throughout the book.  Again, something that will hopefully be cleaned up in the final edition.

But…the positives far outweigh the negatives in this book, especially if the reader is a fan of basketball in that era.  The season is viewed through four teams – the Los Angeles Lakers (who ended up winning the championship), the Detroit Pistons (who lost in the Finals to the Lakers), the Boston Celtics (who lost to the Pistons in the Eastern Conference finals) and the Chicago Bulls (who lost to the Pistons in the Eastern Conference semi-finals). These four teams made the most sense to include, especially looking back now.  There was the reigning champs (Lakers), the old dynasty ready to end (Celtics), the hungry (and physical) team ready to take over (Pistons) and the new kids on the block getting ready to crash the party (Bulls).  Each team had a compelling chapter in the book and made for excellent reading.

Reading about the matchups during the season and in the playoffs between two of the four featured teams was also great.  Enough detail to truly feel how close the game was, and in the case of many Pistons games, how physical and even violent the play went. This was an era when the game’s big men played in the paint and not often out on the perimeter as Cohen notes.  While he doesn’t explicitly say this, I get the impression that he preferred this type of basketball.  I did as well and why despite the reservations I wrote earlier, I really enjoyed this book and fans of that era of professional basketball will as well.

I wish to thank Random House Publishing Group for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Link: Amazon.com: When the Game Was War: The NBA's Greatest Season eBook : Cohen, Rich: Kindle Store

 

Review of "Unguarded"

While I cannot call myself a fan of the Chicago Bulls' run of championships in the 1990's, I did enjoy watching them.  So when I saw that Scottie Pippen has written his memoir, I wanted to pick up a copy, but waited a little while for the hype to die down and see what other readers thought.  Those reviews didn't affect my decision - still picked it up and I am glad I did.  Here is my review of "Unguarded"

Title/Author: “Unguarded” by Scottie Pippen

Rating: 5 of 5 stars (excellent)

Review: To state the obvious, when the Chicago Bulls won six NBA titles in eight years during the 1990’s, they were led by one of the greatest players in the history of the game, Michael Jordan.  However, there was also another Hall of Fame player on those teams who at times felt like he was not given his proper due.  In this memoir, Scottie Pippen gets to tell his version of the Bulls’ championship years as well as other stories from his life and career.

This book may come across to some readers as whining, complaining or bitterness because of Pippen’s criticism of several people. These include the general manager of the Bulls during that time, Jerry Krause; his first coach in Chicago Doug Collins and his future teammate in Houston Charles Barkley. There is also criticism of Jordan – that is how the book starts out with Pippen’s account of how he felt upon the airing of the documentary “The Last Dance” in April 2020. It is true that Pippen did feel that the team and his teammates slighted him many times, on and off the court. Because he did not deny this and instead explained why he was upset about certain issues was something I liked about the book and Pippen’s stories.

This does not necessarily mean that I would agree with everything he said or that because of his explanation I would change my opinion of what he did, but the honesty is refreshing.  He doesn’t care whether one agrees or disagrees with him, whether they like it or loathe it, he just tells his version. This does clarify some things, most notably his decision to sit on the bench instead of inbound the ball with 1.8 seconds left in a 1994 playoff game.  It is something that so many remember about Pippen (which is a shame because he was so much better than this one incident) that he dedicated an entire chapter of the book on this, titles “1.8 Seconds.”  Just like the rest of the book, he simply describes his version and why he did what he did.  Let the reader draw their own conclusion.

His relationship with Jordan is also explained honestly, in Pippen’s viewpoint. Yes, they did not always come across as the best of friends, but to call them enemies would not be accurate, at least according to Pippen. His explanation is basically that Jordan is his own person and so is Pippen. There was respect, even with the anger Pippen felt after “The Last Dance” but there was never any overt hostility.

One other aspect of this book I really liked was his writing about the important games with the Bulls, especially those in their playoff runs.  He mixes play-by-play accounts with his vision of the game on the court and some of the more memorable occurrences.  One story that I thought would generate more text but was really kept short was Pippen’s famous remark to Utah Jazz great Karl Malone in the NBA Finals that the “Mailman” (Malone’s nickname) doesn’t deliver and that made Malone miss a key free throw.  He downplays that event but does play up other key moments whether he was involved or another teammate.

Pippen does write about other teammates as well, such as Dennis Rodman, Horace Grant and Charles Oakley.  He is just as frank with his opinions of them as he is very grateful for those who helped him get to the NBA.  He speaks reverently about his parents, his high school and college coaches (even if one of them was very tough on him) and others who helped steer him on his path to the Basketball Hall of Fame.

This book won’t change one’s mind about Pippen whether a reader liked him or not, or felt that he would complain too much or that he was not given his proper respect for his role in the Bulls dynasty.  Regardless, if one is a fan of the Bulls dynasty or of professional basketball at that time, this is an excellent read.

Link: Amazon.com: Unguarded eBook : Pippen, Scottie: Kindle Store

 

Review of "Glory Days"

This book was one of those "perfect" sports history books - far enough back to be truly a book on history, but recent enough that readers of a certain age will remember many of the events.  That was the case for me and as a result, I thoroughly enjoyed "Glory Days"

Title/Author:

"Glory Days: The Summer of 1984 and the 90 Days That Changed Sports and Culture Forever" by L. Jon Wertheim

Tags:

Basketball, baseball, ice hockey, Summer Olympics, tennis, professional, Bulls, Cubs, history

Publish date:

June 15, 2021

Length:

336 pages

Rating:

5 of 5 stars (excellent)

Review:

1984 was a year that was not only popularized by George Orwell's novel written 35 years earlier, but also was a year that was a watershed one in several sports, most notably professional basketball, tennis and the Summer Olympics.  Those moments and what they meant in the history of not only sports but also for social and political movements are captured in this excellent book by long-time Sports Illustrated (SI) writer L. Jon Wertheim.

The best passages are those about basketball and tennis, two sports he covered regularly for SI.  The passages on Michael Jordan, especially near the end of the book, are very compelling.  This is true whether they are about his basketball or his marketing appeal, especially for a relatively unknown shoe company at the time called Nike.  The reader will learn much about the 1984 Jordan, especially his connection with Nike.  Of course, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson are included as well, including a great chapter on the NBA Finals that year with Bird's Celtics winning a thrilling 7 game series over Johnson's Lakers.

As for the tennis, the main personalities of his focus are the two players who were nearly unbeaten that entire year, John McEnroe and Martina Navratilova. While the stories on McEnroe are good, Navratilova's story is even better, especially as she was one of the first athletes to speak out on social issues.  For her, there were plenty – an immigrant who became an American by defection, her coming out as a lesbian, her hiring of a transgender coach, Dr. Renee Richards and even her training regiment.  For the latter, she developed a muscular tone, considered to be taboo for female athletes at the time.  I found this connection to many of the female athletes today who are activists like Megan Rapinoe and Serena Williams quite fascinating.

There are other important athletes and teams of from that year, most notably the Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles.  Instead of focusing solely on the boycott by the Soviet Union and other communist nations, the text focuses on the athletes and the organizer of the games.  Portrayals of Mary Decker and Mary Lou Retton are notable, but the best writing on the Games was about the director, Peter Ueberroth and his determination to make the Games not only memorable but also profitable. His success with them led to him being named the new commissioner of baseball that year.  Throw in some writing about Wayne Gretzky, Ryne Sandberg and the Chicago Cubs and even Mike Tyson trying out for the Olympic boxing team and you have a great book that captures the sports pulse for that summer.

I wish to thank Houghton Mifflin for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Book Format Read:

E-book (PDF)

Buying Links:

https://www.amazon.com/Glory-Days-Changed-Culture-Forever-ebook/dp/B08B3LB95H/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

 

Review of "No Malice"

This memoir certainly didn't read like many other sports memoirs - but then Metta World Peace, formerly known as Ron Artest, didn't exactly have a career and life similar to many other athletes, hence my interest in reading this book.  Here is my review of his memoir.

Title/Author:

“No Malice: My Life in Basketball or: How a Kid from Queensbridge Survived the Streets, the Brawls and Himself to Become an NBA Champion” by Metta World Peace and Ryan Dempsey

 

Tags:

Basketball, memoir, Lakers, Pacers, Bulls, Knicks, Rockets  

Publish date:

May 15, 2018

Length:

282 pages

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (outstanding)

Review:

Excellent basketball memoir Usually a sports memoir will follow the same pattern. An ex-athlete will talk about his childhood, his career while playing his chosen game and his life after retiring. While some of this is true for Metta World Peace (formerly known as Ron Artest), his story takes on extra meaning because of his willingness to talk about his mental health issues so candidly. He does verify some of his more off beat moments, such as working at Circuit City while still a player.Usually a sports memoir will follow the same pattern. An ex-athlete will talk about his childhood, his career while playing his chosen game and his life after retiring. While some of this is true for Metta World Peace (formerly known as Ron Artest), his story takes on extra meaning because of his willingness to talk about his mental health issues so candidly. He does verify some of his more off beat moments, such as working at Circuit City while still a player. He does speak frankly about the infamous brawl in Detroit during the 2004 season that cost him nearly five million dollars in salary and many years of bad memories. But it's clear to a reader that he has turned things around and, appropriately enough, seems to be at peace with himself. Any basketball fan who knows about Artest/ World Peace should pick up this book. A great and fast read, one will be happy with the eventual outcome of a man who finally is at peace with him

 

Book Format Read:
E-book (Kindle)

Buying Links:

https://www.amazon.com/No-Malice-Basketball-Queensbridge-Survived/dp/1629374032/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

 

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/no-malice-metta-world-peace/1126250975?ean=9781629374031#/

Review of "Eleven Rings"

Phil Jackson is the type of coach for whom I have a soft spot in my heart.  Because he coached two teams loaded with superstar talent, he and others in similar positions (Joe Torre and Bill Belichek to name a couple) will be told that they got "lucky" because "anyone could win with those players."  I never believe that nonsense as it takes a special person to be able to take superstar players with massive egos and blend them together to play well as a team.   In the book "Eleven Rings" , Jackson describes just how he did that with two very different types of teams.   Here is my review of this book.

Title/Author:

“Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success” by Phil Jackson and Hugh Delehanty

 

Tags:

Basketball, professional, NBA, Bulls, Lakers, autobiography, coaching, Jordan, Pippen, Kobe, Shaq

Published:

May 23, 2013

Length:

393 pages

Rating:

4 1/2 of 5 stars (excellent)

Review:

Phil Jackson has proven with his previous books that he is as skilled a writer as he is a basketball coach, and he shows it again with “Eleven Rings.”  This book is mostly a recap of his coaching stints with both the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers.  He talks about what he had to do to take these teams that were loaded with talent and make them blend together into a cohesive team in order to win all those championships.

There are some aspects of leadership that books about business leadership use.  However, Jackson will put a unique spin on how he might use this model, so that it becomes clear that he is not doing this from a manual, but instead putting his own perspective and methods into the work he does with his teams.   One of these is that he often refers to his teams as a “tribe” and each member of the tribe will know what his role is in order for the goals to be achieved.

What I liked best about Jackson’s sharing of his coaching secrets was how he treated different individuals differently.   He realized that one method will not work for everyone, and because his teams had so many superstars with egos to match their talent, he worked on each individual in methods to which the certain player would most respond positively.

Jackson described how he did this with his superstar players on each team – Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman on the Bulls, Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal on the Lakers.   I thought the best example of this was how Jackson handled a situation with Pippen during the 1994 playoffs, when the Bulls were playing without Jordan who had gone into his first retirement.

Pippen was supposed to inbound a pass to Toni Kukoc for a last second shot in a playoff game against the New York Knicks.   Pippen was not happy to have this role for the play and refused to leave the bench after a time out.  Jackson made a quick substitution for Pippen.  Kukoc made the shot, the Bulls won the game, and the coaching staff decided on what to do about Pippen.  After one assistant coach told Pippen it was a bad move (in much saltier language), the team said the Lord’s Prayer, Pippen apologized to his teammates with tears in his eyes, and everyone got a turn to state how they felt.  That doesn’t sound like much when a team leader says no to the coach in such a crucial time, but because Jackson knew that this type of action would affect Pippen greater than a fine or suspension, that is what Jackson did. 

It is stories like this, the manner in which Jackson treats his player and most importantly, how he articulates this in the book is why I believe this is a book that would be enjoyed by readers of all types, whether or not they are sports fans.  The personal stories in this book are refreshing, not judgmental, and a source of great information on some of the biggest names in basketball history.  Excellent book.   

 

Did I skim?

No

Did I learn something new?

Yes.  While I did know of some of the more well-publicized events of Jackson’s teams, such as how he handled Scottie Pippen’s meltdown in the 1994 playoffs or when the Lakers didn’t immediately offer him new contracts, the manner in which Jackson handled these situations was telling.  These passages delved much deeper than what was told in the media.   The best of these was how he handled Scottie Pippen’s situation, which is detailed in the review.

Pace of the book:

Very good.  It moved along nicely and stayed in chronological order, which is something I appreciate.

 

Positives:

The manner in which Jackson describes how he handled many of his players, especially his best players such as Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal was the strength of this book.  I also liked that it stuck mostly with basketball-related issues.  Jackson certainly did talk about literature, spiritual life and other such topics, but instead of full chapters devoted to these topics, he mentioned them as they related to his teams and/or coaching.

Negatives:

At times, I found Jackson to come across as condescending toward other teams, players and coaches that may not have achieved the same level of success as he has achieved.   That has been a consistent characteristic mentioned by Jackson’s distracters over the years, and it seems to show in this book.  Not enough to be blatant or libelous but it does appear nonetheless.  I also found a few typos and spelling errors, especially of some opponents’ names.

Do I recommend?

Yes, especially for basketball fans.  However, I think that fans of other sports and even some readers who may not be sports fans, but want to see how successful leaders build teams would like this book.  

Book Format Read:

eBook (Kindle)

Buying Links:

http://www.amazon.com/Eleven-Rings-Soul-Success-ebook/dp/B00AEBEVTQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1374449161&sr=1-1&keywords=elven+rings

 

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/eleven-rings-phil-jackson/1113833133?ean=9781101617960