trent24's review against another edition
5.0
I wasn't thrilled about reading 700 pages, but I really enjoyed this book and read it pretty quickly. He does a nice job contextualizing the game and is an excellent story teller. The humor certainly helps keep things light. I enjoyed learning about the greats that were before my time, and his ranking of the best players was a lot of fun. If you are a sports fan in general, this one is worth checking out.
patvulaj's review against another edition
4.0
This book is a labor of love if you are a big-time NBA fan, and I probably wouldn’t be able to recommend it to anyone other than myself because I don’t know anyone else who would want to read this deep into the history of the NBA, but I love the book and I love Bill Simmons.
awallock's review against another edition
5.0
I can't believe I read all 700 pages. Incredible book!
tinnytree's review against another edition
4.0
Well the beast has finally been slain. This really was a massive book that took ages to read, over 2 months on and off.
I had a hard time deciding whether to give it 5 stars or 3 stars so I settled for 4. If you love NBA and Basketball in general you will love this book but Bill Simmon's humor does get a bit old especially after 700 odd pages.
Most of the book is really interesting but it could have probably been a few hundred pages lighter. I loved the footnote addition but it was annoying having to look them up all the time, would have been easier if they were written on the same page instead of at the end of each chapter.
If Simmons writes another book I might read it but I dont know if he could possibly have anything else interesting to write about the NBA.
I had a hard time deciding whether to give it 5 stars or 3 stars so I settled for 4. If you love NBA and Basketball in general you will love this book but Bill Simmon's humor does get a bit old especially after 700 odd pages.
Most of the book is really interesting but it could have probably been a few hundred pages lighter. I loved the footnote addition but it was annoying having to look them up all the time, would have been easier if they were written on the same page instead of at the end of each chapter.
If Simmons writes another book I might read it but I dont know if he could possibly have anything else interesting to write about the NBA.
rwarner's review against another edition
5.0
I bought the hardcover and read it some time ago. I bought the paperback recently and read it. I wasn't disappointed. I'll read it again next year. And the year after that. Simmons has great insight into the NBA, opines magnificently, has an amazing collection of anecdotes, and cracks me up, page after page. Read, for example, his writeup of Dave Cowens.
I'm amazed at the swings he takes at people: Kareem, Vince, Isiah, The Mailman. Hey, Bill! ALL those dudes are bigger and tougher than you, by orders of magnitude! You're a brave dude!
Warning: Simmons gets salty. A lot. If you can't skip over parts while reading, or at least stomach them, this isn't the book for you.
If you love the NBA, you gotta read this book. And Bill: it's not homerism. You can rank Bird over Magic--the Hick from French Lick never clanged FTs in the clutch.
I'm amazed at the swings he takes at people: Kareem, Vince, Isiah, The Mailman. Hey, Bill! ALL those dudes are bigger and tougher than you, by orders of magnitude! You're a brave dude!
Warning: Simmons gets salty. A lot. If you can't skip over parts while reading, or at least stomach them, this isn't the book for you.
If you love the NBA, you gotta read this book. And Bill: it's not homerism. You can rank Bird over Magic--the Hick from French Lick never clanged FTs in the clutch.
strangebehavior's review against another edition
5.0
Fun - I can only hope he does a book every few years as I'd love to get his perspective on the teams/players that have and will come since this first book was written.