Basketball Books

FOR THOSE WHO LOVED THE MOVIE,"HOOSIERS", YOU WILL LOVE THIS ONE, AS THIS BOOK WILL BRING BACK MEMORIES WHEN WINNING IN HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL ACTUALLY PULLED COMMUNITIES TOGETHER. THE WILL TO WIN WAS INSPIRING AND THE CHARACTERS AND STORYS WERE COMPELLING.

Rick Barry wrote eight books covering eight NBA seasons, basically for general managers and coaches. They provide scouting reports by one of the games 50 greatest players. Written in B-Ball jargon Barry provides readers with a keen insight into athletic talent and its application or mis-application whichever the case.

After perusing all eight books, I looked up the first five players drafted in every year back into the late seventies. Lo, I found that unless your team had one of the first three players taken in the entire draft your team did not win the NBA title. Furthermore I concluded that, after 13 years of holding season tickets for the Bullets, the teams that won most often have 8-9 good players vs those that lose who have only 3-4 good players. But, the pivotal player who carries the team must be present for ultimate success to be realized.

To draw a comparison, I learned years ago that there were one million high school football players. These reduced to 70,000 college players and then condensed further to 1200 NFL players. These remaining players averaged 3-4 years in the league, but the top 100-125 played for 10-15 years. The team who had the most of these head-and-shoulders better players won the championship. I believe this model holds true in all sports at all levels. It fits with a basis tenet of chaos theory and also with Mike Hart's book "the 100: A Ranking of the 100 most influential people in history." Thus I maintain that it's a model for how free markets and their unfettered, spontaneous ordering arrange civilizations. This leads into why western civilization has succeeded in raising living standards more for the common man in contrast to command and control economies.

Too bad Rick B. and Jordan Cohn stopped after the '97 season. It was great stuff for contemplative fans.

I recently found this book while moving, and boy, is it great. It features Shaq before he got fat, Hakeem Olajuwan before he funded terrorism, Shawn Kemp before he found crack cocaine, and Latrell Sprewell before he was a threat to A) strangle a coach or B) not feed his children. I can think of a lot worse ways to spend a quarter.

I always knew that Jordan came across well in the media and had a lot to say about a lot of things, but this book makes him sound like a motivational genius. I counted more than 300 quotes in this book, some by others talking about Jordan, and it's incredible. This is a terrific coffee-table book and collector's item.

We've all felt a bit lackluster at times in our life, but this book will get you going again in any situation. The quotes cover a wide range of topics by a ton of different people. It helps put things in perspective in your life and get you going again. This is a great one to put on your Kindle so you can access it where ever you are when you need a boost. Excellent book!

Riley Wallace, the long-time head basketbal coach at the University of Hawai'i, is one of college basketball's best. What's more, Wallace is one of the true class acts in sports.

This book is a reflection of all that Wallace is, what he stands for and how he coaches. It is a very valuable tool for communicating to the young ballplayer (middle school and high school players should read this over and over), as well as provides insight for the basketball fan.

Highly recommended.

I cannot think of wanting to do anything more than watching a University of Illinois f-ball game at Memorial Stadium. Ever since I was young I have never missed a game if it were possible for me to go. My Junior year in high school I picked up this book on Ray Eliot. The book instantly caught my attention because I love the illini and the forward was written by Ray Nitchzke (former u of i and packer great). In Nitchzke's message he said how Ray Eliot was very compassionate, caring and inspirational. He talked about how he believed Ray was the most inspirational coach he had experienced (this coming from the man who was coached by the great Vince Lombardi). I now play college football and I can truthfully say I wish I too could be inspired by Coach Eliot. This book does that and I constantly look to it for guidance. I believe this is the best book I have ever read (despite the Bible). It teaches its readers about more important aspects in football: sportsmanship, desire, courage, love, etc. These values that Ray Eliot instilled in his players were more important than championships. In his 18 years, Eliot's Illini teams won three big ten titles and two Rose Bowls. They also upset the #1 team in america 3 years in a row at one time in the early 1940s. I'll leave this review with a quote from the first page of his book. --"The boy is more important than the game."-- --Ray Eliot--

WOW! What a refreshing read! This is exactly what our world needs today...literature with a positive message for young girls and boys. The Real Slam Dunk allows children to dream and explore the many possibilities of what they can be when they grow up. This easy reader is a valuable asset in the classroom and at home. It puts a positive look on school, careers, friendships, and family life. I have recommended it to many friends and collegues. I am looking forward to the next book in the series!

Crystal Hicks
Elementary School Educator

In order to make the series more marketable, publisher Tokyopop began publishing Harlem Beat in a new form factor (more in line with the rest of their graphic novels) and a new name, Rebound. The decision is understandable as the name Harlem Beat doesn't indicate that the book is mainly about high school basketball. However, I feel that they didn't do a particularly good job in bridging the gap between the two series. Another minor greivance is that they did not continue using the original cover art from the Japanese series. The covers for Rebound are all B/W interior artwork overlays. This is another marketing decision that may not sit well with manga purists, but I believe that the doors that it will open to new fans may be worth it.

The story picks up where the 9th volume of Harlem Beat leaves off. New readers to the series may find it disorienting to be dropped into the action without knowing any of the characters and being unfamiliar with the previous events. The story revolves around rookie Nate Torres who learns of the joys of basketball through playing streetball. Eventually, his talents lead him to join his high school team, along with running mate Masahiro Sawamura. These two exciting players rejuvenate the team and help them go deep in the tournament, and possibly to a championship.

It is highly recommended that you go back and purchase Harlem Beat 1-9 in order to get the whole picture. Nate learns some important techniques in the "Harlem Beat" part of the series, and establishes some important bonds as well. The original Japanese series ran for 24 volumes, so there will be a total of 15 volumes of Rebound, plus the 9 volumes that Tokyopop published as Harlem Beat.

Yuriko Nishiyama, the creator of the series, is actually a female artist who has done many sports related series before. Despite being published originally in Japan under a "Shonen" (boy manga) label, the series has a somewhat "Shoujo" (girls-manga) flair with it's pretty boys and panel layouts. But it won't disappoint the sports enthusiast either. There will inevitably be comparisons to the other basketball manga being published currently in the US, Slam Dunk by Takehiko Inoue (published by Raijin Comics). But the styles are completely different between these two creators, and they both have their merits. Harlem Beat/Rebound stands on its own with strong characters and exciting pacing and action. Definitely check it out.

Back when I read the first installment of Harlem Beat (predecessor to Rebound) in Mixx Zine issue 1-6 in June of 1998, I was stunned by the notion that a sports manga would be so enjoyable and entertaining. The author, Yuriko Nishiyama, shared her love of basketball in this 18 volume series, and I could not imagine I would still follow and enjoy this series almost a decade later.

Rebound volume 18 takes place a year later in the story. The high school seniors are graduating, and a new Johnan High School basketball team is being formed. The author focuses on the friendships that were formed on the court in both streetball and high school basketball, and uses the wide cast of characters to give a fond farewell to the long time followers of this manga series.

This final volume is a nice wrap up, with cameo appearances by many characters from the early volumes in the series. Kudos to Tokyopop for releasing this volume in time for Christmas, and finally wrapping up the series.