Tip-Off: How the 1984 NBA Draft Changed Basketball Forever

( 2 )

All Available Formats + Editions

——

$13.75

NOOK Book

——

$13.75

Tip-Off: How the 1984 NBA Draft Changed Basketball Forever (eBook) Pub. Date: 9/7/2007 Publisher: Da Capo Press
$0.01

$14.74

Paperback

$0.01

$14.74

Tip-Off: How the 1984 NBA Draft Changed Basketball Forever (First Trade Paper Edition) Pub. Date: 4/21/2008 Publisher: Da Capo Press
$0.25

$25.00

Hardcover

$0.25

$25.00

Tip-Off: How the 1984 NBA Draft Changed Basketball Forever Pub. Date: 4/23/2007 Publisher: Da Capo Press

Customers Who Bought This Also Bought

Advertising

Overview

About the Author:
Filip Bondy is a sports columnist at the New York Daily News, where he has worked since 1993

Editorial Reviews

Booklist

Thoughtful...This mother lode of wouldas, couldas, and shouldas will make very entertaining and informative reading for NBA fans.

Nashville City Paper

A pro basketball fan's dream book, full of insider stories and anecdotes, offering a return to a bygone era.

More Reviews (4) Fewer Reviews

Sports Illustrated

Fascinating.

Yahoo! Sports

If you love the NBA, you won't put this book down...A fascinating story, told true and told well.

Publishers Weekly

It's not the worst mistake in sports history, but it's among the most famous-with the second pick in the 1984 NBA draft, the Portland Trailblazers selected Sam Bowie instead of several future stars, including Michael Jordan. In this tremendously readable book, Bondy tells the full story of that draft, which most experts consider the best ever. Bondy follows six draftees-Bowie, Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon, Charles Barkley, Sam Perkins and John Stockton. With commentary from scouts, general managers, coaches and the players themselves, Bondy draws a portrait of each player from just before the draft to the present day. Bondy perfectly synthesizes exactly why each player landed where he did, examining prevailing draft philosophies, recent roster blunders and the possibility that teams lost on purpose. While not as revelatory as Michael Lewis's Moneyball(Bondy's post mortem of Portland's mistake focuses on familiar themes, particularly the fetishism of height), this book is every bit as enjoyable as the baseball bestseller. Bondy delves deeper into the character of Bowie than anyone has before, revealing a likable man with terrible luck, and gives the reader a sense of how profoundly Jordan, Barkley and Olajuwon reshaped the league. It may not be transcendent enough to breakthrough with nonbasketball fans, but anybody with a cursory interest in the game is in for a treat. (May)

Kirkus Reviews

Savvy overview of a paradigm-shifting moment in basketball, and the legends it created. In 1984, the NBA was hardly the slick hip-hop marketing juggernaut it is today. Teams were just beginning to utilize technology to improve scouting practices, operating budgets were a fraction of their present value and there was still some question as to whether a black athlete could be a successful pitchman in white suburbia. One thing, however, was the same: The draft was a crapshoot, which is why the '84 Portland Trailblazers and 2003 Detroit Pistons inadvertently passed up transcendental talents Michael Jordan and Dwyane Wade, respectively. In sports columnist Bondy's languorous stroll down memory lane, he shares recollections from players, coaches and team executives about that year's now-legendary draft, as significant for the future superstars it birthed-Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon, Charles Barkley, John Stockton-as it was for the fact that it was the last non-lottery draft. (To prevent teams from intentionally losing to improve their draft position, the league instituted a lottery system the following year.) Had the draft yielded Jordan alone, it would have forever altered the game. It was also the first to choose a foreign-born player as number one (Olajuwon), and it decisively affected the fortunes of many major franchises. The author's exhaustive interviews and player profiles aren't particularly revelatory, but any basketball fan will enjoy reading the candid, often conflicting insights and opinions of talent evaluators concerning some of the biggest successes (and busts) in league history. Bondy doesn't devote enough time to analyzing the significance of Olajuwon's selection or how it relatesto the later influx of foreign-born players, and overall analysis of the draft's significance takes a back seat to key players' stories, but overall this is a lively and enlightening look at one of the NBA's decisive turning points. Like an all-star game: lots of style and flair, but not quite enough substance until the closing buzzer. Agent: David Black/David Black Literary Agency

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780306816123
Publisher: Da Capo Press
Publication date: 4/21/2008
Edition description: First Trade Paper Edition
Pages: 304
Sales rank: 616,867
Product dimensions: 5.60 (w) x 8.70 (h) x 0.70 (d)

Meet the Author

Filip Bondy is a sports columnist at the New York Daily News, where he has worked since 1993. He lives in Montclair, New Jersey, with his wife.

Prologue: The Flip     ix
The View from Chapel Hill     1
Decision Time     15
The Achilles Shin     31
Out of Africa, Into Texas     45
The Well-Rounded Recruit     65
Spokane Man     75
Trial by Knight     83
Embracing Defeat     101
Finishing the Picasso     109
Liking Mike     121
The Safe Pick     135
The Imperfect Fit     145
Sweet Sixteen     155
Portland Selects Sam Bowie     165
Not Twins at All     181
After the Fall     193
A Different Kind of Star     203
Far from Eden     217
Charles in Charge     225
The Player's Player     237
Epilogue     247
Acknowledgments     263
Bibliography     267
Index     271

Customer Reviews

Average Rating 4.5

( 2 )

Rating Distribution

5 Star

(1)

4 Star

(1)

3 Star

(0)

2 Star

(0)

1 Star

(0)

Your Rating:

Review Guidelines

Tell the world what you think of this product.

Add Recommendations

Your Name: Create a Pen Name or Leave Anonymously

Barnes & Noble.com Review Rules

Our reader reviews allow you to share your comments on titles you liked, or didn't, with others. By submitting an online review, you are representing to Barnes & Noble.com that all information contained in your review is original and accurate in all respects, and that the submission of such content by you and the posting of such content by Barnes & Noble.com does not and will not violate the rights of any third party. Please follow the rules below to help ensure that your review can be posted.

Reviews by Our Customers Under the Age of 13

We highly value and respect everyone's opinion concerning the titles we offer. However, we cannot allow persons under the age of 13 to have accounts at BN.com or to post customer reviews. Please see our Terms of Use for more details.

What to exclude from your review:

Please do not write about reviews, commentary, or information posted on the product page. If you see any errors in the information on the product page, please send us an email.

Reviews should not contain any of the following:

- HTML tags, profanity, obscenities, vulgarities, or comments that defame anyone
- Time-sensitive information such as tour dates, signings, lectures, etc.
- Single-word reviews. Other people will read your review to discover why you liked or didn't like the title. Be descriptive.
- Comments focusing on the author or that may ruin the ending for others
- Phone numbers, addresses, URLs
- Pricing and availability information or alternative ordering information
- Advertisements or commercial solicitation

Reminder:

- By submitting a review, you grant to Barnes & Noble.com and its sublicensees the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right and license to use the review in accordance with the Barnes & Noble.com Terms of Use.
- Barnes & Noble.com reserves the right not to post any review -- particularly those that do not follow the terms and conditions of these Rules. Barnes & Noble.com also reserves the right to remove any review at any time without notice.
- See Terms of Use for other conditions and disclaimers.

Anonymous

Posted January 11, 2012

Goo

Looks interesting
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.
Anonymous

Posted August 9, 2011

No text was provided for this review.

If you find inappropriate content, please report it to Barnes & Noble