Outside The NBA

If you’re reading this, you already know that Bill Simmons has written a 700-page basketball book. You probably know that, in said book, he proposes a revamped hall of fame for the NBA, with multiple levels, so that it will be clear that guys like Bill Russell and Jerry West mattered more than guys like Earl Monroe and Connie Hawkins. Hell, if you’ve found this little corner of the internet, I’d bet you’ve probably read these two reviews of the book, published today. Pelton is right – this book is amazing argument fodder. You won’t agree with everything Simmons says and, while reading it, you might get the feeling that he’s daring you to go do some research and write him a long e-mail or put together a blog post to counter him. Also, Pierce is right – Simmons goes a bit nuts here with the (lack of) editing. Personally, I’m fine with a mammoth book featuring about four million footnotes and pop culture references, but it will turn a lot of people off. He takes pages to say some things that could be said in paragraphs, and doubtlessly some of his references will either go over your head or bore you. If you’re a busy person and you want to get through the damn thing, this stuff could frustrate you. Incidentally, there’s absolutely no way I’d have finished the book by now, with a 9-5 job and evenings reserved for watching NBA games, if not for getting sick a couple of days after it arrived at my house and been able to spend hours a day reading it.

There’s something real I took from this book, though. (more…)