Sports Books

[Shadowlight]

Oddly there is a good books to read thread but not one for sports books that I can tell. There might be a thread from way back but I didn't want to go hunting for it.

Anyway I just finished the superb new book "Shula" by Mark Ribowsky. An easy and enjoyable read it is also a great history book as it catalogues Shula's playing and legendary coaching career that started in the 60's and ended in the 90's. Shula had the odd distinction of being the head coach in one of the most humiliating games ever ( the Colts losing to the Jets in Super Bowl III) and his glorious undefeated season with the Dolphins. He won the Super Bowl the next year making it two but despite those glories he fell short countless times although most of his teams were in the hunt. His QB Marino led teams always fell just short.

Although it is not a main topic of the book as background music you notice the changing NFL as it becomes slowly but surely more caste over the years. Most noticeably at defensive back, running back and wide receiver. The infamous undefeated 1972 Dolphins team had a lot of white starters including two superb safeties in Jake Scott and Dick Anderson.

The book is very attuned to what was going on but he mistakenly listed Patriots running back Craig James as a fullback. Editor should have caught that. Ha.

Ironically I did not know Shula played in the NFL. He was drafted by Cleveland out of a small Catholic College ( he was a running back and defensive back) and went on to start for the Baltimore Colts as a DB from 1953-1956. He had speed and was gritty but was not overly talented.

I also had forgotten that caste prick Jimmy Johnson took his place in Miami and failed miserably.

 

[FootballDad]

When I saw the title of this thread I was expecting something about gambling!

 

[Quiet Speed]

When I saw the title of this thread I was expecting something about gambling!

Same here! Of course, I'm about five miles from a casino with sports betting.

 

[sport historian]

Oddly there is a good books to read thread but not one for sports books that I can tell. There might be a thread from way back but I didn't want to go hunting for it.

Anyway I just finished the superb new book "Shula" by Mark Ribowsky. An easy and enjoyable read it is also a great history book as it catalogues Shula's playing and legendary coaching career that started in the 60's and ended in the 90's. Shula had the odd distinction of being the head coach in one of the most humiliating games ever ( the Colts losing to the Jets in Super Bowl III) and his glorious undefeated season with the Dolphins. He won the Super Bowl the next year making it two but despite those glories he fell short countless times although most of his teams were in the hunt. His QB Marino led teams always fell just short.

Although it is not a main topic of the book as background music you notice the changing NFL as it becomes slowly but surely more caste over the years. Most noticeably at defensive back, running back and wide receiver. The infamous undefeated 1972 Dolphins team had a lot of white starters including two superb safeties in Jake Scott and Dick Anderson.

The book is very attuned to what was going on but he mistakenly listed Patriots running back Craig James as a fullback. Editor should have caught that. Ha.

Ironically I did not know Shula played in the NFL. He was drafted by Cleveland out of a small Catholic College ( he was a running back and defensive back) and went on to start for the Baltimore Colts as a DB from 1953-1956. He had speed and was gritty but was not overly talented.

I also had forgotten that caste prick Jimmy Johnson took his place in Miami and failed miserably.

Ribowsky (a typical left-winger) previously wrote a very negative book about the Mannings. He considered being from Mississippi at that time something of a crime, if you were white. His Shula book (I've read it) has a lot of errors. For example, Ribowsky has the NCAA calling off their football games the day after JFK's assassination. They actually played that day. And Ribowsky writes the Packers "decimated" the Browns 65-12 in the 1965 title game. The actual score was 23-12.

Interestingly, Ribowsky tells us black players didn't always like Don Shula. John Mackey ripped him when Shula left the Colts for the Dolphins.

 

[Shadowlight]

Jerry West is one of those athletes from the past that has fascinated me because he was an elite athlete and considered one of the best players of all time. I currently have him behind only Larry Bird as the best white player to play in the NBA.

Biographer Roland Lazenby's biography is probably the final word on Jerry as it is that comprehensive and detailed. This isn't the first biography I have read by Lazenby. I read his Michael Jordan biography a couple of years ago and was immensely impressed with the scope of that book. To me it is the best book on Jordan so in my mind he has hit two home runs.

My exposure to West as a player is limited. It stretches back to the first NBA final I followed as a child where the Knicks beat the Lakers. These same teams squared off in the finals in 1972 and 1973 too and that is where I remember Jerry. He was a star and great shooter and was known for his defensive prowess. That I do remember. Only after he retired did I read up on his phenomenal athleticism which was a precursor to Michael Jordan. The dribbling was less palm oriented during West's playing days but he was the ultimate athlete with off the chart speed, quickness and leaping ability. His shooting was deadly. I even remember watching live Jerry's half court type shot that sent a Knicks/ Lakers championship final into overtime which of course the Lakers lost. In high school and college he was a steal machine and often rebounded up to 20 plus rebounds despite being under 6'4". He continued his steal rampage as a pro but sadly they didn't keep steal stats back then.

Weird as this may sound I only liked four players back then during the Knicks /Lakers battles, Walt Frazier, Wilt and West. My favorite was PF Dave DeBusschere who was a ferocious rebounder and had a nice mid range sweet jumper. I used to switch who I was rooting for but I think in my true fashion the team I was rooting for lost every time. Ha.

And of course post playing days West dabbled in various NBA stuff before settling into a GM type ( brought in Kobe and was ultra caste in that position) for the Lakers etc. I have always found him a little weird. Arrogant yet reticent at the same time. Off kilter just a bit.

There is a connection to Mickey Mantle in his upbringing. Both came from mining communities and grew up poor although West was probably poorer in West Virginia coal mining land. His dad, unlike Mickey's was not a miner but he was involved in the industry where soot settled on everything. Though I must say the zinc mines in Oklahoma where Mickey grew up was even grimmer than the West Virginia landscape.

Mickey at least was close to his father but both of their mother's were cold but hard working. West resented his father though.

The author sets up a fine historical view of the West family. Worth noting West's ancestry from both sides of his family traces directly back to England. So he is of pure English blood with nothing like say Scottish or Irish mixed in.

It appears two things might account for the slight strangeness vibe one might get from Jerry. Maybe it is just me? First coming from Appalachia he was a true hillbilly and once he left the state to play for the Lakers his inferiority complex about that was deep. Teammate Elgin Baylor nicknamed him "Zeke from Cabin Creek" which grated. And his high pitched accent was constantly being made fun of to the point where Jerry tried very hard to lose his southern accent. I think today people are more understanding about such things.

But the much bigger story was the death of his much beloved older brother David in the Korean War. The event occurred when Jerry was a child and it changed his personality. He became very shy where he would barely speak for spells and he stopped eating which caused his father to beat him. He poured all of his energy into shooting a basketball and for a child who was born with extra long arms he slowly but surely started to make noise in a state that loved basketball.

Lazenby does a great job of detailing each year from high school, his star play at West Virginia U, the Lakers and through his retirement and beyond as Jerry rose to fame to become one of the most respected NBA players of his time. Oscar Robertson was in his same class and they were constantly being compared to one another. But in an inverse of today's stereotypes Robertson was known for his strength and all around skills whereas Jerry was noted for his speed and leaping ability but was considered a little rawer although as a pure shooter Jerry was top notch.

Jerry of course was on the losing end of so many championships. Despite his constant heroics the Bill Russell Celtics continued to thwart the Lakers and West and it ate at his perfectionist personality. And in 1970 the Knicks took care of business. Finally in 1972 the Lakers came though first with a long winning streak which culminated in Jerry's only championship. He had PG duties per say as shooter Gail Goodrich became a key player and Wilt concentrated more on defense and starting the fast break where they finally beat the Knicks. Ironically Jerry, although the rest of his game was terrific, lost his shooting touch during the 1972 playoffs. They would lose to the Knicks the following year and by then Jerry's career started to wind down.

It goes without saying I am still waiting for the "next Jerry West."

 

[BeyondFedUp]

Here's a great video about Jerry West's great career despite winning only the one championship. And to think there wasn't even a three point line during his time. He also made the All Defensive Team five out of the six years it was implemented in his career. He also made the All Star Team all 14 years of his career.