OT: Best Sports Book Ever?

[Fishy]

My first reaction to the thread title was that my favorite was either the Venetian or the Mirage.

Maybe I should start reading more.

 

[meyers7]

Fever Pitch - Bruce Hornby (better/different than either movie)
Taboo: Why Black Athletes Dominate Sports and Why We are Afraid to Talk About It - Jon Entine (very interesting, not as provocative as you would think, read)

 

[Adesmar123]

Best sports book ever?

Louie on Main St above the barber shop....quick to call back when you call...pays off quickly and has beed known to let you slide for a week.

Could there be anyone better?

 

[VAUConnFan]

Ramblers - Michael Lenehan(great read, fantastic book about the 1963 national champion Loyola of Chicago Ramblers)
Just Let Me Play - Charlie Sifford with James Gullo

 

[huskyblooz]

"Fatso" by Art Donovan
"The Matheny Manifesto" by Mike Matheny
"The Winner Within" by Pat Riley

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

In These Girls, Hope is a Muscle - great chronicle of a high school season (with Stanford great Jamila Wideman)

My Losing Season - fascinating coming of age story

The first one you mention was excellent. I like to read, but can't say I have read all that many sports books (or much of anything in the last 20 or so years).

Among WBB books, I haven't read all that many, but I enjoyed Pat's earlier book (not the "motivational" one) and my wife enjoyed Pat's last book. I enjoyed parts of the others that I read, including Geno's and Vivian's.

 

[easttexastrash]

Nothing not to like about SEABISCUIT. Wonderful story, brilliantly presented!

Seabiscut was a bit salty for my taste.

 

[Blakeon18]

I just loved the Chip Hilton series when a lad.

BTW:' In these Girls...' has a lengthy account of the Mass. D1 title game in Worcester...maybe in 1993. I was at that game.
Wideman had one of the 3 best high school permformances I have seen live. The other two:

"Buckets" Prince had 38 in a close win for Murry Bergtraum over CTK with soph Tina Charles going for 16/16 in the NYS tourney in Glens Falls.
Stewie had 42/24 in a rout over Ossining in the NYS tourney...Saniya had 21 in the same game.

In These Girls recollections:

Amherst High was underdog to eastern Ma. power Haverhill. With Jamilla leading the way Amherst broke out to an 18-4 lead.
TO for Haverhill: they scored a bucket after the TO....18-6. Amherst finished the half at 53-6!! Yikes! A 35-0 run....uhh...UConn-like!
Wideman had around 28 points with around 10 boards....10 assists...10 steals. Geno did recruit her....and Stanford did make a final four
in her years there....no rings. Maybe it was in 1997....she started...pretty sure.

BTW: same year in Worcester I went to see our recruit Carla Berube lead her Oxford High team to the D2 title ...had 32 against a team from eastern Ma. with Breezy Stepherson starting for that team....as a 7th grader.
Breezy initially gave a verbal to Geno....recanted at some point....went to BC. That same class gave us Keirsten Walters and one Sue Bird. Would Sue have come to UConn
with both Keirsten and Breezy on board?

 

[Orangutan]

Fall River Dreams was excellent. I loved the ESPN doc Unguarded about Chris Herren, so I felt compelled to check out the book, which profiles Herren's high school team during his senior year. Very good on its own but especially good having seen the doc and knowing how the story ends.

Among the Thugs is a classic about European soccer culture, at least as it used to be.