The Art of a Beautiful Game: The Thinking Fan's Tour of the NBA (Sports Illustrated) | 
| Author: Chris Ballard
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Category: Book
List Price: $26.00
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Rating:  16 reviews
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 228
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 9.6 x 6.4 x 1
ISBN: 1439110212
Dewey Decimal Number: 796.32364
EAN: 9781439110218
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Product Description
In The Art of a Beautiful Game, Chris Ballard, the award-winning Sports Illustrated writer who has covered the NBA for the past decade, goes behind the scenes to examine basketball in ways that will surprise even die-hard fans. An inveterate hoops junkie who played some college ball, Ballard sits down with the NBA's most passionate, cerebral players to find out their tricks of the trade and to learn what drives them, taking readers away from the usual sports talk radio fodder and deep into the heart of the game.Ballard talks to Dwight Howard, a prolific shot-blocker, about the enervating feeling of meeting another man at the height of his leap; challenges Steve Kerr to a game of H-O-R-S-E to understand the mentality of a pure shooter; reveals the roots of Kobe Bryant's unmatched killer instinct; and spends time with LeBron James to better understand both his mental game and his seemingly unlimited physical skills. He tracks down renowned dunkers from Dominique to Shaq to explore the impact of the dunk on the modern game, shadows Shane Battier during his preparations to defend LeBron, takes lessons from a freethrow shooting guru who once hit 2,750 in a row, and attends an elite NBA training camp to feel the pain that turns a prospect into a pro. Packed with lively characters and basketball history, and grounded in superb writing and the reportage that is the hallmark of Sports Illustrated, The Art of a Beautiful Game is an often witty, always insightful look at the men like Steve Nash, Yao Ming, and Alonzo Mourning who devote themselves to this elegant and complicated sport. It ultimately provides basketball fans what they all want: an inside read on the game they love.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 16
 Fun, informative read November 18, 2009
Peter J. Mcentegart (New York, NY)
11 out of 12 found this review helpful
It's fashionable to say that pro athletes don't have anything interesting to say. Maybe that's because they're not being asked the right questions. Chris Ballard, who covers the NBA for Sports Illustrated, asks the right questions. Namely, he gets players to talk at length on what they're most passionate about -- the intricacies of the sport that is their life's work. These men are justifiably proud of their tricks of their trade, and they'd much rather describe how best to challenge a shooter without fouling him or block a shot from the weak side than answer the umpteenth question on where they might sign their next contract. It helps, too, that Ballard is a former college player and lifelong gym rat who can convince the players that he speaks their language, even if it turns out (SPOILER ALERT!) he may or may not be able to beat Steve Kerr in a 3-point shootout.
Perhaps best of all, Ballard relates all this insider scoop as if he was one of your buddies sharing a beer. That's presuming that one of your pals is able to get face time with Kobe, LeBron, Yao and company and report back not just with the hard facts but the juicy nuggets and gossip that make a night at the bar so sublime. That's what this book is: the ideal virtual drinking companion for the NBA fan. Bottoms up.
Entertaining as hell, A gem of reporting by a true Insider November 30, 2009
Daniel Greenstone
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
This book is a real insider's gem of reporting. Chris Ballard does for basketball what George Will did for baseball, in Men at Work. Ballard's tenacious reporting skills, and obvious passion for the NBA make this book a treat for NBA fans (like myself), who want to know how the best NBA players approach their craft. Additionally, Ballard has a gift for getting behind the stars' carefully groomed personas, to give us glimpses of the players' passions and fears (who knew that Eric Snow made a highlights dvd of him dunking in college, to silence the mockery of his younger teammates). I just loved how Ballard tracked down Kobe's benchwarmer hs teammate and nash's hs coach, to gain a sense of their character. This kind of shoe-leather-heavy effort makes it seem that most sports reporters are lazy. Maybe they aren't, but with this book Ballard stands out from the pack. If you like the NBA, buy this book.
I really liked it. Eye-opening & funny November 13, 2009
Peter Demarco (Boston, MA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I've always thought that NBA players rely pretty much on god-given athleticism to go out and score 20. But this book shows just how insanely dedicated the best ballplayers are about mastering skills like shot-blocking, boxing out or shooting a trey. I mean, they really study the stuff. Each of the profiles - Kobe, Yao Ming, Reggie Miller, etc. - could be titled, "Here's exactly what I'm thinking when I'm on the court. Glad you asked." Players actually love talking about the six different foot drills they do each day, the angle they hold their hands when they push off a screen, etc. And when they open up about that stuff, you start to get a sense about who they really are as people. Well, at least a far better sense than with most of the stuff I read or see about the NBA.
The author, who played college hoops, also engages players on and off the court for some pretty funny personal anecdotes - his story about meeting Shaq on his big, bad motorcycle is priceless. There's just tons of great details in the book about locker room rituals, player rivalries, etc, too. Call it a cliche, but I don't think I'll watch an NBA game the same way again.
Fascinating Insights into the Thinking of NBA Players November 29, 2009
Marilyn A. Windham (Lincoln, CA USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I love NBA basketball and I loved this book. Chris Ballard does an excellent job covering the quintessential areas of basketball: Pure shooting, rebounding nuances, the dunk, the paradoxes of the free throw, shot blocking and more. He has carefully selected examples about well-known players, past games, and basketball highlights worth reviewing again and again. His spin is not so much on basketball mechanics, but the mental aspect of players and how that effects their performances for better or worse. Reading this book will forever change the way I watch a basketball game. Ballard's chapter on the art of rebounding has made me pay much more attention to those like Dwight Howard, who have honed this skill. It is the kind of book that I didn't want to put down.
Finally, a book with more substance than style December 2, 2009
D. Zehr (California)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I never played a day of organized basketball, despite my 6-6 height and a wingspan reminiscent of Tayshaun Prince. Only in recent years, now that my vertical measures the same as a crippled hippo, have I started playing rec ball on anything approaching a regular basis. I just never connected with the game in a way that many of my friends have. I never liked the style-over-substance impression I always got from watching NBA ball. Playing more regularly helps me appreciate the sport in a way I never did in the past. This book actually got me appreciating the NBA game in a way I never did in the past.
I had to read a lot of reviews about this book before deciding to buy a copy. I have zero interest in reading yet another image-controlled, David Stern-approved look at NBA stardom. (If you're on the fence, like I was, go online and Google this book. Read the reviews from the people who live and breathe the game.) Like those guys, I didn't want the same random crap about a player's life off the court. Hell, I'm just starting to find myself enjoying the game on a new level; I want to know why the greatest players in the world love it as much as they do. What motivates them? How do they approach the game? What is the substance behind all that NBA-approved sheen? This book, more than any other I've read, peels away all the crap and carves right down to what makes Kobe so lethal, LeBron so powerful and Battier so maddening to opponents.
I think Ballard is the kind of guy who loves the monster dunk, yet knows when it's just another two points and when it truly swings momentum. There's a difference there that never shows up on those ridiculous ESPN highlights. That's the substance of the game, the stuff I'm starting to really connect with now that I'm playing. And that's the stuff that Ballard brings out so well in this book.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 16
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