Product Description

No one, not the Charlie Finley's A's of the '70s, or the "Bronx Zoo" Yankees of the '80s, or the Michael Jordan-Dennis Rodman Bulls of the '90s was ever as wacky as the current version of the Los Angeles Lakers, coming down the stretch of another season with their star-studded fan base waiting breathlessly to see if they win their fourth title in five years or finally realize their potential for self-destruction and blow themselves all over the landscape.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1449068 in Books
• Published on: 2005-11-30
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 275 pages

From the Inside Flap
No other team in sports—not Charlie Finley’s Swingin’ A’s of the early seventies, or the "Bronx Zoo" Yankees of the late seventies and early eighties, or the Michael Jordan-Dennis Rodman Bulls of the nineties—was ever as wacky as the modern Los Angeles Lakers. It’s been a wild, 44-year ride since 1960, when the Lakers, as stressed-out and zany a crew as any that ever demanded victory of itself, moved to Los Angeles, the world capitol of glitz and seduction. Amazingly, that was only the start of a narrative as tumultuous as it is glorious, and which leads up to the piece de resistance: the long-running Shaq-Kobe Duel of the Titans.

As the Lakers came down the homestretch of another season in 2004, their star-studded fan base waited breathlessly to see if its team would win its fourth title in five years—or finally realize its potential for self-destruction and blow itself all over the landscape (which it ultimately did). Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant, who have been feuding for years, made it abundantly clear that they would have to settle for hating each other long distance after the 2004 campaign. Of course, Shaq and Kobe could have just as easily knocked off another three or four titles as the greatest duo the game has ever seen (Boston general manager Danny Ainge says it was like Wilt playing with Michael Jordan). But with Shaq being upset that the team’s owner liked Kobe more, and Kobe wanting to win titles like Jordan had—with all the glory for one man—the pair couldn’t withstand its feud. Kobe, of course, had more important business pending anyway, with his imminent sexual assault trial-of-the-century approaching. But this is a book about all the artists who made the Lakers great, so many of whom went at least a little out of their minds in the process. This is the story of Jerry West, the icon who was so haunted that he couldn’t even bear to be present when the dynasty he resurrected began winning titles again; Pat Riley, the nobody who became a coaching star and grew so full of himself that he burst like a balloon; Magic Johnson, who was lionized all his career for his smile, and then reviled at the end of it when his secrets came out; the flamboyant Wilt Chamberlain; the forbidding Kareem Abdul-Jabbar; and the enigmatic Phil Jackson. If you want to know how the Lakers ever got this nuts, the answer is they’ve been practicing for years.

About the Author
Mark Heisler covers the NBA for the Los Angeles Times. He worked 10 years for the Philadelphia Inquirer and Bulletin and has been on the pro basketball beat for 20 seasons. He lives in the San Fernando Valley with his wife, Loretta, and their daughter, Emily.

Customer Reviews

AN OK READ
THIS IS ABOUT THE LOS ANGELES LAKERS. THE BOOK GIVES US A LOOK AT MANY OF THE PLAYERS, COACHES AND OWNERS WHO HELPED MAKE THIS ONE OF THE MOST SUCCESSFUL FRANCHISE IN RECENT HISTORY. SOME OF THE STORIES ARE VERY INTERESTING AND WELL WRITTEN. BUT SOME ARE JUST SAME OLD SAME OLD. I LIKED READING ABOUT ELGIN BAYLOR, WILT AND JERRY WEST OF THE EARLY 70'S TEAMS AND THE LAKERS OF THE 80'S WITH MAGIC AND KAREEM. BUT WHEN IT CAME TO THE LAKERS OF THE 2000'S IT WAS THE SAME OLD STUFF. IF YOU LIKE THE LAKERS THEN IT IS WORTH A LOOK.

Mistakes, mistakes, mistakes...
I enjoyed some of the inside stuff, but the number of errors is staggering. The most egregious can be found on Page 32, where we have the following line -- "It (the season) was further disrupted by the punch Kermit Alexander threw that caved in Rudy Tomjanovich's face as the Lakers dropped to 45-37."

Kermit Alexander? As even casual fans know, it was Kermit Washington who threw the punch that almost killed Tomjanovich. While you may wink at the many, many errors -- both factual and typographical -- in this book, one of this magnitude is impossible to excuse.

Deceptive title
The book cover makes one think this is about the Shaq-Kobe feud - and it covers it - but it mostly goes over the history of the organization from it's days in Minneapolis to their eventual move to Los Angeles. I came off thinking Heisler was originally writing a book just about the Lakers history but rushed it out to meet the Kobe-Shaq headlines. It's a good read for a Lakers fan or die-hard NBA fans. If you're looking for anything in-depth about Laker figures such as Kobe, Shaq, or Magic Johnson, I would advise you to look elsewhere but if you want an overview of the Lakers' successful history, this is your book.