Crashing the Borders: How Basketball Won the World and Lost Its Soul at - Softcover

Araton, Harvey

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1439101787 ISBN 13: 9781439101780

Publisher: Free Press, 2008

Synopsis

Unflinching, timely, and authoritative, Crashing the Borders is the beginning of a much-needed conversation about sport and American culture. For those who care about both, this book will be the must-read work of the season.

The game of basketball has gone global and is now the world’s fastest-growing sport. Talented players from Europe, Asia, South America, and Africa are literally crashing the borders as the level of their game now often equals that of the American pros, who no longer are sure winners in international competition and who must compete with foreign players for coveted spots on NBA rosters. Yet that refreshing world outlook stands in stark contrast to the game’s troubled image here at home. The concept of team play in the NBA has declined as the league’s marketers and television promoters have placed a premium on hyping individual stars instead of teams, and the players have come to see that big-buck contracts and endorsements come to those who selfishly demand the spotlight for themselves.

In this taut, simmering book, Harvey Araton points his finger at the greed and exploitation that has weakened the American game and opens a discussion on the volatile, undiscussed subject that lies at the heart of basketball’s crisis: race. It begins, he argues, at the college level, where, too often, undereducated, inner-city talents are expected to perform for the benefit of affluent white crowds and to fill the coffers of their respective schools in what Araton calls a kind of “modern-day minstrel show.” Harvey Araton knows the players well enough to see beyond the stereotypes, and by combining passion and knowledge he calls on the NBA to heal itself and, with a hopeful sense of the possible, he points the way to a better future.

About this title

About the Author

Harvey Araton has been a sports columnist for The New York Times since 1991. The author or coauthor of three other books, he lives in Montclair, New Jersey, with his wife and two hoop-loving sons.

Review

"Harvey Araton has been one of the preeminent sportswriters in the country for two decades, and "Crashing the Borders" shows why. Gracefully written and provocatively argued, it is a narrative rich with depth, originality, and freshness. It does what Araton's writing always does: It makes you think. If a basketball book could be a lottery pick, this would be my first-round selection."

-- Wayne Coffey, author of "The Boys of Winter"

"Harvey Araton -- like every great artist -- possesses incredible levels of vision, passion, perspective, emotion, and touch. His newest book, "Crashing the Borders, " takes us on a journey through the game and world that we love and cherish so much. Combining scalpel-like efficiency with powerfully thunderous analysis, Araton has put together the perfect game. By challenging our souls on every front, Harvey has done his job. The rest is now up to us."

-- Bill Walton, Basketball Hall of Fame member

"Harvey Araton has that rarest of virtues among sports writers: the ability to think critically about a game he loves. Then again, "Crashing the Borders" isn't really sports writing. Sure, Araton knows what makes basketball beautiful. But he also understands how the sport intersects with race and money. As Dick Vitale might say, 'It's America, ba-bee!' But now it's Argentina, Italy, and Croatia as well. This book captures the game's culture and its contradictions with just the right mix of outrage, affection, and intellectual rigor."

-- Mark Kriegel, author of "Namath: A Biography"

"Harvey Araton has been the most original and provocative of sports columnists, and his bittersweet paean to basketball is as devotional as it is critical. It's advocacy journalism at a fine, high pitch."

-- Frank Deford, senior contributing writer, "Sports Illustrated;" voted sportswriter of the year six times

""Crashing the Borders" is a hoops version of "Paradise Lost." A moving elegy to a sport that was once a thing of beauty and is now a train wreck, "Crashing the Borders" points fingers and names names in a way that sports books almost never do. Essential reading for all basketball fans."

-- Joe Queenan, author of "True Believers: The Tragic Inner Life of Sports Fans"

About this edition

• Publisher: Free Press
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 1439101787
• ISBN 13: 9781439101780
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 224