Values of the Game - Softcover

Bradley, Bill

Softcover

ISBN 10: 157965116X ISBN 13: 9781579651169

Publisher: Artisan, 1998

Synopsis

"In many ways basketball was a lens through which I looked at life—I had learned to make judgments about character from what I saw players do on the court."—Bill Bradley

Bradley, former U.S. senator and presidential candidate and member of two championship New York Knicks teams, returns to the scene of his first career, and first passion, in Values of the Game. In ten esssays, filled with personal observations and reflections, he illustrates how the "right stuff" on the court—risking a last-second shot, staying in shape and playing hard, making the unselfish pass, not giving in until the final buzzer—is a proving ground for the "right stuff" in life. More than one hundred dramatic photographs of the best of the NBA—from legends Elgin Baylor and Bob Cousy, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, to such stars as Kobe Bryant and Grant Hill, to the greatest ever, Michael Jordan—exemplify the power of courage, discipline, selflessness, respect, and fair play.

About this title

About the Author

Bill Bradley was a three-time basketball all-American at Princeton, Olympic gold medalist, Rhodes scholar, member of the New York Knicks from 1967 to 1977 and two-time NBA champion; he was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1982. He served as United States senator from New Jersey from 1979 to 1997. Since leaving the Senate, he has been affiliated with Stanford University, the University of Maryland, and Notre Dame. Mr. Bradley is the author of Life on the Run, The Fair Tax, The Journey from Here, Values of the Game, and, most recently, The New American Story. He is married and has one daughter.

From the Back Cover

Bill Bradley, U.S. Senator from New Jersey from 1979 to 1997 and a member of two championship New York Knicks teams, returns to the scene of his first career, and his first great passion, basketball. Things have changed since his championship days—the shorts are longer and the salaries higher—but what separates winners and losers remains very much the same: No collection of players, no matter how good, can win unless they form a team. And no team can succeed unless it shares common values, among them courage, discipline, resilience, respect, and an unmitigated passion for the game.

In ten essays, filled with intensely personal observations and reflections, Bradley revisits the basketball court with the fire of the competitor and the eye of the writer, and explores these qualities in action: the dynamics of teammates on the court and off; the pure love of the game that leads to the unselfish pass or the screen away from the ball; the individual courage to risk the last-second shot, to face a hostile crowd, to say "I blew it"; the responsibility to teammates, coaches, and fans to stay in shape, play hard, and honor the game.

Values of the Game is illustrated with more than one hundred twenty dramatic photographs of players, coaches, and classic games, culled from the NBA archives and the author's personal collection: from legends such as Bill Russell, Oscar Robertson, and Bob Cousy,!through the brilliant Magic Johnson/Larry Bird years to young stars such as Grant Hill and Glen Rice, and of course the greatest ever, Michael Jordan.

In his best-selling Life on the Run, Bradley offered fans a fascinating account of the day-in day-out experiences of an NBA star. In Values of the Game, he shifts his thinking to a larger universe. He pulls back the curtain once again, letting us in on basketball's secrets—many of which, it turns out, extend to life beyond the hardwood court.

In ten essays, filled with intensely personal observations and reflections, Bradley revisits the basketball court with the fire of the competitor and the eye of the writer, and explores these qualities in action: the dynamics of teammates on the court and off; the pure love of the game that leads to the unselfish pass or the screen away from the ball; the individual courage to risk the last-second shot, to face a hostile crowd, to say "I blew it"; the responsibility to teammates, coaches, and fans to stay in shape, play hard, and honor the game.

Values of the Game is illustrated with more than one hundred twenty dramatic photographs of players, coaches, and classic games, culled from the NBA archives and the author's personal collection: from legends such as Bill Russell, Oscar Robertson, and Bob Cousy,!through the brilliant Magic Johnson/Larry Bird years to young stars such as Grant Hill and Glen Rice, and of course the greatest ever, Michael Jordan.

In his best-selling Life on the Run, Bradley offered fans a fascinating account of the day-in day-out experiences of an NBA star. In Values of the Game, he shifts his thinking to a larger universe. He pulls back the curtain once again, letting us in on basketball's secrets many of which, it turns out, extend to life beyond the hardwood court.

Reviews

Bradley once lamented that if he was ever elected to the highest office in the land, he would be introduced as a "member of the two-time world champion New York Knicks and currently the president of the United States." Bradley, former U.S. senator from New Jersey, may question the prioritization of his accomplishments, but he acknowledges the role basketball played in the formation of the character and values that have brought him to such a lofty status. In these 10 thematically linked essays (superbly illustrated with more than 100 photos), he discusses basketball as a learning experience. He writes perceptively about discipline, selflessness, courage, responsibility, and leadership, all qualities he picked up on the court. Basketball itself, he cautions, won't make anyone who plays smarter, more courageous, or a better leader, but the game demands those qualities if one is to succeed. Bradley is a superb writer (a skill he presumably didn't pick up on the court), and his prose makes this coffee-table volume something much more substantial, though not in the league of his earlier Life on the Run (1976), which remains one of the best sports books ever. Bradley's friend, Phil Jackson, provides an introduction, appropriately enough because fans of Jackson's Sacred Hoops (1995) will also appreciate this volume, which offers a slightly less mystical vision of the game. Wes Lukowsky

Former U.S. senator and New York Knick Bradley has written often and quite eruditely about the two things he knows best: basketball and politics (e.g., Time Present, Time Past, LJ 1/96). This latest (and handsomely illustrated) book addresses both areas. On the first level, it views basketball from a nearly metaphysical height, as he describes what he sees as the basic values of the game: passion, discipline, selflessness, respect, perspective, courage, leadership, responsibility, resilience, and imagination. For each of these values, he describes illustrative incidents from his career and the game's history, and through each there is also a veiled criticism of pro basketball as it exists today. On the second level, the reader can project these virtues onto life itself, and this is perhaps the book's greatest value: as a map of conduct. In his introduction, Bradley rightly recommends that this fine book be shared by parents and children. Highly recommended for school and public libraries.?William O. Scheeren, Hempfield Area H.S. Lib., Greensburg, PA
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Artisan
• Publication date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 157965116X
• ISBN 13: 9781579651169
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 160