Advanced
Error loading page.
Try refreshing the page. If that doesn't work, there may be a network issue, and you can use our self test page to see what's preventing the page from loading.
Learn more about possible network issues or contact support for more help.
Title details for Tall Tales and Short Shorts by Adam J. Criblez - Available

Tall Tales and Short Shorts

Dr. J, Pistol Pete, and the Birth of the Modern NBA

by Adam J. Criblez
ebook
1 of 1 copy available
Borrow Read a sample Read a sample
1 of 1 copy available
In basketball, just as in American culture, the 1970s were imperfect. But it was a vitally important time in the development of the nation and of the National Basketball Association. During this decade Americans suffered through the war in Vietnam and Nixon's Watergate cover-up (not to mention disco music and leisure suits) while the NBA weathered the arrival of free agency and charges that its players were "too black." Despite this turmoil, or perhaps because of it, the NBA evolved into a cultural phenomenon.
Tall Tales and Short Shorts: Dr. J, Pistol Pete, and the Birth of the Modern NBA traces the evolution of the NBA from the retirement of Bill Russell in 1969 to the arrival of Larry Bird and Magic Johnson ten years later. Sandwiched between the youthful league of the sixties and its mature successor in the eighties, this book reveals the awkward teenage years of the NBA in the seventies. It examines the many controversies that plagued the league during this time, including illicit drug use, on-court violence, and escalating player salaries. Yet even as attendance dwindled and networks relegated playoff games to tape-delayed, late-night broadcasts, fans still pulled on floppy gray socks like "Pistol Pete" Maravich, emulated Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sweeping skyhook, and grew out mushrooming afros à la "Dr. J" Julius Erving.
The first book-length treatment of pro basketball in the 1970s, Tall Tales and Short Shorts brings to life the players, teams, and the league as a whole as they dealt with expansion, a merger with the ABA, and transitioning into a new era. Sport historians and basketball fans will enjoy this entertaining and enlightening survey of an often-overlooked time in the development of the NBA.

  • Creators

  • Series

    Sports Icons and Issues in Popular Culture

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    June 9, 2017

  • Formats

    • Kindle Book

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9781442277687
      • File size: 5181 KB

    • EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9781442277687
      • File size: 5181 KB

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      April 10, 2017
      In this light-hearted, informative overview of pro basketball in the 1970s, Criblez, professor of history at Southeast Missouri State Univ., focuses on the showmanship of Pistol Pete Maravich and the ABA-NBA merger, which brought flashy talent such as Julius Erving and George Gervin to the pro scene. Criblez explains how sagging TV ratings and the increased use of cocaine endangered the league. There’s a reason why future NBA commissioner David Stern, who oversaw the NBA’s golden era of the 1980s and ’90s, called the late ’70s the league’s “dark days.” But Criblez finds plenty of sunshine. He unearths surprising, humanizing facts that have been lost in the NBA’s now-slick facade. The struggling Indiana Pacers held a telethon in 1977 to stay solvent; the NBA held a televised dunk contest in 1976 and revived the idea in 1984. Some readers will crave a little more insight, rather than this yearbook-style format, but the abundance of bon mots will satiate basketball fans of all ages.

Formats

  • Kindle Book
  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook

subjects

Languages

  • English

Loading