I’ve gone on record in saying I’m a fan of the writing of Bill Simmons (ESPN’s the Sports Guy).  A friend of mine who I converted to the ‘Church of Simmons’ got me ‘The Book of Basketball’, the Sports Guy take on the history of the NBA.  The book is 700 plus pages, but I have to say if you are a) a fan of Simmons’ mix of sports passion and pop culture references, or b) a lifelong follower of the National Basketball Association, this book is definitely worth picking up.  If you’re like me and in the c) category – a fan of the Sports Guy AND a lifelong follower of the Association, then you’ll need to get around to the Book of Basketball sooner or later.

As to be expected from such a large book, Simmons offers his breakdown of the best player ever (no one really debates that one), the best team ever (you can cry homer-ism here but he makes his case), and even goes so far as to break down the best individual seasons ever.  Along the way you’ll get amusing side stories such as ‘The Secret’ of basketball (which I think also applies to life in general), his revisionist model for the Basketball Hall of Fame (the Pyramid, amusing but it will never happen), and an incredible number of anecdotes that covers each era of the NBA (one such example is an ‘incident’ between Rick Barry and Bill Russell that happened before I was born but is still a ‘has to be seen to be believed’ story.)

I was able to get through the book in a week (which is absurd for the size of it), but it’s one of the more enjoyable reads I’ve had in a while.  Worthwhile read for any sports fan.