Overview

Commentator, analyst, author, and all-around pro basketball presence, Charley Rosen may seem like a natural, sprung upon the sports scene with the NBA in his blood. Phil Jackson, Rosen’s longtime collaborator, might agree; after all, he attributes the statement on a plaque on his desk to Charley: “Basketball isn’t just a metaphor for life—it’s more important than that!” And yet how Rosen arrived at his present position comfortably overseeing basketball at its finest is a story as unexpected as it is delightful, documenting basketball travels as unlikely as they are nomadic and eclectic.  Rosen’s story begins during his undergraduate days at Hunter College, where his basketball exploits were equally triumphant and embarrassing, including a pickup game against Wilt Chamberlain. Things really got interesting when he made his way into the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), the breeding ground for nothing less than the second-best gathering of basketball players in the world. In the circus that was the CBA, Rosen found his place alongside Phil Jackson, then the newly hired coach of the Albany Patroons. Life in the CBA, as Rosen tells it, was never dull, with players doing illegal substances on van rides through snowstorms and teams financed by porn producers. His journey from the CBA to a desk at Fox Sports is a one-of-a-kind basketball story—only to be believed in the words of the guy who actually lived it.

Full Product Details

Author:   Charley Rosen ,  Phil Jackson
Publisher:   University of Nebraska Press
Imprint:   University of Nebraska Press
Dimensions:   Width: 14.00cm , Height: 2.70cm , Length: 21.60cm
Weight:   0.531kg
ISBN:  

9780803217935

ISBN 10:   0803217935
Pages:   320
Publication Date:   01 April 2011
Audience:   General/trade ,  General
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

Foreword by Phil Jackson Introduction 1 - Portrait of the Hooper as a Young Man; 2 - Undergraduate Hits, Misses, and Turnovers; 3 - Basketball Follies in the Nearest East; 4 - Big Man With a Small Whistle and a Medium-Sized Game; 5 - On the Road With the Woodstock Joneses; 6 - On an Off the Court With the Bard-Ons; 7 - The Crazy B-Ball Ass; 8 - On the Bench With Phil Jackson; 9 - Good Night, Bobby Knight; 10 - The Fall, Winter, and Spring of Our Discontent; 11 - Keeping My Day Job; 12 - Georgia on My Mind; 13 - King Richard and the Rockford Files; 14 - The Pacer, the D-Train, and Mister Animal; 15 - In the Jailhouse Now; 16 - Blocked Shots, Bricks, and Barbequed Baloney; 17 - Down and Eventually Out in Albany; 18 - The End of Regulation; 19 - Beyond Basketball Overtime

Reviews

If the NBA lockout lasts long enough to actually deprive fans of basketball, Charley Rosen's book will offer some solace. In fact, even if the lockout ends soon enough for the next season to begin on time, Crazy Basketball is more entertaining than the first couple months of the NBA campaign are likely to be. --Bill Littlefield, NPR's Only A Game --Bill Littlefield NPR's Only A Game

Crazy Basketball was a great read, for any casual basketball lover, insight into the former crazy league, but also a crazy coach who was a touch softened by it. For Rosen, it was not only the Crazy Basketball Association, but his crazy association with basketball. --Krystina Lucido, Press Box--Krystina Lucido Press Box (09/15/2011)

Author Information

Charley Rosen is an NBA analyst for FOXSports.com and the author of more than a dozen books including The Pivotal Season, The Wizard of Odds, and Players and Pretenders (available in a Bison Books edition). Phil Jackson is head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers and has won eleven NBA titles.

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