More Than a Game

February 26, 2001

At first glance, this book is a strained synthesis. During the first half, storied NBA coach Jackson and CBA coach-turned-writer Rosen alternate chapters. Each details his upbringing, life in basketball and friendship with the other. Even though Jackson is the star here, he gives little attention to his years with the Bulls (covered in his earlier book Sacred Hoops). Later in the book, Jackson recounts, game by game, his championship first season with the previously undisciplined Lakers. It seems a somewhat perfunctory treatment of a surprising season, until the book's true (and higher) purpose slowly becomes clear: it is a magnificent tribute to Tex Winter's triangle offense, the perfect scheme. In describing their attempts to implement the triangle in the CBA, the authors illustrate its effectiveness, even its necessity. Jackson and Rosen depict the Lakers learning to make the offense work, finally suggesting that the triangle could work for any team—that Michael Jordan wasn't the only reason Chicago won six rings under Jackson. And through it all, they show that the only thing standing in the way of many teams adopting the triangle, just as many NFL teams have taken up the West Coast offense, is player ego. For the heart of the scheme is the individual's sacrifice of status and spotlight for the greater success of the team. The technical details in this wonderful book will give any fan a better appreciation of the game.

March 15, 2001
Jackson is becoming a prolific chronicler of his life in basketball. Maverick (1975), also written with Rosen (Scandals of '51), covered his offbeat life as a player with the two-time champion New York Knicks, while Sacred Hoops (1999) focused on how he used his Triangle offense and personal "Zen Christian" beliefs in coaching the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships during the 1990s. This latest work brings Jackson's journey two years forward as he brings the Triangle and his hardwood soul-searching to Los Angeles, leading the Lakers to yet another championship. Chapters alternate between Jackson and Rosen as the two trade tales and insights. The primary voice is Jackson's, however, and the major interest to most readers will be his behind-the-scenes account of the Lakers' successful season and the tenuous teaming of stars Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. An unusual amalgam of biography, spiritualism, basketball technique, and journalism, this will be of strong interest for all basketball collections. John Maxymuk, Rutgers Univ. Lib., Camden, NJ

Copyright 2001 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2001
Phil Jackson rose to prominence as the coach of the six-time NBA champion Chicago Bulls. Last season, his first as coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, ended with another championship ring for Jackson and his team. Here Jackson shares the spotlight with coauthor Rosen, himself the author of a half-dozen novels and Jackson's assistant coach years ago in the Continental Basketball League, as they explore the truths that basketball can offer in terms of both personal and team evolution. Don't be scared off: this isn't just a reprise of Jackson's best-selling " Sacred Hoops "(1995), in which the Zen-inspired coach waxed mystical on basketball and life. Here Jackson and Rosen, a couple of hoop gypsies, fit the game into the context of their lives, from the problems with high-school coaching to the story behind the breakup of Jackson's marriage. The importance of the team concept in basketball and life is stressed throughout, but the text avoids preachiness with a steady stream of amusing and enlightening anecdotes (including a hilarious account of a one-on-one game between Jackson and talk-show host Craig Kilborn when the latter was a $25-per-game announcer in the CBA). There's plenty here to attract a broad spectrum of fans, from celebrity talk to techno-hoop strategy, but underlying it all is a reverence for a game that, when played well, can be a transcendent personal experience and a joy to watch.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2001, American Library Association.)