The Story Of Basketball Great Clyde Lovellette

One of basketball¿s all-time greats at every level of the game, Clyde Lovellette grew up in difficult circumstances in Terre Haute, Indiana. In high school he was twice named All-State. After graduating high school he headed to Kansas to play for coaching legend Phog Allen where he was three times an All-American and lead the 1952 Jayhawks to a national championship. Directly following college Clyde went on to win Olympic gold. During his profes­sional career he collected three NBA championship rings. His first championship was with the Minneapolis Lakers and with it he became the first player in history to win an NCAA title, an Olympic gold medal, and an NBA championship. He collected two more championship rings with the Boston Celtics playing behind the great Bill Russell. Lovellette has been honored by selection to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, the College Basketball Hall of Fame in Kansas City, the Kansas Univer­sity Hall of Fame, the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame, and the Helms Foundation Hall of Fame.

Many know about Terre Haute's long-gone reputation as a "sin city," but that hardly tells the whole story. Unknown to all but a few, the city was home to a POW camp for Confederate prisoners and divers once plucked valuable freshwater pearls from the Wabash River. Druggist Jacob Baur discovered a way to liquefy carbon dioxide, earning him the title "King of Soda Fountains." Before the advent of Hollywood, motion pictures were made here. And one of the biggest child stars of the 1930s and '40s was a local boy named Billy Lee. He joined another child star from the area, Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer of Our Gang fame. Historian Tim Crumrin reveals the overlooked events and people in Terre Haute's past.

Through his fifteen-year career as an NBA player, Clyde Drexler played with elegance and flair, leadership and poise, integrity and an ability to come through in the clutch. He led the Portland Trail Blazers to the NBA Finals twice and helped the Houston Rockets win the NBA championship in 1995. A ten-time All-Star, a member of the 1992 Olympic Dream Team, and now a member of basketball’s Hall of Fame, Drexler reached the top of his profession without revealing many of his inner thoughts on himself or the game. Now, Clyde the Glide is finally ready to talk to his fans. From growing up in a single-parent household to life as a local teen legend, and eventually getting teamed with Hakeem Olajuwon to guide the University of Houston into the NCAA Final Four twice in the early 1980s, Clyde the Glide tells it all. Famous NBA figures such as Maurice Lucas and Patrick Ewing even add their two cents. Without a doubt, Clyde the Glide is a must-read for every ?die-hard basketball fan.

Spanning decades with great columns from renowned writers, this time capsule recounts the greatest moments in Kansas lore and tracks the chronological progression of sports writing styles from the esoteric to the ultra-modern. The account details the Jayhawks from their roots of glory to their modern-day triumphs.

Features the history, players, and coaches of the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team.

Great Teams in Pro Basketball History names ten of the greatest teams in pro basketball and tells what made them stand out. Learn which players were MVPs and the records of unstoppable teams. Discover how players came together to beat their opponents. Read about changes that were constantly being made to keep up with the growing sport. From talented players to dynamic coaches, this book spans almost 40 years to find the best in pro basketball history. Book jacket.

Anyone who has spent time in Syracuse, New York, knows that basketball season is the most wonderful time of the year. And while the local popularity of the sport is known nationwide, the region also has a long and rich basketball history. Sports historian Mark Baker traces the evolution of Syracuse's "hoops roots,"? beginning in the early days, when local, national and college basketball organizations were primitive institutions. It was during this time that one of the first teams to gain a national following was founded here by an Italian immigrant, Danny Biasone, and it was in Syracuse that the 24 second clock was invented. From the outset, Syracuse residents and fans were hooked, and this love of the game has endured, feeding the fanaticism that sustains the sport today.

One of Sports Illustrated’s Top 100 Sports Books of All Time: The riveting story of the point-shaving scandal that shook college basketball to its core It was the ultimate Cinderella sports story. Unranked heading into the 1949–50 season, the City College basketball team delighted their hometown of New York City and shocked the rest of America by winning both the NCAA and NIT tournaments. An unprecedented feat that would never be duplicated, City College’s postseason grand slam was made all the more remarkable by the fact that, in an era when many premier teams were segregated, its starting lineup consisted of 3 Jewish and 2 African American athletes. With Hall of Fame coach Nat Holman and 4 of the starting 5 returning for the 1950–51 campaign, the stage was set for a thrilling title defense. Alas, it was not to be. City College’s season came to an abrupt end when 3 of its star players were arrested on charges of conspiring to fix games. The ensuing scandal, which would engulf 6 other schools and lead to the indictments of 20 players and 14 fixers, cast New York City sports under a dark cloud, derailed the careers of some of the game’s most promising young talents, and forever altered the landscape of college basketball. The basis for the award-winning HBO documentary City Dump, The Game They Played is a poignant portrait of the unforgettable moment when an unheralded team of local boys united New York City in both triumph and disgrace.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The NBA according to The Sports Guy—now updated with fresh takes on LeBron, the Celtics, and more! Foreword by Malcom Gladwell • “The work of a true fan . . . it might just represent the next phase of sports commentary.”—The Atlantic Bill Simmons, the wildly opinionated and thoroughly entertaining basketball addict known to millions as ESPN’s The Sports Guy, has written the definitive book on the past, present, and future of the NBA. From the age-old question of who actually won the rivalry between Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain to the one about which team was truly the best of all time, Simmons opens—and then closes, once and for all—every major pro basketball debate. Then he takes it further by completely reevaluating not only how NBA Hall of Fame inductees should be chosen but how the institution must be reshaped from the ground up, the result being the Pyramid: Simmons’s one-of-a-kind five-level shrine to the ninety-six greatest players in the history of pro basketball. And ultimately he takes fans to the heart of it all, as he uses a conversation with one NBA great to uncover that coveted thing: The Secret of Basketball. Comprehensive, authoritative, controversial, hilarious, and impossible to put down (even for Celtic-haters), The Book of Basketball offers every hardwood fan a courtside seat beside the game’s finest, funniest, and fiercest chronicler.

Basketball is now the second most popular sport world-wide trailing only futbol (soccer) in the number of participants, fans, and leagues. Its popularity is due to the fact that the game of basketball requires the most number of physical skills making basketball players the most complete athletes. The speed, grace and teamwork required to play the game combined with the athleticism required makes it beautiful to watch and fun to play. The United States has always been and always will be the greatest basketball nation. Although the rest of the world has been catching up with us (note the increasing number of international players in the NBA from all parts of the world) we invented it (thank you Dr. Naismith); we perfected it (thank you Coach Wooden, Bill Russell, Larry, Magic, Michael, Lebron, etc.); and we still have the highest concentration of excellence at all levels - high school, college and professional. Indiana has long been known to be basketball crazy. The image of a basketball goal on every garage, barn or any other place you can put one (including the governor’s residence) is based, as most legends are, on a ring of truth. Indiana has always been basketball crazy. Decades before “March Madness” became a national trademark, Hoosier Hysteria rippled through the entire state at tourney time. Other states can claim they are the “best” basketball state. Certainly North Carolina does and cases can be made for Kentucky, New York and California. This study provides overwhelming statistical evidence and so much anecdotal support that it is undeniable that Indiana IS the center of the basketball world.