Full Court Press (Brilliance Audio on Compact Disc)

Rating:
Summary: Not as good as Bump & Run
Review: After howling in Bump and Run, I couldn't wait to listen to Full Court Press.

The first half of the book continues at a great pace with a slew of colorful characters. The last half was a let down. I enjoyed it, however, it wasn't as crisp as Bump and Run.

With that being said, I would still recommend either buying or listening to this story.

Rating:
Summary: Lupica: SMARTEST SPORTSMEN TO EVER LIVE
Review: If you want to read a book from an extremely bright, informative, and seasoned sports journalist, read Full Court Press. Lupica is at his best in this epic basketball drama. Not only does he accuratley portray NBA life and off the court hardships, but he also portrays this from a woman's point of view. Amazingly descriptive, dramatic, and full of excitement, this book has Best Seller written all over it.

Rating:
Summary: Once upon a time there was a girl who had game...
Review: Mike Lupica's "Full Court Press" is a sports fantasy in which the flamboyant owner of the worst team in the league signs the first woman to play in the NBA. Dee Gerard is the illegitimate daughter of a New York playground legend and a star in Europe who impresses a scout for the New York Knights. If you hear echoes of the real world twisted this way and that (Dr. J's daughter, Nancy Lieberman, etc.), then you realize that is part of the game here (is Dee's teammate a "nice" Dennis Rodman?). Try not to get caught up in figuring out if you are dealing with stereotypes or Frankenstein like creations composed of the parts of various real people.

Understandably Lupica has to tweak things to put Dee in a position to play in the NBA once he sets up the desperate franchise idea: she is basically a female John Stockton (sees the court, knows the game, can make the pass) with a healthy injection of Globetrotter style and flair. She is also the fastest woman ever to play basketball, which works for me as the secret ingredient. However, in terms of the story "Full Court Press" reminds me of the old Sammy Davis, Jr. joke: Sammy is on the golf course and somebody asks him "What's your handicap?" Sammy does a double-take and points out that being a one-eyed, Jewish, black man is handicap enough. Lupica saddles Dee with similar baggage: she is having an affair with her coach and sometimes she gets what is basically acute stage fright. So being a woman is, ironically, the least of her problems in this book. Fortunately she is pretty much the most level headed person in the book and so most readers will be inclined to wish her well and remember this is a sports fantasy, not a social argument (Earl Monroe says it will happen one day; anybody out there got the chops to argue with the Pearl?).

I watch ESPN's "The Sports Reporters" on a regular basis, so I have to admit that the Mike Lupica who wrote this novel does not "sound" like the same one who goes from articulate rationality to passionate diatribes at the drop of a hat (or one liner from a cohort). There are insights into the world of sports in general and professional basketball in particular (they might not know the game, but these kids today are FAST) scattered throughout the book, and I found a really good insult for somebody from a farm I would dearly love to use someday. Certainly Lupica has a feel for the game (so does the dust cover, where the basketball feels like a basketball). The resolution leaves a lot to be desired, but the journey is fun and it is a good read. "Full Court Press" can keep you occupied during the first three quarters of a NBA playoff game when nothing is happening.