The City Game: Basketball from the Garden to the Playgrounds

by Pete Axthelm

Description

A fascinating chronicle of New York basketball, from the concrete courts of the city's parks to the bright lights of Madison Square Garden The New York Knickerbockers, one of the NBA's charter franchises, played professionally for twenty-four years before winning their first championship in 1970, defeating the Los Angeles Lakers in a thrilling seven-game series. Those Knicks, who won again in 1973, became legends, and captivated a city that has basketball in its blood. But this book is show more more than a history of the championship Knicks. It is an exploration of what basketball means to New York-not just to the stars who compete nightly in the garden, but to the young men who spend their nights and weekends perfecting their skills on the concrete courts of the city's parks. Basketball is a city game, and New York is the king of cities. show less

Recommendations

A Season on the Brink: A Year with Bob Knight and the Indiana Hoosiers by John Feinstein

A Season on the Brink: A Year with Bob Knight and the Indiana Hoosiers

John Feinstein

Heaven Is a Playground by Rick Telander

Heaven Is a Playground

Rick Telander

A Sense of Where You Are by John McPhee

A Sense of Where You Are

John McPhee

The Breaks of the Game by David Halberstam

The Breaks of the Game

David Halberstam

Life on the Run by Bill Bradley

Life on the Run

Bill Bradley

Pistol: The Life of Pete Maravich by Mark Kriegel

Pistol: The Life of Pete Maravich

Mark Kriegel

Loose Balls: The Short, Wild Life of the American Basketball Association by Terry Pluto

Loose Balls: The Short, Wild Life of the American Basketball Association

Terry Pluto

The Last Amateurs: Playing for Glory and Honor in Division I College Basketball by John Feinstein

The Last Amateurs: Playing for Glory and Honor in Division I College Basketball

John Feinstein

The Last Shot: City Streets, Basketball Dreams by Darcy Frey

The Last Shot: City Streets, Basketball Dreams

Darcy Frey

Playing for Keeps: Michael Jordan and the World He Made by David Halberstam

Playing for Keeps: Michael Jordan and the World He Made

David Halberstam

A March to Madness: A View from the Floor in the Atlantic Coast Conference by John Feinstein

A March to Madness: A View from the Floor in the Atlantic Coast Conference

John Feinstein

Drive: The Story of My Life by Larry Bird

Drive: The Story of My Life

Larry Bird

Big Game, Small World: A Basketball Adventure by Alexander Wolff

Big Game, Small World: A Basketball Adventure

Alexander Wolff

The Jordan Rules by Sam Smith

The Jordan Rules

Sam Smith

The Punch: One Night, Two Lives, And The Fight That Changed Basketball Forever by John Feinstein

The Punch: One Night, Two Lives, And The Fight That Changed Basketball Forever

John Feinstein

The Fab Five: Basketball Trash Talk the American Dream by Mitch Albom

The Fab Five: Basketball Trash Talk the American Dream

Mitch Albom

The Game They Played by Stanley Cohen

The Game They Played

Stanley Cohen

A Season Inside: One Year in College Basketball by John Feinstein

A Season Inside: One Year in College Basketball

John Feinstein

Seven Seconds or Less: My Season on the Bench with the Runnin' and Gunnin' Phoenix Suns by Jack McCallum

Seven Seconds or Less: My Season on the Bench with the Runnin' and Gunnin' Phoenix Suns

Jack McCallum

The Book of Basketball by Bill Simmons

The Book of Basketball

Bill Simmons

Last Dance: Behind the Scenes at the Final Four by John Feinstein

Last Dance: Behind the Scenes at the Final Four

John Feinstein

Foul! The Connie Hawkins Story by David Wolf

Foul! The Connie Hawkins Story

David Wolf

Runnin' Rebel: Shark Tales of "Extra Benefits", Frank Sinatra and Winning It All by Jerry Tarkanian

Runnin' Rebel: Shark Tales of "Extra Benefits", Frank Sinatra and Winning It All

Jerry Tarkanian

The Art of a Beautiful Game: The Thinking Fan's Tour of the NBA by Chris Ballard

The Art of a Beautiful Game: The Thinking Fan's Tour of the NBA

Chris Ballard

Fall River Dreams: A Team's Quest for Glory, A Town's Search for Its Soul by Bill Reynolds

Fall River Dreams: A Team's Quest for Glory, A Town's Search for Its Soul

Bill Reynolds

Unfinished Business: On and Off the Court With the 1990-91 Boston Celtics by Jack McCallum

Unfinished Business: On and Off the Court With the 1990-91 Boston Celtics

Jack McCallum

Tip-Off: How the 1984 NBA Draft Changed Basketball Forever by Filip Bondy

Tip-Off: How the 1984 NBA Draft Changed Basketball Forever

Filip Bondy

They Call Me Coach by John Wooden

They Call Me Coach

John Wooden

FreeDarko presents The Macrophenomenal Pro Basketball Almanac: Styles, Stats, and Stars in Today's Game by Bethlehem Shoals

FreeDarko presents The Macrophenomenal Pro Basketball Almanac: Styles, Stats, and Stars in Today's Game

Bethlehem Shoals

Playing for Knight: My Six Seasons with Coach Knight by Steve Alford

Playing for Knight: My Six Seasons with Coach Knight

Steve Alford

When the Game Was Ours by Larry Bird

When the Game Was Ours

Larry Bird

Raw Recruits by Alexander Wolff

Raw Recruits

Alexander Wolff

FreeDarko Presents: The Undisputed Guide to Pro Basketball History by Bethlehem Shoals

FreeDarko Presents: The Undisputed Guide to Pro Basketball History

Bethlehem Shoals

Play Their Hearts Out: A Coach, His Star Recruit, and the Youth Basketball Machine by George Dohrmann

Play Their Hearts Out: A Coach, His Star Recruit, and the Youth Basketball Machine

George Dohrmann

Giant Steps by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Giant Steps

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Forever's Team by John Feinstein

Forever's Team

John Feinstein

Spike Lee: Best Seat in the House: A Basketball Memoir by Spike Lee

Spike Lee: Best Seat in the House: A Basketball Memoir

Spike Lee

And the Walls Came Tumbling Down: Kentucky, Texas Western, and the Game That Changed American Sports by Frank Fitzpatrick

And the Walls Came Tumbling Down: Kentucky, Texas Western, and the Game That Changed American Sports

Frank Fitzpatrick

Black Planet: Facing Race During an NBA Season by David Shields

Black Planet: Facing Race During an NBA Season

David Shields

Tall Tales: The Glory Years of the NBA, in the Words of the Men Who Played, Coached, and Built Pro Basketball by Terry Pluto

Tall Tales: The Glory Years of the NBA, in the Words of the Men Who Played, Coached, and Built Pro Basketball

Terry Pluto

Personal Fouls: The Broken Promises and Shattered Dreams of Big Money Basketball at Jim Valvano's North Carolina State by Peter Golenbock

Personal Fouls: The Broken Promises and Shattered Dreams of Big Money Basketball at Jim Valvano's North Carolina State

Peter Golenbock

A View from Above by Wilt Chamberlain

A View from Above

Wilt Chamberlain

Can I Keep My Jersey? by Paul Shirley

Can I Keep My Jersey?

Paul Shirley

The Rivalry: Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, and the Golden Age of Basketball by John Taylor

The Rivalry: Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, and the Golden Age of Basketball

John Taylor

Dream Team: How Michael, Magic, Larry, Charles, and the Greatest Team of All Time Conquered the World and Changed the Game of Basketball Forever by Jack McCallum

Dream Team: How Michael, Magic, Larry, Charles, and the Greatest Team of All Time Conquered the World and Changed the Game of Basketball Forever

Jack McCallum

Let Me Tell You a Story: A Lifetime in the Game by Red Auerbach

Let Me Tell You a Story: A Lifetime in the Game

Red Auerbach

Taking Shots: Tall Tales, Bizarre Battles, and the Incredible Truth About the NBA by Keith Glass

Taking Shots: Tall Tales, Bizarre Battles, and the Incredible Truth About the NBA

Keith Glass

Falling from Grace by Terry Pluto

Falling from Grace

Terry Pluto

A Coach's Life by Dean Smith

A Coach's Life

Dean Smith

More than a Game by Phil Jackson

More than a Game

Phil Jackson

Complete Recommendations

Member Reviews

Featured Recent Thumbs

All Ratings
2
6
4
2
No Rating

2 reviews

ConalO 188 reviews

Been awhile since I read this but memory tells me I enjoyed the stories of the playground legends (Earl "the Goat" Manigault, Herman "the Helicopter" Rawlings and several others) more than the back story of the Knicks championship season. A good read if you can find a copy...

Sep 21, 2014

wfzimmerman 399 reviews

No rings on the playground ... maybe this doesn't fit my collection strategy.

Jul 2, 2007