a readjack.com book review: The Book of Basketball, by Bill Simmons

At 697 pages (foreword, index, acknowledgments not included), The Book of Basketball is the thickest piece of Simmons shtick in town.

The work of Bill Simmons can be divided into three parts. One third is the writing. One third is the mind. One third is the shtick.

I love Simmons the writer. Maybe this is because I discovered him with his fantastic Lenny Bias story…you know, the one that ends with “And I hate it.” I am not sure how many people appreciate Simmons the writer. Not to say that none do. I just do not know.

But the combo of Simmons the mind and Simmons the shtick has made the man the most popular sports writer of the past ten years.