Isiah Thomas

Detroit Pistons; Pure Pistons:1990 NBA Championship [VHS]
$9.95
Legend George Blaha does an excellent job narrating this piece. The video starts off with some backround information on the Pistons -- back all the way to when they played in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Then, Blaha moves the 1989-1990 season, where the Pistons get on a rollercoaster ride. The Pistons lose some games and their swagger. But, as seen throughout their playoff run, the Pistons are defiant and win 25 of 26 games midway through the season. During this portion of the video, there is some great video highlights with MC Hammer doing the backround music -- just awesome.The scene then moves to the Playoffs. The first two rounds show the Pistons dominance. Round 3 however, they face a difficult opponent -- Jordan and the Bulls. This is where the infamous "Jordan Rules" is doctored by Coach Chuck Daly. This ploy seems to work at the Palace, but in Chicago, Jordan operates on his own terms -- scoring 45 pts in games 3 and 4. The series is a difficult battle, but the Pistons close the Bulls out in 7.Next, is the NBA Finals. The video spends considerable time disecting each of the games. Isiah Thomas has some heroics in Game 1 to lift the Pistons. But, in Game 2, the Portland Trail Blazers squeak out an overtime victory. The Blazers are confident -- leading Terry Porter to say: "Let's finish this baby at the crib". And Cliff Robinson to claim: "We're not coming back to Detroit". Cliff was right -- they didn't go back to Detroit. As throughout the season, the Pistons were defiant. The Pistons would take control of the series by dominating Game 3. In Game 4, the Pistons pull out a tight one, which sets the stage for Game 5. Game 5 was a greuling battle. The Blazers took control of the game and led 90-83 with 2 minutes left. Dick Vitle screams: "Take a T.O. Chuck Daly, take a T.O. BABYYY!" The Pistons do just that. In the huddle, Laimbeer is urging at his teamates: "It ain't over. It ain't over." Chuck Daly puts Vinnie Johnson into the game to give the Pistons a needed spark -- this proved to be a crucial move. The Pistons would rally -- playing tenacious defense and allowing Isiah and Vinnie to take over. The game would be tied at 90, with 21 ticks left. The Pistons call a timeout and Assistant Coach Brendan Malone says: "We got to get him (Vinnie Johnson) the ball." The play is diagramed, and the Pistons execute it to perfection -- Vinnie Johnson hits one of the greatest shots in NBA Finals history to give the Pistons the lead with 0.7 seconds left. The Pistons win and the Celebration is on. The Pistons celebrate wildly in the locker room. The scene moves to the Pistons Parade as screaming fans await to greet their heroes. An absolute classic video -- I only wish it was longer (more technical analysis on the Pistons key plays).

The Greatest
$13.98
This cd was a breath of fresh air. Very progressive, yet full of substance. A definite must buy for your collection!!!!

The Book of Isiah: The Rise of a Basketball Legend
$19.95
I knew it was a bad sign when in chapter one, I was wishing I was through with the book. I always want to finish books, for the sense of accomplishment and to acquire knowledge, but this was different: I wanted to be done because I wanted to move on to a good book.
I picked up the book because I enjoy reading the late 80s Pistons. Thomas is indisputably one of the 5 greatest point guards in history (along with Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, Bob Cousy, and John Stockton). He won a NCAA championship, and 2 NBA championships, and was named to the 1980 Olympic team. That alone makes his life interesting. Toss in the amazing performances (16 points in 91 seconds, 1990 Finals MVP, etc), controversy (Larry Bird was only good because he's white), and the jobs (NBA legend on the court, GM of the Raptors), and I was looking forward to jumping in. So what went wrong?
First, this is not a biography, it is an homage, practically a love sonnet. It is written by a guy who sees no fault in Thomas. I believe the author is a Toronto journalist, and obviously a Raptors fan. The book was written right before the Raptors' 2nd season. In jocking the Raptors, Challen has to jock the man who runs the team. Look at the book's subtitle: "The Rise of a Basketball Legend." At the time the book was published, Thomas already was a basketball legend. Challen is trying to paint him to be the next Jerry West and Red Auerbach of the front office after a mediocre season on the job.
The first problem is that the book is incomplete. Challen lightly glosses over Thomas' first 7 NBA seasons, and really only spends significant time on the 1989 season. After a little more glossing, he jumps to Thomas' tenure with the Raptors. He never mentions any of his legendary scoring bursts, such as the 16 points in 91 seconds at the end of regulation of the deciding playoff game in the New York playoff series in 1984. He does go over the Larry Bird controversy and the all-star freeze out of Michael Jordan that Thomas orchestrated, and he mentions the 1992 Olympic snub, but never really dwells much on the background. He also never mentions how Thomas blocked the pay-per-view game between Jordan and Johnson, and how that came back to bite him in the Olympics.
Challen praises Thomas' every decision as Raptors' GM without stating the obvious: he screwed up on the hiring of Brenden Malone as coach. Had he spent more time interviewing Malone, then he would have learned that Malone did not share his vision on how to coach an expansion team. He never chastises Thomas on his blatant favoritism towards all-things Pistons, even when the people were unqualified. Because Thomas had a couple of endorsements, he makes it sound like Thomas was a savvy businessman ready to move into a GM role, rather than state the obvious: the owner went to Indiana University with Thomas and was star struck. It gets funnier in retrospect, as you see Thomas consistent failures since the book was written: he bankrupted the Continental Basketball Association after he purchased it. He failed as coach of the Pistons and Knicks and was a disaster as GM of the Knicks. His failures are so legendary that a satire website (sportspickle) wrote a story that George W. Bush had named Thomas as Michael Brown's replacement to head F.E.M.A. It is obvious that Thomas had done nothing to earn the responsibility to run a franchise, but Challen never ever considers this. (The parallels between Thomas and Jordan are eerily similar, and both were miserable failures in the front office.)
The next problem with the book is the editing. I assume "paycheque" is a Canadian spelling, and that is fine, but the book is full of editing errors and Challen cannot spell "offense" and "defense." Perhaps this is because he is the guy who holds the picket fence at the games.
It is obvious that Challen is no basketball expert. He says that Thomas played in the Big 10 conference and then adds it is now known as the "Big 12". Um.... no. He says that Thomas was named NBA MVP three times. He was never MVP. He writes the book in such simplistic terms that it seems as if his audience has no clue about basketball, which maybe true -- I am guessing it was written for Canadians who are not familiar with basketball, as a way of selling the Raptors to the public. Furthermore, by deifying the head man of the Raptors, the sell becomes easier. If this was his purpose, I hoped he succeeded, because beyond that context, the book is an unbelievable bore.

Said He Would Be With Me
$0.99