Tall Tales and Short Shorts: Dr. J, Pistol Pete, and the Birth of the Modern NBA

(Hardback)

---

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

In basketball, just as in American culture, the 1970s were imperfect. But it was a vitally important time in the development of the nation and of the National Basketball Association. During this decade Americans suffered through the war in Vietnam and Nixons Watergate cover-up (not to mention disco music and leisure suits) while the NBA weathered the arrival of free agency and charges that its players were too black. Despite this turmoil, or perhaps because of it, the NBA evolved into a cultural phenomenon.

Tall Tales and Short Shorts: Dr. J, Pistol Pete, and the Birth of the Modern NBA traces the evolution of the NBA from the retirement of Bill Russell in 1969 to the arrival of Larry Bird and Magic Johnson ten years later. Sandwiched between the youthful league of the sixties and its mature successor in the eighties, this book reveals the awkward teenage years of the NBA in the seventies. It examines the many controversies that plagued the league during this time, including illicit drug use, on-court violence, and escalating player salaries. Yet even as attendance dwindled and networks relegated playoff games to tape-delayed, late-night broadcasts, fans still pulled on floppy gray socks like Pistol Pete Maravich, emulated Kareem Abdul-Jabbars sweeping skyhook, and grew out mushrooming afros la Dr. J Julius Erving.

The first book-length treatment of pro basketball in the 1970s, Tall Tales and Short Shorts brings to life the players, teams, and the league as a whole as they dealt with expansion, a merger with the ABA, and transitioning into a new era. Sport historians and basketball fans will enjoy this entertaining and enlightening survey of an often-overlooked time in the development of the NBA.

Reviews

In this light-hearted, informative overview of pro basketball in the 1970s, Criblez, professor of history at Southeast Missouri State Univ., focuses on the showmanship of Pistol Pete Maravich and the ABA-NBA merger, which brought flashy talent such as Julius Erving and George Gervin to the pro scene. Criblez explains how sagging TV ratings and the increased use of cocaine endangered the league. Theres a reason why future NBA commissioner David Stern, who oversaw the NBAs golden era of the 1980s and 90s, called the late 70s the leagues 'dark days.' But Criblez finds plenty of sunshine. He unearths surprising, humanizing facts that have been lost in the NBAs now-slick facade. The struggling Indiana Pacers held a telethon in 1977 to stay solvent; the NBA held a televised dunk contest in 1976 and revived the idea in 1984.... [T]he abundance of bon mots will satiate basketball fans of all ages. * Publishers Weekly *

In this easily readable book, Criblez examines US professional basketball during the 1970s. Organized chronologically, each chapter represents professional basketball in one year of the decade; interspersed are three Time-Out sections that focus on a particular person or topicthe strongest of these focuses on the American Basketball Association and its eventual merger with the National Basketball Association (NBA). Criblez argues that the 1970s, although considered the dark days of the NBA, were transformative due to the parity in the league, the rising salaries as players gained free agency, and the prevalence of drugs and violence; this created a setting of the stage for the modern NBA.

Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates and general readers.

* Choice Reviews *
[A]n entertaining book that adds to the nascent body of scholarship on the history of professional basketball. In all, Tall Tales and Short Shorts is an entertaining and engaging read. * Sport in American History *
The books greatest strength is how it distills each year into a highly readable summary. As a professional historian, Criblez is meticulous about mining for sources at times it feels like he unearthed everything ever written about the NBA in the 70s. This attention to detail helps the reader feel confident that no major event was overlooked. As I read, I often found myself making notes to look up the footnoted sources to find more details on particular topics, exposing me to many resources I would have never encountered otherwise. Overall, the book is one of the most comprehensive resources available for fans or history buffs looking for information about the NBA in the 1970s. * Blazer's Edge *
[A] very entertaining and fun read for any basketball fan who watched the game in that decade. [The] fantastic teams and players [mentioned] may not get the same love as Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan did for 'saving' the game in the 1980s but this book gives that decade some much-deserved recognition for providing the first step to that revival. * The Guy Who Reviews Sports Books *
In Tall Tales and Short Shorts, Adam Criblez expertly shows how the most maligned decade in NBA historythe 1970swas actually one of the most important. Through exhaustive research and with a keen eye for detail, Criblez entertains and educates with the stories of Dr. J, Pistol Pete, Kareem, and the other legends of the decade who not only dominated in the 1970s, but set the stage for everything that followed in the NBA. -- Shawn Fury, author of Rise and Fire: The Origins, Science, and Evolution of the Jump Shotand How It Transformed Basketball Forever
Dr. J, Pistol Pete, Murdock, The Pearl, Skywalker, Bad News Barnes and The Big E are back in the starting lineup... this time, rightly so, as literary figures who inspired and laid the groundwork for today's National Basketball Association. That's the premise of Adam J. Criblez's amazing new work, Tall Tales and Short Shorts. It was a magical period for the sport, which saw the merging of social awakening, outrageous style, individuality and athleticism, lucrative sponsorships, television money, and two leagues conspiring to kill each other off. The 1970s and its strange cast of characters and outlaw executives revolutionized the game and presented a new vision of what basketball could be. Hats off to Criblez for capturing this colorful history. -- Marshall Terrill, co-author of Maravich and Skywalker
A thorough, illuminating chronicle of the NBAs evolution during the crucial decade of the seventies, Tall Tales and Short Shorts is essential for anyone wanting to understand how the sport got to where it is today. -- Nathaniel "Bethlehem Shoals" Friedman, co-author of FreeDarko Presents: The Undisputed Guide to Pro Basketball History

Author Bio

Adam J. Criblez is assistant professor of history at Southeast Missouri State University. His first book, Parading Patriotism: Independence Days in the Urban Midwest, 1826-1876 (2013) won several regional history awards.