Customer Reviews

Sole Influence: Basketball, Corporate Greed, and the Corruption of America's Youth

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As a pretty dedicated fan of college basketball, I had heard coaches rail on about summer recruiting, AAU middle men and shoe companies. Now I know why. I encourage anyone who cares about the game to read this. It details not only how things have gotten corrupt, but why. Instead of using broad strokes to declare summer recruiting as a bad development, Sole Influence shows why in detail. Myron Piggie stuff alone is worth the read. The solutions are complex, but given the amount athletic directors and college coaches are working on it, something is inevitable. After reading this, fans will know why the sooner the better. The best basketball book I've read in years. Authors make a complicated story very readable and easy to follow.

I've suspected for decades that the college recruiting process was (is), to a certain extent, corrupt.

To even the casual observer of college basketball, at the upper echelon of Division I, there is (has been) an uneven playing field. It's as if some colleges have had the top five picks in the annual draft for several years in a row.

On the surface the uneven playing field seems impossible to explain, but books like "Sole Influence" begin to shed light of the corruption that mars college basketball -- the search for the next Michael Jordan.

In a series of anecdotes, the authors provide case studies of how, especially, Nike and Addidas have made a mess of AAU basketball, especially in large urban centers.

It's difficult, almost impossible, to get first hand information, especially from big-name college coaches -- few go on the record. What "Sole Influence" reveals, seems to me, is the tip of the iceberg.

The most shocking revelations surround the role played by George Raveling, the former head coach at Washington State, Iowa and USC. Thankfully, Raveling made himself available to the authors and provides candid comments which, while attempting to rationalize his role in this sorry mess, tend to indict him as one of the prime offenders.

The book, although poorly edited, contains much food for thought and is worthy of reading and reflection by serious college basketball fans.

The authors include a good index, but omit footnotes and a bibliography of sources. Also, a complete list of names of persons interviewed for the book would have been appreciated. To the layman, many of these "characters" are complete strangers.

The authors have included capsule introductions to the book's key "characters," which are especially helpful for those of us unfamiliar with the shoe company corruption of AAU basketball.

I agree with those who've commented about the book's excessive repetition, as the authors do a thorough job of indicting the shoe companies.

The authors do provide some implied remedies for the problems they've documented. Whether these recommendations are feasible, given the hunger for dollars, is questionable and discouraging.

Again, this title is recommended for college basketball fans who care about the integrity of the game. The book makes me wonder to what extent college basketball has integrity.

Anyone who has been around amateur basketball can appreciate the intense look Sole Influence takes at the seedy side of shoe companies. As the book explains, the chase for the almighty dollar has escalated into a procurement war for the top high school and even grade school prospects. Some of the tactics of companies like Nike, Adidas and And 1 may turn your stomach, but the book is a must read.

One thing is for certain about 'Sole Influence': this is one well-researched book. Wetzel and Yaeger certainly did their homework over the approximate 5-year period comprehensively detailed in the book. Almost no roundball was left unturned.

Worth nothing, however, is that nearly all of the information gathered is of the second hand variety - especially when it comes to AAU coaches, Nike, prep academy representative, and/or players who benefited from the system Wetzel and Yaeger denounce. Thus, while Wetzel and Yaeger valiantly attempt to provide a semblance of objectivity, the 'other side' appears via second hand quotes weaved in to fit story lines.

To elaborate, the authors' disdain for Nike becomes incredulous at times, especially in contrast to their free passes for both Adidas and Reebok. It appears those willing to continuously go on the record (Sonny Vaccarro, for instance) - and arguably fairly enough - were given love taps.

Also, the attempts at objective balance go out the door once Wetzel and Yaeger find their respective soapboxes. This book feels stretched for 50+ pages, solely (pun intended, I suppose) to feature diatribes against the corruption of the basketball recruitment process as a whole.

For example, Michael Jordan's career evolution is cited as a litmus test for how players should act and be recruited. Still, Jordan's early days in NC lacked the broadcasting revenue, Internet engine and global market that is today's reality. Not to mention the financials of publicly traded companies (eg Nike) almost solely based on athlete endorsements to launch new product lines.

Flaws aside, 'Sole Influence' remains a goldmine in its detailed explanation of the inner workings of hoops development. I wouldn't call it a must-read, per se, rather a nice historical snapshot (1995-2000) of the underbelly of basketball breeding.

I knew that high school and in some cases elementary school athletes in sports like basketball and football that are extremely gifted can get free perks, but I didn't think it would go as far as it did. The fact is there is a lot of fingerpointing at the athletes, but very little at the others involved in the game. Let's face it, no one would care about these sports if there wasn't a relatively high standard of quality players available. Everyone involved in the game makes money off the players, from the coaches,universities,athletic apparel companies,broadcasters, etcetera, you name it. It's about time that college athletes and high school athletes receive fair market value for the money they generate. The point is many schools would be probably be in a lot worse financial shape if it weren't for basketball and football. Yes, it exposes the greed behind the players, but it's human nature at work. I don't agree with the tactics employed by the agents and companies involved to get players, but I do understand the motivation for doing so. If they don't get these players, some other competing agent or company likely will get their services. It's no different than when univerisities engage in recruiting practices, and some of these universities can get put on probation for recruiting violations. All in all, this was a realistic look at what goes on in youth basketball. I enjoyed it, and would recommend it to anyone who wants to explore the dark side of amateur basketball. An excellent companion book to this would be the book Money Players, which looks at things from the NBA perspective.

Interesting and thought provoking. You will learn in-depth information about recruiting and why athletes may look at certain colleges. There is a lot of sleaze in college recruiting and this exposes quite a bit.

The book eventually became repetitive as he continued to build his case against the shoe companies. Yes, there is a problem but no alternative solution was really suggested. I'm glad I read it and would encourage college basketball fans to read.

A friend of mine played D1 basketball and pro overseas. He toured America including Hawaii before he was 16 even though he came from the worst ghetto in Memphis where he say 6 people killed and was robbed twice himself. Although he started as a Prop 48, he eventually received his degree. While I don't like the influence of shoe companies, he is an example of a productive man that the shoe companies may have helped. It's not an issue with easy answers.

Buy this book. Love it.

A great look at how the big corporate money of the shoe industry has tainted high school level and college basketball, not to mention all of those who are involved in it.

A surprising aspect of the book is the names of villians who you would not believe; Billy Packer, Dickie V, George Raveling, and Roy Williams are a few who are found "guilty" of killing the game that I love.

This book will expose you to the negative underworkings of the great game of college basketball.

Read this and discover what is wrong with amateur athletics. While not everything in the book is correct, they are pretty much on target. College players might be referred to as diaper dandies, you can not call them poor and abused. Although you wonder who wrote the book, Paul Fireman (the CEO of Reebok? Before you burn your Nikes think about who really destroyed college basketball, (hint: the NCAA).

If you are a basketball junkie - this is a must read. Fact based with names, names, names. It seems when it comes to finding the next Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant there are no ethics that stand in the way of the shoe companies, shady AAU coaches, "uncles & advisors", college boosters, and (some) college coaches. I was disappointed that it didn't cover WWW (World Wide Wes) and his relationship with Calipari and potential link to the invalidated SAT test by Derick Rose. Once you start will just consumer the book and then go back and read parts again to make sure you really have "the scoop" before you pass it on to your basketball junkie friends.

this product was sent in very good condition and was also sent in a timely manner but amazon makes it so inconvenient to leave reviews when you MUST elaborate on your review it almost makes you not want to give a seller credit in a review at all.