Big Game, Small World: A Basketball Adventure (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "I had bought the Russian nesting dolls from a street vendor in St. Petersburg..." (more)
Key Phrases: basketball federation, midnight basketball, national team, Doc Naismith, New York, Karma Lam (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

From basketball's origins in Canada to modern China--with stops in Iowa, Italy, Arizona, and Angola--Big Game, Small World: A Basketball Adventure ably tracks the international growth and popularity of basketball. Alexander Wolff simply (and convincingly) explores basketball's reach as a driving force and saving grace.

Some countries mimic the NBA to the last detail, while the game provides a symbol of freedom and opportunity in more restrictive countries. Interviews with players, coaches, and local legends provide insight into how the sport has evolved, and what it means, in their respective countries. Perhaps most importantly, we see that, like soccer, basketball is a part of the social fabric, played everywhere by children, sometimes with little more than the rocks Dr. James Naismith had. Although Wolff covers much ground, he covers it quickly; details beyond the game are relatively sparse, as though he had a tight schedule. Still, the book is thoughtfully prepared, the interviews engaging, and Wolff a sure-handed writer.

So why the drive in small countries to play basketball? As a Lithuanian noted: "In Lithuania today, if you have money, you have no reputation, because your money is black [market] money. If you have reputation, you are teacher, scientist, artist--but you have no money. Only basketball player has money and reputation." True, this observation applies to many sports worldwide, but Big Game, Small World stands as part of the proof. --Michael Ferch

From Publishers Weekly

In his newest, Wolff (coauthor of Raw Recruits) sets off on his international tour of "the country of basketball" 16 different nations and eight states with his thesis: "Basketball is quick-cutting, digital, and perfectly adapted to... manifestations of American cultural power." And fortunately for fans, he's also a stylish reporter (for Sports Illustrated). Basketball is now stepping on the heels of soccer as the world's game (Wolff claims that 71% of middle-class teenagers worldwide play or watch, including "two of every three girls on the planet." In the middle of a 1998 Princeton game, Wolff had an epiphany: he would become a roundball anthropologist. His first expedition was to explore professional basketball culture in Europe and to record indigenous versions in Japan, the Philippines, Bhutan and Brazil. He proves that the game's essence transcends national boundaries, and he turns up dozens of dedicated, delightful even tragic basketball stories and characters in what will seem unlikely places to an average Kansas State fan, for instance. He doesn't neglect U.S. homegrown teams, however, and includes familiar interviews in Chapel Hill, Kansas and Texas but it is the new comparative basketball culture that excites his best writing.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Warner Books; 1st Ed. edition (January 10, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446526010
• ISBN-13: 978-0446526012
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #230,360 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent basketball travelogue., January 16, 2002

By	Jake Wilson (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews

The book is a basketball travelogue that takes the reader around the world to illustrate the global nature and universal appeal of the game of basketball. As a fan of Ivy League basketball two chapters in particular stood out to me: "Philadelphia: Quaker Meeting House" and "Princeton, New Jersey: Through the Back Door"
As you might have guessed, the "Quaker meeting house" in question is the Palestra. The first half of the chapter recounts the past glories of the building while the latter half brings to life the famous Penn-Princeton game that took place on February 9, 1999.

The Princeton chapter deals with the legendary "Princeton offense." It uses the context of lunchtime pickup games at Princeton's Jadwin Gym to make its points and gives a wonderful look inside the family atmosphere that permeates Princeton basketball like few other college basketball programs.

I would add "Big Game, Small World" to a list of recommended basketball reading that includes John Feinstein's superb "The Last Amateurs."

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful journey, May 15, 2003

By	Brandon Wilkening (Bloomington, IN United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is an essential read for anyone interested in basketball history and all those, such as myself, who are excited by the increasingly international dimensions of the game. Wolff starts his journey in Princeton, the home of pure, fundamentals-driven b-ball, and visits many disparate corners of the globe, examining the local idiosyncrasies of the game through colorful anecdotes, a bit of philosophizing, and a great sense of humor. One of the things that caught my interest was hearing the names of former American hoopsters now playing overseas. Ever wonder what happened to Richard Dumas, the former Phoenix Sun who looked like a budding superstar in the 1993 NBA finals against the Chicago Bulls? You'll find out in this book. Another fascinating thing that caught my attention is the way in which hoops is so affected by politics in many countries. Wolff looks at how hoopsters had to literally dodge landmines to make it to their games in the former Yugoslavia and in present day Angola. His chapter on Africa is outstanding; it left me convinced that Africa is the real untapped reservoir of future NBA superstars. Another place in which b-ball and politics are inextricably entwined is China, where the state is finally loosening its hold over sports. In Bhutan, the monarch is literally the hoopster in chief. Wolff relates the interesting story of how hoops came to this tiny, Himalayan kingdom. These are just a few of the great stories contained within this book. Besides numerous international sojourns, Wolff also writes on the game closer to home, with some great chapters set in Philly, Peoria, Kansas City, and Washington D.C. I can't say much more other than to give this book my highest recommendations!

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive and Fascinating, June 4, 2002

By	Dan Diamond (Philadelphia, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This may be the most far-reaching basketball book I have ever read. Wolff chronicles the game's impact and value in such disparate locations such as a modernizing China, the backwaters of Eastern Europe, and even within Bill Bradley's aborted 2000 presidential campaign!
Since the author visits such a long list of out-of-the-way places, you would expect his prose or reporting to suffer as the book progresses. Rather, Wolff keeps the story light and full of offbeat humor, while using his sharp skills to sniff out a story. For example, the author learns much about the Phillippines' national league and even meets the country's greatest player. Yet he is not satisfied with basketball's role in the country until he wanders the streets and unearths the tale of a local's fight to build a community court.
The story is broken down into epsiodes, as Wolff devotes each chapter to one of his stops. This makes it easy, should a particular subject or country interest you, to read the book slightly out of order. Yet the author does tie together many of his threads, and makes Big Game, Small World an informative look at the ways the game of basketball is shaping (and being shaped by) the world, as well as doubling as a minor commentary on many countries' natures and traditions.