Boys Among Men, by Jonathan Abrams

Review:  “Two generations of readers”

I chose this book because my 16-year-old grandson is interested in LeBron James. Even though I know nothing about basketball (and therefore had a difficult time keeping the players, coaches, scouts, teams and dates straight) I thought the book was very interesting.  As an educator I found the author’s examination of the factors that influenced those players who thrived and those who did not fairly comprehensive, although I thought interviews with those in both circumstances would have added to the depth of the book.  My grandson, an avid sports fan with lots of background knowledge, easily followed the people, dates and careers.  The book combined his interests in basketball, athletic career paths and the business behind the scenes.  He would recommend this book to people interested in any of these aspects of basketball.    I received a free copy of this book in exchange for this review.

Players who went from high school to NBA (Dates are United States playing careers)

Darryl Dawkins 1976 – 1990: did not live up to expectations

Bill Willoughby 1976 – 1984: not successful in NBA – not ready – agent stole his money

Moses Malone 1976 -1995: 3 times league MVP

Kevin Garnett 1995 – present: 2004 MVP, talent showed when playing game but not when working out individually - $126 million contact with Minnesota

Kobe Bryant 1996 – 2016: father, Joe, former NBA player, 2008 league MVP, entire career with LA Lakers – advisor Sonny Vaccaro – sponsorship deal with Adidas

Tracy McGrady 1997 – 2013: $12 million contract with Adidas – first in Toronto, then signed with Orlando Magic for $67.5 million

Amar’e Stoudemire 2002 – present: Phoenix Suns - first high school draftee to win Rookie of the Year

Al Harrington 1998 – 2014: 25th pick by Indiana Pacers – had good mentoring

Korleone Young 1998 – 1999: 2nd round pick Detroit Pistons - mentor Myron  Piggie Sr, employed by Nike – never successful in NBA

Rashard Lewis 1998 2014: 3rd pick in 2nd round by Seattle – signed with Orlando in 2007 for $118 million

Leon Smith 1999 – 2004: Dallas Mavericks – never  successful in NBA

Tyson Chandler 2001 – present: Chicago Bulls –came close to reaching potential after years of struggle

Eddie Curry 2001 – 2012: Chicago Bulls – did not reach expected potential

Kwame Brown 2001 – 2013: Washington Wizards - First player out of high school to be drafted #1 overall but disappointment as a player – 2005 traded to LA Lakers – had a career into his 30s but never to star he was predicted to be

Lenny Cooke 2002 – not drafted – 2004 injured in car accident

Sebastian Telfair 2004 – 2013 - did not reach expected success

LeBron James 2003 – present: Cleveland Cavaliers - dominated over Cooke in 2001 ABCD Camp – on cover of Sports Illustrated as a high school junior - $90 million from Nike over 7 years – Rookie of the Year

Ndudi Ebi, Kendrick Perkins, Travis Outlaw, James Lang – all drafted 2003 with James – none were successful

2004 Draft – 8 out of first 19 picks came directly from high school Dwight Howard 2004 – present: 1st pick Robert Swift 2004 – 2009: 12th pick, only white player drafted from high school J. R. Smith 2004 – present: 18th pick Other five were not successful

For discussion:

NOTE: Page numbers refer to the hardback edition of the book.

1. Before reading this book, what was your opinion of high school graduates playing in the NBA?  Did your opinion change after reading?  Why or why not?

2. What were the important character qualities that enabled high school graduates to be successful in the NBA?  Are these similar or different than those needed to be successful in life?

3. What would the players have learned or developed if they had attended college?

4. In Chapter 13 the story of Leon Smith and his lack of success provided a cautionary tale regarding drafting high school students.  Smith’s childhood was particularly painful and the author wrote, “…anyone could spot the root of his pain as the lack of ever feeling loved” (page 150) and that he “had little clue as to the effort and diligent work needed …” (page 153).  In the end, who was responsible for his downfall?  Was there anything that could have been done differently to save him? 

5. In general, were there any warning signs to distinguish who could succeed in the NBA directly out of high school and who could not?

6. Discuss the incident on November 19, 2004 when a fan threw a coke on Indiana’s Ron Artest and he went into the stands after the person.  How, if anything, could this have been prevented?

7. In June 2005 the NBA raised the minimum age from 18 to 19 and required a player be out of high school for at least one year before being drafter.  Do you think the one year delay was effective?  Is there a difference between that one year being spent in college compared to playing overseas?

8. One argument to allow players to be drafted right out of high school is that they will have that much more earning time, especially given how short their careers are.  Do you agree or not?  Why?

9. On page 301 a retiring NBA player asked, “You invest millions of dollars into these players.  Why aren’t you doing a better job of positioning these players to be successful?”   What could the teams and the league do to help the young players?

10. What does the author mean on page 266 when he writes the following:  Rod Higgins, a general manager said, “For every success story, you probably could write a horror story.”   The author responded, “They were wrong.  You cannot.”

11. The last line in the Author’s Acknowledgements says that his newborn son will go to college for “all four years.”  Do you think he will change his mind if his son is a basketball prodigy?

*****
First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.  Click on the upper right link.