Take a trip back to the 2004-05 NBA season. Back when the Pistons had one of the greatest teams of the decade, Reggie Miller was still in the league, and D-Wade was turning into a superstar before our eyes. Shaq had just left L.A. and a different Superman's name had been called by the Magic on the day of the draft. In other words, it was a typical season, filled with great performances, moments, and player movement. In The Sixth Man ESPN’s Chris Palmer attempts to show the inside life of a selected few NBA stars and newcomers for that single season.First off, Palmer doesn't seem to be part of the traditional media, hanging out with players, accepting gifts, and dissing the beat writers. So perhaps a bias might be present when talking about his "friends".
The book itself seems a little off. For what seems to be the first few chapters, Palmer goes through his journey to find players willing to let him follow for his book. Shouldn't that have been cut once, you know, the book was actually written? The subtitle: "A season inside the NBA playground" should instead read: "A season inside Chris Palmer's life". Yes, we get it, you know NBA players, so let's just hear more about them, and less about you losing your book during a laptop mishap. Let's hear more about T-Mac's agonizing loss in the first round, or more about Reggie Miller's farewell.
As long as the author is able to talk about their journey, allow me to say mine. I bought this book at the dollar store. I can see why now. I'm not dissing the book, there are plenty of good stories in it. However, the book as a single narrative fails. It wasn't a long epic, so it was fairly easy to breeze through it. Just don't expect a masterpiece.
Rating: 2/5 Stars
