In a podcast appearance with journalist Derek Thompson on his Plain English podcast (which is also a really solid platform to hear about current events), author Kirk Goldsberry talks about his recently released book Hoop Atlas, which identifies the five NBA superstars who INVENTED the modern NBA. Goldsberry attributes to these former and current players as having “served as tactical entrepreneurs, introducing new plays and skills that transform the way basketball is played.”
While it includes well-known luminaries like Michael Jordan, Nikola Jokic, Stephen Curry, and Allen Iverson (debatable), the star of the show for Pounders is (obviously) Manu Ginobiili! The entire pod is worth listening to, but some notable moments or observations:
- For Goldsberry, the modern era started in earnest on June 3, 1992, when Michael Jordan hit six first-half threes during the 1992 Finals Game 1 against Portland (which he capped with the self-glossing shrug).
- The invention of the corner three “3 and D” specialist, which was credited to our own Bruce Bowen! Surprisingly, PATFO had been discussing better ways to defend in the half-court, and essentially stumbled on using the corner three as a weapon for players crosscourt from Tim Duncan ‘on the left block.’
- Thompson and Goldsberry have an interesting conversation about Iverson’s contributions (“he made dribbling… stylistically cool”)
- The Ginobili part was just. the. greatest. (no preview needed… nor shared) His specific section spans the 17:45 – 20:40 marks. Thompson notes Goldsberry was “very persuasive on his case” for inclusion on this gilded list.
- Goldsberry then chronicles Curry’s journey to becoming the greatest shooter of all-time, which also includes some credit to San Antonio’s defense (Danny Green’s) against him in the 2013 WCSF.
The book is available for about $26 and so far, the content on Bowen and Ginobili is everything that I would have hoped for in descrbing their contributions and impact. To whet your appetite for the book, there are two pages of content and diagrams dedicated to Bowen’s 2003 WCSF Game 2 effort and the Spurs’ win against the Lakers.