The Rise of the National Basketball Association

By: David George Surdam

Narrated by: Todd Barsness

Length: 8 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

Today's National Basketball Association commands millions of spectators worldwide, and its many franchises are worth hundreds of millions of dollars. But the league wasn't always so successful or glamorous: in the 1940s and 1950s, the NBA and its predecessor, the Basketball Association of America, were scrambling to attract fans. Teams frequently played in dingy gymnasiums, players traveled as best they could, and their paychecks could bounce higher than a basketball. How did the NBA evolve from an obscure organization facing financial losses to a successful fledgling sports enterprise by 1960?

Drawing on information from numerous archives, newspaper and periodical articles, and Congressional hearings, The Rise of the National Basketball Association chronicles the league's growing pains from 1946 to 1961. David George Surdam describes how a handful of ambitious ice hockey arena owners created the league as a way to increase the use of their facilities, growing the organization by fits and starts. Rigorously analyzing financial data and league records, Surdam points to the innovations that helped the NBA thrive: regular experiments with rules changes to make the game more attractive to fans, and the emergence of televised sports coverage as a way of capturing a larger audience.

Notably, the NBA integrated in 1950, opening the game to players who would dominate the game by the end of the 1950s decade: Bill Russell, Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain, and Oscar Robertson. Long a game that players loved to play, basketball became a professional sport well supported by community leaders, business vendors, and an ever-growing number of fans.

©2012 the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois (P)2014 Redwood Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"If you're a fan of the NBA - and I mean a real fan of the league and its history - Surdam's book won't disappoint. Surdam tells well the story of the founders creating a league in which uncertainty and excitement were part of every contest." (EH.Net)

"A fascinating story about the evolution of the NBA. Surdam's command of the economic history of the formative years of the NBA is flat-out impressive. He tells a very compelling story of the role of a small group of owners who stayed with the sport and the league when it was always on the verge of financial collapse and then began to cash in when the league caught on in the 1960s, a long-shot gamble that paid off big." (James Quirk, coauthor of Hard Ball: The Abuse of Power in Pro Team Sports)

A good overview of the rise of the NBA

Like the National Football League, the NBA survived during a period of a lack of popularity and credibility, hemorrhaging money, and along the way, absorbing three competing rival leagues. David George Surdam charts the league's path to competitive balance, establishing their product as superior to the college game and the brand of entertainment delivered by the Harlem Globetrotters. The author addresses the myth surrounding revenue sharing leveling the playing field for all teams.

The book outlines the different rules changes that impacted the game, including the successful twenty four second clock. "The Rise of the National Basketball Association" also brings the NBA fan back to an era of double headers, difficulties with scheduling games at home arenas, and players either turning down NBA contracts, and/or having to find employment outside of basketball to support their families.

Additionally, Surdam also details the league's struggles with establishing their product on network television, dealing with allegations of the games being fixed, teams folding and league expansion, and the emergence of impactful stars such as Wilt Chamberlin. "The Rise of the National Basketball Association" is packed with statistical breakdowns, and a good overview of the success of the NBA.