How to Watch Basketball Like a Genius from Nick Greene is a startling blend of entertainment and education for even the biggest basketball fans. Yet even those with little interest in watching the game will still find a lot of interesting information here using basketball as simply the focal point.

I'm going to give a slightly inaccurate description of the book because I think it is close enough to accurate and it explains why I think it will find a wide readership. This is almost like a history of basketball, though not in the sense of a lot of statistics and dynasties explained. More like how the game evolved and some of the more interesting players and innovators. But the history book is broken up by discussions with people from various fields about whatever aspect was just discussed. So a few pages of basketball history or discussion, then several pages about how someone sees that particular aspect just presented. This offers some fun perspectives and very often a new appreciation of the game and the players.

I also want to relate what I found most fun. I used to teach theory and literature, which means often teaching books I was very familiar with. It always amazed me when students would discuss a book and I would learn yet another avenue into a book I might have read a dozen times. This does the same thing for me, I find it intriguing to see how other people view the game of basketball. Not in the sense that some fans love offense and others defense, or a lot of passing versus isolation one on one. But how these people relate some aspect of the game to their own area of expertise. Sorta like I might think of a game as a narrative and look for how something subtle done in the second quarter is done with an eye toward the fourth. That is the literature person in me.

I highly recommend this for fans of basketball, whether they are diehard or casual. I also think a lot of people with no interest in watching a game but who might find thinking about sports from a different perspective interesting will enjoy the book.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley. ( )

A fun and entertaining book of the history and practice of basketball. Chock full of interesting stories, tidbits, and unusual perspectives. A great read for any student of the game. I learned a great deal. ( )

By interviewing experts from other fields, Nick Greene is able to describe the beauty and grace of basketball like few other writers have been able to do.

I loved the way that Greene was able to interweave aspects of the game with input from experts. My favorite was the discussion of the Triangle office and the background of Tex Winter. It was very fitting that the last expert Greene wrote about was the architect of one of the most successful offensive schemes in NBA history. But before that, we hear from experts in fields such as the sciences, relationship counseling, and ballet. But, the input from these experts in other fields helps build up to the discussion of Tex Winter.

Greene's writing style is also a delight. He's self deprecating, but not twee. I haven't read someone write like him since A.J. Jacobs. He has some great turns of phrase. None is better than the discussion of Wilt Chamberlain's biography. He manages to talk about Wilt with some empathy while still calling him out for his inability to take responsibility for anything wrong that happened to him. The book was truly a pleasure to read.

I recommend this book to everyone, not just basketball fan. ( )