Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
237th out of 427 books
—
351 voters
Personal Foul: A First Person Account Of The Scandal That Rocked The Nba
by
Tim Donaghy
The media has speculated and sports fans have debated, but until now no one has known the real story. Personal Foul takes an in-depth look at former NBA referee Tim Donaghy and the betting scandal that rocked professional basketball. Containing never-before-seen documentation and correspondence between the league office, referees, coaches, players and owners, this is the d...more
Paperback, 270 pages
Published
by Vti-Group, Inc.
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
123)
Donaghy's chronicle of his journey from ref to riches and then all the way down to the jailhouse is the best story I've read in years - and it's a non-fictional one! Sure, he was once a crooked refereree, but after going to jail, he goes through the obligatory transformation to remorseful informant. But what makes this book great is everything that happens along the way. His dealings with the mob, the corrupt old boy network of NBA referees, federal agents, his rich cronies and his cellmates in...more
An amazing confirmation of the influence referees have on NBA games. Tim Donaghy writes about games and referees that as a long-time NBA fan I recognize to be true. The Western Conf finals stolen from the Kings; how Jake O'Donnell hated Clyde Drexler; how David Stern tries to hide it all. Sure Donaghy gambled and screwed up, but it took someone who had nothing to lose to tell the stories we all knew were there.
Offending referees still call the games today. Some have their own felony convictions,...more
Offending referees still call the games today. Some have their own felony convictions,...more
This review was reprinted from my website Secure Immaturity. Please check out the site and comment on this review and others.
The first thought that went through my head as I picked up Personal Foul, an insultingly cheesy title for a book, was, ‘man, Tim Donaghy is a dickface’, but I said it with a ‘meh’ quality. As I read the text and realized Donaghy is indeed a dickface (as well as an untalented, unfunny, ridiculously boring-redundant author), I said, with more energy, ‘man, Tim Donaghy is a f...more
The first thought that went through my head as I picked up Personal Foul, an insultingly cheesy title for a book, was, ‘man, Tim Donaghy is a dickface’, but I said it with a ‘meh’ quality. As I read the text and realized Donaghy is indeed a dickface (as well as an untalented, unfunny, ridiculously boring-redundant author), I said, with more energy, ‘man, Tim Donaghy is a f...more
AMAZING story. Every sports fan should read this. This applies to the NBA, so no one is saying that every professional sport has this problem, but this explains how games are in fact manipulated as to outcome. Kind of scary stuff. No question this ref was the fall guy, because the crime that was committed here, the conspiracy was so much bigger than he was. He went to jail for betting on an NBA game, but in truth, his part was minimal. Don't take my word for it, you need to read this one(or pass...more
view 2 comments
I found this an intersting read... There was an unedited quality to this book - and by that I don't know that he actually had an editor or even know what company actually touched this hot potato to put it out there. That being said, it was kind of diary-esque... and not very high on the list of grammatically correct/coherent writings (but who am I to judge - lol).
I was vaguely aware of this scandal - can't say that I remember it when it actually happened, but as a fan of the game and having rea...more
I was vaguely aware of this scandal - can't say that I remember it when it actually happened, but as a fan of the game and having rea...more
Walked into the library, saw this book in the new nonfiction section, checked it and read it in two days.
I had no clue as to the favoritism, vendettas, special treatment and dishonesty that is the NBA culture. Congratulations to former NBA referee and convicted felon, Tim Donaghy, for coming clean, paying this debt to society and rebuilding his life. It took a lot of courage.
I had no clue as to the favoritism, vendettas, special treatment and dishonesty that is the NBA culture. Congratulations to former NBA referee and convicted felon, Tim Donaghy, for coming clean, paying this debt to society and rebuilding his life. It took a lot of courage.
Four stars for the content - the stories are absolutely amazing, and, skeptical or not, every NBA fan should read this book.
Two stars for the writing - frequent redundancies; the book could have been shortened by about 50 pages with some careful planning and writing.
Two stars for the writing - frequent redundancies; the book could have been shortened by about 50 pages with some careful planning and writing.
I don't read many sports books and am not a fan of autobiographies but this was very interesting.
Interesting and eye-opening ... but not worth coming back to. Not sure any non-NBA fan would really enjoy this.
great book, very humbling to read the last couple chapters
Great read if you have interest in gambling or NBA basketball
May 21, 2013
Mac Baker
marked it as to-read
May 21, 2013
Zach Popkin
marked it as to-read
May 19, 2013
Giordun
marked it as to-read
May 12, 2013
Will Call
added it
Apr 16, 2013
Andrew Wang
marked it as to-read
Apr 14, 2013
Tanner Angst
marked it as to-read
Apr 05, 2013
Zach
marked it as to-read
Mar 19, 2013
Adam Nalley
is currently reading it
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
