false 119035 0743284976 9780743284974 193 43 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1171770807m/119035.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/119035.Pistol_The_Life_of_Pete_Maravich 68981 Mark Kriegel 279 62 4 0 false Tue Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed May 14 17:35:20 -0700 2008 Wed May 14 18:19:34 -0700 2008
Second, sure Pete had amazing numbers. His college record of most profilific scorer still holds, which averages out to 40-something per game (this doesn't count his freshman year and keep in mind he was a long-range shooter and there was no three-point line) he had multiple 60-point games (with a high of 69). He led the NBA in scoring a couple of times. A lot of his skills aren't captured in conventional stats. His ballhandling was ridiculous, including his passes and his dribble. He was ahead of his time and I'd like to say that his skills in this regard have really stood the test of time, but they haven't. I watched a couple of his highlight reels and then watched reels for Jason Williams (the white one): no comparison. Except one thing: I saw Avery Johnson do this amazing thing where he faked a behind the back pass, brought the ball back to his front after cupping it, and layed it up. I didn't realize that Pete had first done this move like 15 years earlier!

There was also the time he kept the ball spinning on his fingers (and then knuckles when his fingers started to bleed) for an hour. Or when he hit 178 free throws in a row while practicing, or when he bet someone that he could keep shooting from 30 feet away for half an hour and not miss 2 in a row (just for scale, the free throw line is 15 feet away). Or this drill where Pete holds the ball behind his knees, lets go of the ball to clap in front on his knees, and then catches the ball before it hits the ground. That's fast! John Wooden, the great college coach, saw Pete's crazy skills as a kid (how cool is that?).

Third, Pete's life was filled with tragedy: the pressure on him (with his dad even being his coach in college), his mother committing suicide, and even him dying at only 40.

Fourth, the writer uses "Great White Hope" way too often. ]]>