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Spinning the Globe: The Rise, Fall, and Return to Greatness of the Harlem Globetrotters – The True Story of the Iconic Team that Fought Segregation and Transformed Basketball
Before Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell, Julius Erving, or Michael Jordan––before Magic Johnson and Showtime––the Harlem Globetrotters revolutionized basketball and spread the game around the world. In Spinning the Globe, author Ben Green tells the story of this extraordinary franchise and iconic American institution. We follow the Globetrotters' rise from backwoods obscurity during the harsh years of the Great Depression to become the best basketball team in the country and, by the early 1950s, the most popular sports franchise in the world. Green brings to life their struggles with racism and segregation, and their influence upon a nation's views about race and sport. We witness the Globetrotters' fall from grace to the brink of bankruptcy in the early 1990s, and their ultimate rebirth under Mannie Jackson today, as they once again amaze kids and families around the world. Now in paperback, this is the true and complete story of their amazing eighty years as a team, told with lyrical prose and masterful storytelling by Ben Green.
448 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2005
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
March 25, 2021
I loved this book about the history of the Globetrotters.
Fun facts:
-The Trotters were legitimately the country's best team for about the first 3 decades of their existence.
-They regularly defeated the nation's college all-stars, and bested the NBA champion Lakers in a one-off 1948 exhibition.
-They invented almost every flashy or exciting move you see in today's NBA (slam dunks, sleight-of-hand dribbling, etc)
-Wilt Chamberlain was a Trotter before joining the NBA
A great read--recommend for hoops fans or sports history junkies.
Fun facts:
-The Trotters were legitimately the country's best team for about the first 3 decades of their existence.
-They regularly defeated the nation's college all-stars, and bested the NBA champion Lakers in a one-off 1948 exhibition.
-They invented almost every flashy or exciting move you see in today's NBA (slam dunks, sleight-of-hand dribbling, etc)
-Wilt Chamberlain was a Trotter before joining the NBA
A great read--recommend for hoops fans or sports history junkies.
September 23, 2024
An exhaustive and comprehensive history of the Harlem Globetrotters
I must say, after reading this book, I learned a great deal about the Harlem Globetrotters. Prior to this book, my knowledge of them consisted of seeing the made for tv movie The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island and seeing the team on ABC's Wide World of Sports. It was neat learning the history from their humble beginnings to what they would go to become and all the countries they traveled to. I was sad reading the part about their downfall and then happy about how they got turned around.
I must say, after reading this book, I learned a great deal about the Harlem Globetrotters. Prior to this book, my knowledge of them consisted of seeing the made for tv movie The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island and seeing the team on ABC's Wide World of Sports. It was neat learning the history from their humble beginnings to what they would go to become and all the countries they traveled to. I was sad reading the part about their downfall and then happy about how they got turned around.
October 2, 2020
Although I was aware of the Harlem Globetrotters, I knew little about their history, so this book provided a lot of facts that I never realized. The author wrote with honesty about events and conversations, revealing the good and the bad of the players and others involved with the team over the years.
January 20, 2020
I don't enjoy basketball but I did the Globetrotters as a child and I enjoyed this book.
March 22, 2010
I can't really imagine a better top-to-bottom history of the Harlem Globetrotters, from their inception through their heyday and their transformation from a key part of the racial integration process in the United States and around the world into cuddly Saturday morning kids show fodder, than this one.
It's a relatively easy story to tell colorfully. Abe Saperstein, a natural born huckster, falls in love with the sport of basketball not long after it was invented, and through a series of events winds up as the coach and (5 foot 3 inch tall, and round) player for, the first black sports team many whites would ever see. His tireless efforts and occasional serious missteps are chronicled here, and while they may skew a little toward the positive, this is no hagiography. He was a businessman first, and while his personal views on racial equality weren't always as progressive as I'd have thought, his pragmatism and work ethic earned him many loyal adherents and followers, many of whom were interviewed in great detail for this book.
Highly recommended, especially if you only know the Globetrotters as cartoon friends of Scooby-Doo, and not the primary promotional sporting force of the middle third of the 20th century, and very nearly a charter team in the NBA. A solid read.
It's a relatively easy story to tell colorfully. Abe Saperstein, a natural born huckster, falls in love with the sport of basketball not long after it was invented, and through a series of events winds up as the coach and (5 foot 3 inch tall, and round) player for, the first black sports team many whites would ever see. His tireless efforts and occasional serious missteps are chronicled here, and while they may skew a little toward the positive, this is no hagiography. He was a businessman first, and while his personal views on racial equality weren't always as progressive as I'd have thought, his pragmatism and work ethic earned him many loyal adherents and followers, many of whom were interviewed in great detail for this book.
Highly recommended, especially if you only know the Globetrotters as cartoon friends of Scooby-Doo, and not the primary promotional sporting force of the middle third of the 20th century, and very nearly a charter team in the NBA. A solid read.
November 29, 2007
This history/biography of the Harlem Globetrotters and their more famous players, seems to be very well researched and quite thorough. What's more, Ben Green has managed to keep it exciting. We re-live each of their most important games with nail-biting excitement.
As a white male who grew up in the 1960's, my impression of the Globetrotters was that they were a comedy team that played basketball. What I learned was that they were truly the world's best basketball team that began incorporating comedy routines. Their popularity was such that they often played on a double bill with pro teams to draw crowds to the pro (white) games. The Globetrotters very likely saved basketball as we know it from fading away due to lack of interest.
I was also surprised to learn that Meadowlark Lemon was not thought of very highly by his fellow players. He was not considered a "team" player, was NOT a good basketball player, and his comedy routines were very carefully rehearsed, rather than coming spur of the moment as they did with the great Goose Tatum.
An excellent read. I only wish that this uncorrected proof that I read had photos.
As a white male who grew up in the 1960's, my impression of the Globetrotters was that they were a comedy team that played basketball. What I learned was that they were truly the world's best basketball team that began incorporating comedy routines. Their popularity was such that they often played on a double bill with pro teams to draw crowds to the pro (white) games. The Globetrotters very likely saved basketball as we know it from fading away due to lack of interest.
I was also surprised to learn that Meadowlark Lemon was not thought of very highly by his fellow players. He was not considered a "team" player, was NOT a good basketball player, and his comedy routines were very carefully rehearsed, rather than coming spur of the moment as they did with the great Goose Tatum.
An excellent read. I only wish that this uncorrected proof that I read had photos.
June 2, 2011
For a book about a subject as fun as the Globetrotters, the style of writing is very dull. A few things bothered me about the book. First, the author never mentioned why Sweet Georgia Brown is synonomous with the Globetrotters. Next, the book subtitle mentions the return to greatness but the think the author overrates some short-term moves as being great in the long-run. Finally, I was disappointed that the author skipped over most of the last 30 years only focusing on new ownership
May 24, 2016
Very good book.
I remember seeing the Trotters as a kid in the 80s. This book captured that magic, and acted as a great history lesson
I remember seeing the Trotters as a kid in the 80s. This book captured that magic, and acted as a great history lesson
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October 5, 2016Superb research!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews