The Victory Machine: The Making and Unmaking of the Warriors Dynasty
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- Create Date：2021-03-28 12:14:01
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Ethan Sherwood Strauss
- ISBN：1541736222
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Summary
How money， guts， and greed built the Warriors dynasty -- and then took it apart
The Golden State Warriors dominated the NBA for the better part of a decade。 Since the arrival of owner Joe Lacob， they won more championships and sold more merchandise than any other franchise in the sport。 And in 2019， they opened the doors on a lavish new stadium。
Yet all this success contained some of the seeds of decline。 Ethan Sherwood Strauss's clear-eyed exposé reveals the team's culture， its financial ambitions and struggles， and the price that its players and managers have paid for all their winning。 From Lacob's unlikely acquisition of the team to Kevin Durant's controversial departure， Strauss shows how the smallest moments can define success or failure for years。
And， looking ahead， Strauss ponders whether this organization can rebuild after its abrupt fall from the top， and how a relentless business wears down its players and executives。 The Victory Machine is a defining book on the modern NBA: it not only rewrites the story of the Warriors， but shows how the Darwinian business of pro basketball really works。
The Golden State Warriors dominated the NBA for the better part of a decade。 Since the arrival of owner Joe Lacob， they won more championships and sold more merchandise than any other franchise in the sport。 And in 2019， they opened the doors on a lavish new stadium。
Yet all this success contained some of the seeds of decline。 Ethan Sherwood Strauss's clear-eyed exposé reveals the team's culture， its financial ambitions and struggles， and the price that its players and managers have paid for all their winning。 From Lacob's unlikely acquisition of the team to Kevin Durant's controversial departure， Strauss shows how the smallest moments can define success or failure for years。
And， looking ahead， Strauss ponders whether this organization can rebuild after its abrupt fall from the top， and how a relentless business wears down its players and executives。 The Victory Machine is a defining book on the modern NBA: it not only rewrites the story of the Warriors， but shows how the Darwinian business of pro basketball really works。
Reviews
Caitlin Graefe
，
Well written but confusing in that Strauss continuously calls out Kevin Durant’s obsessive attitude towards the media， yet spends 212 pages trying to be vindicate himself from KD’s wrath at a press conference years ago。
John Lustrea
，
*3。5/5More about the front office story and make up than the players （other than KD）， this was an interesting take on the construction and destruction of a team。 It had some really thought provoking philosophical parts which I enjoyed， but the author can belabor certain points or struggle to connect the dots in a clear way。 In short， definitely worth the read if you love basketball， but perhaps less essential reading if you're more of a casual fan。 *3。5/5More about the front office story and make up than the players （other than KD）， this was an interesting take on the construction and destruction of a team。 It had some really thought provoking philosophical parts which I enjoyed， but the author can belabor certain points or struggle to connect the dots in a clear way。 In short， definitely worth the read if you love basketball， but perhaps less essential reading if you're more of a casual fan。 。。。more
Johnny
，
This book was a lot of fun to read about my favorite team in my favorite sport。 I learned a lot about the higher ups， and it made me very grateful I am not a GM， which at one point sounded awesome。 The only reason this is not 5 stars is because I was a little put off by the middle section about KD that kind of made it seem like this book was just a way for a somewhat famous media member to cash out。
Jodi Collen
，
There are some interesting stories here， but in my opinion it just wasn’t organized well。 Perhaps following a more linear， chronological path would have helped。 And， going a bit deeper than surface level on many of the critical details would have made it more compelling。 I guess more than anything， I don’t love books where it feels like the purpose is to lay out someone’s dirty laundry—even if it’s true， it feels gross。
Alan Johnson
，
Kevin Durant kind of sucks as a dude
Michael Perera-Collins
，
This is the book that “Beta Ball” should have been — more insightful analysis; more focus on the front office and the different philosophy they brought to owning a team。 There’s also more talk about market inefficiencies in acquiring and deploying players， much like “money ball” before it。 It’s a little more intelligent than Beta Ball’s “draft good players” analysis。
Matt DosSantos DiSorbo
，
Not close to comprehensive， or even cogent as a standalone narrative， and yet surprisingly well-written with enough 'insider' tidbits to make this a worthy read。 Not close to comprehensive， or even cogent as a standalone narrative， and yet surprisingly well-written with enough 'insider' tidbits to make this a worthy read。 。。。more
Jaime Flores
，
It started out great！ Being a Clippers fan， I've hated the Warriors for the rise from Pacific division cellar dwellers to champs！ I knew big picture how they were built but Ethan had great insight into the details。 That part was great。 I've read Ethan's many articles and follow him on Twitter for years， and I think this is the issue。 The rest of book just reads like random basketball articles， and Twitter threads about GSW， KD and NBA in general。 Also， I thought I was insecure about myself， but It started out great！ Being a Clippers fan， I've hated the Warriors for the rise from Pacific division cellar dwellers to champs！ I knew big picture how they were built but Ethan had great insight into the details。 That part was great。 I've read Ethan's many articles and follow him on Twitter for years， and I think this is the issue。 The rest of book just reads like random basketball articles， and Twitter threads about GSW， KD and NBA in general。 Also， I thought I was insecure about myself， but KD takes the cake！ My Gawd！！ 。。。more
Mark
，
Very interesting behind the scenes stories that I think any fan of basketball will appreciate。 It was pretty short， a very easy read。
Ankur Shah
，
it’s ok。 some of the reporting is interesting。 a lot reads like warriors pr。 kd doesn’t come off looking great。 i would say he’s the main focus， steph and draymond are fringe characters， klay barely mentioned。
Leo Flores
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 The book started off great。 When I first started to read the book I was excited to hear some takes about my favorite basketball team and one of the greatest team ever assembled。 As I continued reading， it felt like it was a hit piece against Kevin Durant。 It is entertaining nonetheless。
Erin Himes
，
As an NBA fan， i found this book riveting。 really great stuff！
Aaron
，
Fun， but probably only for a Warriors fan。 Kevin Durant portrayed as petulant and Kobe-like in his narcissicism and short-sightedness。 Unfortunately， it doesn't get into many others on the team and acts as if adding Durant made the team， and that it's all downhill without him。 One other problem: it suggests that Draymond is responsible his ejection in 2016 G5 for "punching" LeBron， and doesn't address the scandalous NBA treatment of the Warriors that series。 Fun read nonetheless！ Fun， but probably only for a Warriors fan。 Kevin Durant portrayed as petulant and Kobe-like in his narcissicism and short-sightedness。 Unfortunately， it doesn't get into many others on the team and acts as if adding Durant made the team， and that it's all downhill without him。 One other problem: it suggests that Draymond is responsible his ejection in 2016 G5 for "punching" LeBron， and doesn't address the scandalous NBA treatment of the Warriors that series。 Fun read nonetheless！ 。。。more
Tony Foxhoven
，
Pretty quick read that gave a lot of good info on the final 2 seasons of the warriors dynasty。 Pretty Durant heavy but I wouldn't say that is a negative Pretty quick read that gave a lot of good info on the final 2 seasons of the warriors dynasty。 Pretty Durant heavy but I wouldn't say that is a negative 。。。more
Fidel
，
（SP/EN）（SP）"The Victory Machine" busca narrar el ascenso y declive de los Golden State Warriors desde la perspectiva de alguien que acompaña al equipo de la cancha hasta las salas de prensa y el interior del vestuario。 El libro comienza con la narración de la adquisición del equipo por parte de los dueños actuales， a partir de ahí se vislumbra que la lectura va más allá del ámbito deportivo y así se entiende que los hilos detrás del espectáculo son primordialmente decisiones comerciales。 En este （SP/EN）（SP）"The Victory Machine" busca narrar el ascenso y declive de los Golden State Warriors desde la perspectiva de alguien que acompaña al equipo de la cancha hasta las salas de prensa y el interior del vestuario。 El libro comienza con la narración de la adquisición del equipo por parte de los dueños actuales， a partir de ahí se vislumbra que la lectura va más allá del ámbito deportivo y así se entiende que los hilos detrás del espectáculo son primordialmente decisiones comerciales。 En este sentido， quizás lo mejor de este libro sea que se explora mucho la posible injerencia de los dueños en sus equipos， el rol de los contratos de calzado en el posicionamiento de los jugadores y las razones detrás de su lealtad。Este libro también ayuda a entender mejor la relación entre jugadores y los medios de comunicación， las redes sociales han ayudado a abrir mucho más estos espacios y la opinión de alguien al interior de este mundo brinda nuevas perspectivas。 Sin embargo， a pesar de ser un gran aficionado del equipo， me parece que la relación entre el autor y Kevin Durant tiñe al libro negativamente。 En este sentido， el libro procura más el "descenso" del equipo y a este le atribuye un epicentro: Kevin Durant。 Pocas veces se hace mención de jugadores claves en el equipo， si no es para revestir una historia que gira alrededor de Kevin。 No sorprende que el capítulo más largo se titule "Kevin y yo" y comience con una frase agresiva con la que el jugador se dirigió en algún momento al autor cuando este le solicitó una entrevista para su libro。La perspectiva desde la que se narra en este libro es un acercamiento interesante a historias que de otra manera no alcanzaríamos a conocer desde la pantalla。 El storytelling es interesante pero me parece que al pretender hablar sobre la historia de un equipo hace falta más que un recuento de sus comienzos。 El libro debió de haberse titulado como "Kevin Durant y los Warriors" o algo similar。//（EN）"The Victory Machine" speaks about the rise and decline of the Golden State Warriors from the perspective of someone who accompanies the team from the field to the press rooms and into the locker room。 The book begins with the narration of the acquisition of the team by the current owners， from there it appears that the reading goes beyond the sports field and thus， the threads behind the show are primarily commercial decisions。 In this sense， perhaps the best thing about this book is that it explores a lot the potential interference of the owners in their teams， the role of shoe contracts in the positioning of the players and the reasons behind their loyalty。This book also helps to better understand the relationship between players and the media， social networks have helped to open up these spaces much more and so， the opinion of someone within this world provides new perspectives。 However， despite being a great fan of the team， it seems to me that the relationship between the author and Kevin Durant tinges the book negatively。 In this sense， the book seeks more detail the "descent" of the team as well as attributing such to Kevin Durant。 There are few mentions of key players in the team， and if they are， they are its probably to add up to a story that revolves around Kevin。 It is not surprising that the longest chapter is titled "Kevin and I" which begins with an aggressive phrase from Kevin to the author。The perspective from which this book is told is an interesting approach to stories that we would otherwise not be able to see from the screen。 The storytelling is interesting but it seems to me that when trying to talk about the history of a team， you need more than a superficial tale of its beginnings。 The book must have been titled "Kevin Durant and the Warriors" or something similar。 。。。more
Mark Lykins
，
He spent most of the book talking about how mean Kevin Durant was to him。 If you’re worried about players not liking you maybe don’t dedicate most of a book singling one out？ I dunno， book was meandering， cynical， and kinda dumb。
Riley Haas
，
This is a portrait of the Warriors that is both fascinating and maddening。 I am not super familiar with Strauss beyond his podcast guest appearances on the Lowe Post and maybe the odd article I've stumbled across but I don't know how much I'll be seeking out his writing after this。So， the good news: there is all sorts of detail to this book， much of which I didn't know， including a fairly nuanced portrait of one of the owners， and detailed （but not necessarily nuanced） portraits of Kevin Durant This is a portrait of the Warriors that is both fascinating and maddening。 I am not super familiar with Strauss beyond his podcast guest appearances on the Lowe Post and maybe the odd article I've stumbled across but I don't know how much I'll be seeking out his writing after this。So， the good news: there is all sorts of detail to this book， much of which I didn't know， including a fairly nuanced portrait of one of the owners， and detailed （but not necessarily nuanced） portraits of Kevin Durant and Bob Myers。 （The former is an asshole in Strauss's eyes， the latter is just a great person。） The are angles here that I must admit I've never thought of and Strauss opens my eyes a little bit to things like sneaker payments。 And， I should point out that， on occasion， Strauss writes beautifully。 He's hardly consistent in this regard but occasionally there are sentences in this book that rival the book it has been compared to， The Breaks of the Game。 （That is an utterly bizarre comparison in my mind， but anyway。。。）But， for me， there are a number of flaws that are really hard to overlook。First， there is Strauss' writing， which veers from eloquent to awkward， sometimes in the same paragraph。 Sometimes he writes really well and sometimes he uses cliches and there's no rhyme or reason as far as I can figure。 Also， the chapters are organized very loosely and Strauss just jumps around within them。There is no real chronology - if you are not a fan of the NBA and you didn't pay attention to the Warriors' dynasty， this book is not for you。 I get that he wrote it for a certain type of person， but there is no context for someone who didn't watch at the time。 I can't recommend this to anyone who doesn't actually watch basketball religiously - unlike， say， The Breaks of the Game - because Strauss barely explains what's happening。 There is an assumption that you know how everything unfolded already。 Yes， we can all look it up online but shouldn't a book be a little more self-contained？Strauss is extremely cynical。 To the point at which it puts off a cynic like me。 He is also very inconsistent in his cynicism。 Despite his age， he really does seem to think things were better when he was younger。 You're not old yet， dude。 You don't have to have takes like this yet！ The worst example is how it's crass and commercial （and all about the sneakers and the brand） for Durant to go to the Warriors and for LeBron and AD to go to the Lakers but LeBron， Bosh and Wade on the Heat was altruistic。 （That's a weird one。） Sometimes I wonder if he's looked at his writing and tried to think about how consistent he is （or isn't， in this case）。 Because his takes are hot and they are definitely inconsistent。It's clear he began his at the beginning of the Warriors success and seems to have no idea what it's like to cover （and be on） a bad team。 The beat writers I follow for my hometown team cannot stop comparing the bad days to the current （soon to end） salad days。 Strauss appears to have no idea what that's like as he writes ridiculous things like "yet another home loss" about the fucking 2015-2019 Golden State Warriors。 Like， dude， what are you talking about？ Go cover the Kings for a decade and then write your book about how hard it is to win。And then there's the Durant stuff。 First of all， he definitely gives a detailed， in-depth portrait of the man。 But it is very personal and very much framed through both Durant's dislike of Strauss and Strauss' dislike （and relative lack of empathy for） Durant。 At times， it feels really insightful。 At other times it almost feels willfully ignorant or mean-spirited。 I can't help but side with players who tire of the same questions over and over again and tire of media speculation about what's in their heads。 Wouldn't you？There's some good stuff here。 But to get to it， you have to wade through a lot self-satisfied personal "insight" about a team that was extraordinarily successful， not that you'd know it from this book。 I spent the entire book swinging from being rapt to wanting to take it back to the library unfinished。 Take that for what it's worth。 。。。more
David Barney
，
The author stated that Kevin Durant wanted to see what was written about him。 In my opinion， it wasn’t particularly favorable to KD。 KD was portrayed as a self conscious， paranoid player。 With this said， KD can still play the game。 The book was OK。 Didn’t keep my interest。
Leila Kern
，
I heard an online talk with Ethan Strauss and became intrigued with this book。 It is very well written。 I came away with the sense that some players believe their publicity and fan tweets and butter wouldn’t melt in their mouths。 The basketball players and coaches， etc。 are one big one up man ship with each other。 It is a wonder that anyone gets anything done！
David Hughey
，
Michael Jordan makes more in one year off sneakers than all of his NBA player earnings combined Lacob was only able to buy the warriors because he visited the current owner in person- definitely was outbid by someone else but the owners wife didn’t like the more rich guy so maybe she had an influence on Lacob getting the teamWarriors tried to trade Klay & Steph for CP3 in 2011Marc Jackson sketch - pg 48-49Kerr met w/Pete Carrol before taking the Warriors job bc he wanted the warriors to play lik Michael Jordan makes more in one year off sneakers than all of his NBA player earnings combined Lacob was only able to buy the warriors because he visited the current owner in person- definitely was outbid by someone else but the owners wife didn’t like the more rich guy so maybe she had an influence on Lacob getting the teamWarriors tried to trade Klay & Steph for CP3 in 2011Marc Jackson sketch - pg 48-49Kerr met w/Pete Carrol before taking the Warriors job bc he wanted the warriors to play like USC （04/05 teams）KD coming to Warriors fucked up Steph/Under Armor shoe sales - pg 76Steph roasted UA officials for “coming up short on vision and execution” after the launch of Curry 4s - pg 80KD。 Chapter- KD: “Fuck you and your book。” - KD to Ethan Strauss （85）- Complained about the lack of criticism his teammates received - “You’re not gonna write about that because anything Klay does is okay bc it’s Klay。 But anything I do is not okay because I’m Kevin Durant”- “Some days he would have really good input， then he wouldn’t say anything for 6 straight film sessions。 His personality went up and down like a yo-yo。” - 129Bob Myers section - 183Warriors retired KDs jersey？KD intervened in the sign and trade that sent him to Brooklyn multiple times- “We had the deal agreed to 3 times。 He fucked us。” - Warriors Exec 。。。more
Nick Krapf
，
While The Victory Machine says to focus on The Warriors Dynasty， a majority seems to also revolve around Kevin Durant， which i was fine with。 Overall I found it to be interesting and a very quick read
Matt Schiavenza
，
Every Golden State Warriors fan — and I have been one now for almost 30 years — knows the general trajectory of the franchise's history。 After a few exciting years in the early '90s， powered by Run TMC and Don Nelson's innovative small-ball system， the Warriors endured a horrendous two-decade run interrupted only by the "We Believe" team's upset of the Dallas Mavericks in the 2007 postseason。 The Warriors squandered draft picks， botched trades， and replaced coaches like they were disposable coff Every Golden State Warriors fan — and I have been one now for almost 30 years — knows the general trajectory of the franchise's history。 After a few exciting years in the early '90s， powered by Run TMC and Don Nelson's innovative small-ball system， the Warriors endured a horrendous two-decade run interrupted only by the "We Believe" team's upset of the Dallas Mavericks in the 2007 postseason。 The Warriors squandered draft picks， botched trades， and replaced coaches like they were disposable coffee filters。 Their rosters were a repository of has-beens and draft busts and players who frankly never should have received minutes in the NBA。 And then things changed。 After two promising but ultimately unsuccessful seasons under Mark Jackson， the Warriors hired Steve Kerr and launched the greatest five-year run in NBA history。 How did this happen？ Ethan Sherwood Strauss' book， The Victory Machine， promises to tell。 But the book never delivers。Instead， Strauss' book is an incoherent mess， more a collection of essays than an attempt at telling a story。 The beginning of the book features a long digression about the relationship between NBA players and sneaker companies， an interesting-enough piece of writing but one that belongs in a different book。 The middle chapters focus mainly on Kevin Durant， which， given his importance to the Warriors' second and third championships， is justifiable。 But Strauss is more interested in Durant's tempestuous relationship with the media than his performance on the basketball court。 It's not difficult to see how this might have annoyed Durant。Writing about a successful team in the NBA is different from， say， baseball， where one or two dominant players do not guarantee championship-quality play。 It wouldn't be that reductive to attribute the Warriors' success to having had the good fortune of drafting Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson， two of the best shooters in league history， and having a generational talent like Kevin Durant fall into their laps due to fortuitous timing in free agency。 But Strauss' book is absent of any analysis of the basketball itself。 There was little discussion of x's and o's and strategy。 He also virtually ignores every player on the team not named Durant or Curry。 Future Hall of Famers like Klay Thompson and Draymond Green are afterthoughts; Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston are hardly mentioned at all。 For a Warrior obsessive， Strauss' book contains enough interesting nuggets to justify the slog。 But for everyone else， this poorly-written， strangely-structured book is a missed shot。 。。。more
Hanson
，
This book is fine。 Strauss is a good writer and it was an informative and at times entertaining read。 I docked it a star for not really being what it claimed to be - it seems to be more a book about Kevin Durant's relationship with the Warriors （and with Strauss himself） than it is about the Warriors。 There is material about Myers and Lacob， and Kerr too， but there's not really very much about the actual team。 Almost nothing from on the court。 I was hoping for more about the Warriors dynasty。 Ma This book is fine。 Strauss is a good writer and it was an informative and at times entertaining read。 I docked it a star for not really being what it claimed to be - it seems to be more a book about Kevin Durant's relationship with the Warriors （and with Strauss himself） than it is about the Warriors。 There is material about Myers and Lacob， and Kerr too， but there's not really very much about the actual team。 Almost nothing from on the court。 I was hoping for more about the Warriors dynasty。 Maybe this book was just advertised （and subtitled） wrong。 Like I said， it's a fine book， just not what I expected/hoped。 。。。more
Tooms1121
，
Full of tangents but a worthwhile read for a hardcore NBA fan。 I will re-read again at some point， certainly a thought provoking book。
James B
，
Can't recommend it: 80% of the book is either previously reported stories， summarized for some imagined audience who hasn't been following the Warriors for the past five years， or overwrought analogies between sport and war （e。g。， "When an opponent wins a championship on the road， it's as close to a city sacking as we see in civilized society。" Barf。） I've enjoyed his articles， but he wasn't able to strike the right level of detail/tone for a straight journalistic account of the Warriors' rise a Can't recommend it: 80% of the book is either previously reported stories， summarized for some imagined audience who hasn't been following the Warriors for the past five years， or overwrought analogies between sport and war （e。g。， "When an opponent wins a championship on the road， it's as close to a city sacking as we see in civilized society。" Barf。） I've enjoyed his articles， but he wasn't able to strike the right level of detail/tone for a straight journalistic account of the Warriors' rise and fall， and in comparison to someone like Simmons or Klosterman， he lacked the creativity to carry the more reflective segments of the book。 The 20% that is genuinely interesting focuses on his spat with KD -- culminating in the press conference where KD called him out by name -- and， more generally， the extent to which KD's demeanor brought everyone on the team down。 Had he dispensed with the broader project （telling a five-year saga of an entire organization） and focused the book on this one storyline （the weirdness of Durant， the modern media machine， the life of an NBA journo）， it would have been a much more interesting book， and one better suited to his talents。 。。。more
Chris Jaffe
，
4。5 stars。This is a very interesting about not just the Warriors but about the current state of the NBA。 Players are so connected into social media that many are miserable - and Strauss's own experience as being at the center of a controversy made him understand why。 Sure， they're rich and famous， but it can still be exhausting。 Ironically， the NBA has long been hailed for how it uses social media to interact with fans。 The loyalty of players themselves is often divided。 They work for the team， 4。5 stars。This is a very interesting about not just the Warriors but about the current state of the NBA。 Players are so connected into social media that many are miserable - and Strauss's own experience as being at the center of a controversy made him understand why。 Sure， they're rich and famous， but it can still be exhausting。 Ironically， the NBA has long been hailed for how it uses social media to interact with fans。 The loyalty of players themselves is often divided。 They work for the team， sure - but the best players make more money from their shoe deals。 The Warriors's signing of Durant wasn't just a victory for them， it was also a victory for Nike， as it made one of their players a key contributor to Under Armour's Curry。 So when the Warriors beat the Cavs the next year， Nike could still hail oen of their guys。 The sneaker wars are always alongside the games。 Agents also have lots of influence， and that's one reason why some teams have hired agents as their GM。 Oh - and fans。 Everyone will talk about how great the fans are， but inside the NBA， nobody really means it。 It's hard to be anything other than really cynical about fans。 Many can be jerks （and social media just amplifies that） and even the supportive ones can be so weirdly positive in their love that it's like a bizarro funhouse mirror of actual love。 The central figure in this book is Kevin Durant， because he typifies the modern NBA more than anyone else。 His awkward relations to fans， his picking up from team to team， his relations with the media。 More than anyone else， he embodies what Strauss is getting at。 No wonder the longest chapter in the book is about him， and he's on the cover of the book。Normally a book focuses on the ups-and-downs of a team。 This one doesn't。 Oh， the Warriors rise and by the end are falling - but that's background for all the other matters。 Frankly， it might be a little too much in the background as I'm not even a casual fan and was unsure about some of this。 The book also tells you about Steve Kerr， the GM， the basketball ops， and the owner。 It's a pretty good book。 I got a lot out of it， in part because I didn't have much advance info going in。 。。。more
Franco
，
If you like 2010s NBA
Aaron Strouse
，
I love reading all kinds of basketballs books。 I judge them based on the stories inside and outside of basketball that are told in the book。 For Ethan’s book， there were definitely some good stories and clarity of things I didn’t know。 Great stuff on the hiring of Kerr and inside the vitriol of Kevin Durants tenure。 However， I felt a lot of the book was highlighting the over arching themes of the NBA and how it fit the warriors journey。 It was a good story but parts of the book just seemed like I love reading all kinds of basketballs books。 I judge them based on the stories inside and outside of basketball that are told in the book。 For Ethan’s book， there were definitely some good stories and clarity of things I didn’t know。 Great stuff on the hiring of Kerr and inside the vitriol of Kevin Durants tenure。 However， I felt a lot of the book was highlighting the over arching themes of the NBA and how it fit the warriors journey。 It was a good story but parts of the book just seemed like tangents talking about a person or event and not relating it to the grand scheme of the book。 Still， if you want some great stories， I would read the book and enjoy！ 。。。more
Shu
，
Not sure if I was ready to relive that “joyless” 2018-2019 Warriors season， but I couldn’t refuse a book with excellent writing。 Thanks to my brother-in-law for sharing the read via Google Play Books， I actually enjoyed quite a few good chuckle moments in a seemingly cynical take on the modern NBA。 Perhaps only someone suffering from an aged and obviously pained love for the sport could write with such piercing critique。 More about workplace drama and office politics than the Xs and Os， this boo Not sure if I was ready to relive that “joyless” 2018-2019 Warriors season， but I couldn’t refuse a book with excellent writing。 Thanks to my brother-in-law for sharing the read via Google Play Books， I actually enjoyed quite a few good chuckle moments in a seemingly cynical take on the modern NBA。 Perhaps only someone suffering from an aged and obviously pained love for the sport could write with such piercing critique。 More about workplace drama and office politics than the Xs and Os， this book sheds light on the hyper-commercialized industry and its hidden power structures。 True to its cover， a significant portion of the book is on the KD era。 If you can’t stomach any more KD vs ESS， skip Chapter 5。 I’m glad I didn’t， though， because it made KD more relatable and made me want to root for that brooding overdog。 Who wouldn’t want to see one of the most talented players in “Kill mode，” hopefully with a big smile on his face someday？ Let’s see what Joe Tsai and Steve Nash can do！ 。。。more
Kevin
，