Overall, 2015 was probably my best year as a writer. A lot of great things happened.
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Tag: NBA
The following is an excerpt from Christopher Pierznik’s new book In Defense Of… Supporting Underappreciated Artists, Athletes, Actors, and Albums, in which the author defends and celebrates individuals, teams, and projects that were unfairly maligned or misunderstood from the world of music, sports, TV & film. It can be purchased in both paperback and Kindle.
It was the perfect ending.
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Week in Review (November 13, 2015)
It’s felt like a weird week.
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Unpopular Pop Culture Opinions
I feel like I’ve always fallen outside of the mainstream. Even as a child, I knew that many of my tastes were not in line with the majority. Often, my opinion is the unpopular one.
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Week in Review (October 23, 2015)
I’m going into Manhattan for a close friend’s birthday party tomorrow night. I’ve lived here for over a year and I’m only a half-hour train ride from Penn Station, but I still have only gone into NYC a handful of times. It’s weird.
Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway was a prototype for the NBA superstar of the ’90s. He was a combination of Magic – a tall point guard with vision who could handle the rock – and Michael – he could drive the lane and throw it down over you.
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Shawn Kemp Was a Destroyer of Worlds
“The flame that burns twice as bright burns half as long.“
– Lao Tzu, Te Tao Ching
The mid-’90s Sonics never won the chip, but in fairness, they were victims of some horrible luck. In 1994, they lost to a really good Denver Nuggets team in the first occurrence of an 8-seed beating a 1-seed and then ran threw the West two years later only to run into MJ’s ’96 Bulls.
The squad had Gary Payton and some other decent players including Detlef Schrempf and an aging Sam Perkins, but their MVP was undoubtedly Shawn Kemp. Kemp was more than a beast. He was big but agile. Powerful but quick. Explosive but serene.
And he made posters out of plenty of people. It was unsustainable, his decline was inevitable. But for a few brief years, Shawn Kemp terrorized the NBA.
So take the next ten minutes and fifty seconds to bask in glory of The Rain Man.
Christopher Pierznik is the author of eight books, all of which can be purchased in paperback and Kindle. His work has appeared on XXL, Cuepoint, Business Insider, The Cauldron, and many more. He has been quoted on Buzzfeed and Deadspin. Subscribe to his monthly reading review newsletter or follow him on Facebook or Twitter.
HBO Sports documentary on how the rivalry of Magic Johnson & Larry Bird shaped modern basketball and launched the modern NBA.
Christopher Pierznik is the author of eight books, all of which can be purchased in paperback and Kindle. His work has appeared on XXL, Cuepoint, Business Insider, The Cauldron, and many more. He has been quoted on Buzzfeed and Deadspin. Subscribe to his monthly reading review newsletter or follow him on Facebook or Twitter.
One of my favorite Michael Jordan stories (of which there are thousands), as told by Karl Malone:
How different would the Association had looked if different decisions had been made?
The Passion of Christopher Pierznik 
