A review of Betaball: How Silicon Valley and Science Built One of the Greatest Basketball Teams in History
Erik Malinowski’s Betaball uncovers how the Golden State Warriors rose to their current status in the NBA. Read our full review of the book
Before becoming the unrelenting force that has won two NBA championships in the last three years, while breaking the regular season win record, the Golden State Warriors went 40 years without winning big.
Erik Malinowski’s Betaball: How Silicon Valley and Science Built One of the Greatest Basketball Teams in History uncovers how the Golden State Warriors rose to their current status in the NBA.
In the past, the Warriors had good players throughout the years, but nothing that was ever like their current roster.
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Betaball gives a quick look at the history of the team, but the main focus is from the moment when Joe Lacob and Peter Guber became the owners of the team. It’s the turning point for them and even though it still took a while to get to where the team is at now, that’s when the wheels started turning.
The way that Malinowski describes the in-game moments takes you right back to those games if you were watching them in person or on TV. Being able to reproduce those moments so clearly is a huge plus for the reader. Each moment is well thought out and concise. Anyone who watches a Warriors game is aware of what the team is capable of, so Malinowski is sure to make a point with each play or game he brings up.
For the hardcore fans of the Warriors, I’m not sure how much in here would add to what they already know. For myself, though, it’s a fascinating read. As a Lakers fan, I wasn’t familiar with the inner workings and the ownership of the Warriors as much. Was I aware of how good these recent years have been for them? Absolutely. But outside of their play, I hadn’t dug any deeper. This book is the perfect chance to do that.
As far as the science goes, there are mentions of the various technologies that the team uses now. As a big technology nerd, I would have loved some more in-depth information on the tech. However, the fact that Joe Jacob and Peter Guber come from the technology, business, and entertainment worlds, is a large part of the Silicon Valley idea behind this book. They’re the guys who came in and allowed the team to advance in ways they weren’t before.
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Overall, this is a book I’d recommend to any basketball fan who has an interest in the Warriors at all. Erik Malinowski does a nice job of going through the recent years and explaining how they were able to put together this super team. You already know they’re a great team, and now you can find out how it all came together.
Betaball is out October 3, but is available for pre-order now (Amazon).