Book review: My Life, My Fight - Steven Adams and Madeleine Chapman
Sid Adams and Getting To The NBA dominate the first half of My Life, My Fight.
Steven Adams' dad Sid is a remarkable man, bringing up two top level athletes among his 14 children, with at least a couple more who could have done the same given different opportunities. His illness, passing and the way his Rotorua whanaū pick up the pieces are the start and heart of this book.
Getting To The NBA is Steven Adams' story - he only took up basketball seriously at 14, but then focused his life around this goal, putting in serious grind to get there. Much time is spent discussing logistics, or the hoops Adams and a large cast of supporters leap through to make sure he has somewhere to train, study and sleep. There's endless early morning starts, car journeys around Wellington and long sessions in unglamourous gyms.
Sport nerds will love the second half, with plenty of detail on his team, opponents and the lifestyle in America - travelling to away games on the Thunder's jet sounds like a great time. His low key, pragmatic and dry voice is a great way to read about the NBA with it's superstars, money and hype, and his explanation of his knack for getting under his opponents' skin is hilarious.
His decision not to play for the Tall Blacks has dominated discussion around the book, and Adams' frustration with his NZ media coverage and the knockers-back-home in general comes up regularly. Despite playing in one of the most glamorous sports leagues going, Adams' story is a simple one of putting in the work and being ready to learn, then getting the rewards. He's so focused and pragmatic it hurts, saying at one point that living in 'boring' Oklahoma suits him, because there's no distractions from basketball.
My Life My Fight is presented in the same way as Andre Agassi's Open, in that it's in his voice, and only reveals that it's ghost-written at the very end. Madeleine Chapman, who played basketball in Wellington at the same time as Adams, has done an elegant job of teasing out his story, packing a real emotional punch and lacing dry humour throughout. It's a tremendous achievement, I recommend giving her interview with Noelle McCarthy a listen.
Thanks to Penguin Books for the review copy and thanks for reading - Richard
The week's best NZ sport writing
The Herald's Cameron McMillan has ranked all 22 Super Rugby finals from best to worst. Lots of great memories here from when the competition wasn't so maligned [NZ Herald]
Micheal Donaldson goes in to bat for Janine Southby - responsibility for the Games shambles is not hers alone, and her method, if not the execution, was arguably the right one [NZ Herald]
Sportsfreak runs you through the summer cricket itinerary, which was released this week. Competition among grounds means some have missed out, but the message is clear - invest (lights, mainly) and you'll get games [sportsfreak.co.nz]
This week's top class trolling by a stadium - Eden Park take a bow [Instagram]
Video nasty
Dog steals GoPro. Glorious.
Long read
The Lord Flashheart episode of Blackadder somehow missed out here, but The Ringer's list of the Top 100 TV Episodes Of The Century is well worth your time [The Ringer]
Selected weekend fixtures
It feels like we've discussed the Garden City's lack of a stadium more than the blokes playing in it lately - the Super Rugby Final v the Lions is on Saturday night at 7.35pm on SKY
The Warriors play the Dragons at 5pm tomorrow on SKY
Lydia Ko is playing the British Open this weekend, in the early hours on SKY
Bring back the gif
When you should really stop talking but carry on anyway.
