This classic account tells the story of pro basketball's shaky beginnings and of how the game adapted to survive in its early decades. 24 Seconds to Shoot is the informal history of the formative years of the National Basketball Association, from its inception (albeit under the name Basketball Association of America) in 1946 to the end of the 1969-70 season. It is a riveting account of the league's reactions to instability, scandal, and—perhaps most important—a waning quality of play that frustrated fans and perplexed league officials. Readers will get a unique, close-up view of how the league's hard-pressed executives, the power of names like Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain and Bob Cousy, and the adoption of one revitalizing rule—it occurred, in case you're left wondering, in 1954—paved the way for pro basketball's incredible success. The NBA would still have its share of hurdles to overcome, as author Leonard Koppett notes in his updated Preface to this edition, but alter one or two decisions or circumstances in almost any year throughout the 1950s and well into the '60s, and there would have been no playpen for Michael Jordan to one day conquer. From its opening sentence—"It all began because of a man named Ned Irish, although he really didn't want any part of it when it arose."—to the closing Appendix of NBA records, teams and personalities, circa 1970, 24 Seconds to Shoot sustains the momentum of an NBA Finals game in the post-1954 era.

Leonard Koppett, a veteran New York Times sportswriter, has covered the NBA since its inception. He is the author of many sports books and is the only writer to be honored by both the basketball and baseball halls of fame.

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Also by Leonard Koppett:

• The Thinking Fan's Guide to Baseball: Revised Edition
• The Rise and Fall of the Press Box
• Total Basketball: The Ultimate Basketball Encyclopedia