Book overview
"Brilliantly
audacious...written with the profundity of a sage baller and the acuity of a
seasoned journalist."--Kiese Laymon, New York Times bestselling author of
Heavy
An award-winning journalist's behind-the-scenes account from the
epicenter of sports, social justice, and coronavirus, Can't Knock the Hustle
is a lasting chronicle of the historic 2019-2020 NBA season, by way of the
notorious Brooklyn Nets and basketball's renaissance as a cultural force beyond
the game.
The Nets were already the most intriguing startup in the NBA: a team
of influencers, entrepreneurs and activists, starring the controversial Kevin
Durant and Kyrie Irving. But this dynasty-in-the-making got disrupted by the
unforeseen. One tweet launched an international scandal, pitting the team's
Chinese owner and the league's commissioner against its players and LeBron
James. The sudden death of Kobe Bryant, after making his final public
appearance in Brooklyn, sent shockwaves through a turbulent season.
Then came the unimaginable. A global pandemic and a new civil-rights
movement put basketball's trend-setting status to the ultimate test, as
business and culture followed the lead of the NBA and its empowered stars. No
team intersected with the extremes of 2020 quite like the Brooklyn Nets, and
Matt Sullivan had a courtside view.
Can't Knock the Hustle crosses from on the
court, where underdogs confront A-listers like Jay-Z and James Harden, to off
the court, as players march through the streets of Brooklyn, provoke Donald
Trump at the White House, and boycott the NBA's bubble experiment in Disney
World.
Hundreds of interviews--with Hall-of-Famers, All-Stars,
executives, coaches and power-brokers across the world--provide a backdrop of
the NBA's impact on social media, race, politics, health, fashion, fame and
fandom, for a portrait of a time when sports brought us back together again,
like never before.
