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Dave Bing: A Life of Challenge
Tells the story of Dave Bing's unprecedented combination of success as an athlete, businessman, and politician. Details Bing's basketball career, which included being named a consensus All-American at Syracuse, a 7-time All-Star with the Pistons, and one of the top 50 NBA players of all time. Provides a view of Bing's entrepreneurial success, including his opening of Bing Steel in 1980, for which he was named National Minority Small Business Person of the Year. Focuses on Bing's ascent to mayor of the city of Detroit. Reveals Dave Bing's role in "The Boardroom" and his role as a mentor to black youth.
328 pages, Paperback
First published November 5, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 7, 2013
I grew in Central New York, so of course the name Dave Bing is a familiar one to me. He played basketball for the Syracuse Orangemen, well before they were the powerhouse team they are now. He put SU basketball on the map, and then went on to be drafted by the Detroit Pistons, where he helped to build an NBA team.
Drew Sharp has written Dave Bing- A Life of Challenge, the definitive book on Mr. Bing, who went on to found a multimillion dollar company, Bing Steel, and to become mayor of Detroit during its most challenging time.
Bing is a fascinating man. He grew up in Washington DC and credits his father Hasker with giving him the morals and work ethic, the tools he needed to succeed not only in basketball, but more importantly, in life.
Bing wasn't the most talented basketball player, but he made up for that in brains and his capacity for sizing up a situation and figuring out how to make the most of his opportunities and talents. He committed to Syracuse University for college, a school where there weren't many black students, but the fact that Ernie Davis played football there and was the first African-American to win the Heisman Trophy weighed in SU's favor.
While I read this book because of the SU connection, and I found that section of the book very interesting (especially with the quotes from legendary SU basketball coach Jim Boeheim, a former teammate and still a good friend), as well as his spectacular NBA career with the Pistons (where he was named one of the 50 best NBA players of all time), it is his post-basketball career that ends up being the most impressive.
Bing knew that a basketball career wasn't forever, so he strategized as to what he would do when basketball was over. During the off-season, he worked as a bank teller and learned the business, just like he did with basketball.
Detroit was Motor City, and the car business was king. Bing figured that car manufacturers needed steel, so he gathered investors and began his own steel company, Bing Steel. Over the years he grew Bing Steel to be a $350 million company, and he became one of the most visible and successful black business owners in the country. A highlight for him was meeting President Reagan as he was honored for his success as a minority businessman.
The recent recession hit Detroit very hard, and along with a corruption scandal that undid mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, the city was in big trouble. Their finances were decimated, their infrastructure was crumbling, homes were abandoned, and people were fleeing the city. People turned to Dave Bing for help.
Bing was talked into running for mayor, a huge challenge for anyone, let alone someone who had never been involved in politics. Sharp tells an amazing story here, and this is the strongest section of the book. I was riveted by it, and the book became not only Bing's story, but the story of a once-proud All-American city that was coming undone.
Personal health issues, problems with the unions, a possible takeover of the city's finances by the state of Michigan, and a political scandal of his own created the biggest challenge of Bing's life. Could he turn it around and be successful one more time, when it was most critical for his adopted city?
Sharp shows Bing's successes and failures, his strengths and weaknesses, and we see the personal side of him as well as the professional. Dave Bing- A Life of Challenge brilliantly profiles one of the most interesting American men of the past 50 years, a man who lived up to his father's high standards and made the world around him a better place.
Drew Sharp has written Dave Bing- A Life of Challenge, the definitive book on Mr. Bing, who went on to found a multimillion dollar company, Bing Steel, and to become mayor of Detroit during its most challenging time.
Bing is a fascinating man. He grew up in Washington DC and credits his father Hasker with giving him the morals and work ethic, the tools he needed to succeed not only in basketball, but more importantly, in life.
Bing wasn't the most talented basketball player, but he made up for that in brains and his capacity for sizing up a situation and figuring out how to make the most of his opportunities and talents. He committed to Syracuse University for college, a school where there weren't many black students, but the fact that Ernie Davis played football there and was the first African-American to win the Heisman Trophy weighed in SU's favor.
While I read this book because of the SU connection, and I found that section of the book very interesting (especially with the quotes from legendary SU basketball coach Jim Boeheim, a former teammate and still a good friend), as well as his spectacular NBA career with the Pistons (where he was named one of the 50 best NBA players of all time), it is his post-basketball career that ends up being the most impressive.
Bing knew that a basketball career wasn't forever, so he strategized as to what he would do when basketball was over. During the off-season, he worked as a bank teller and learned the business, just like he did with basketball.
Detroit was Motor City, and the car business was king. Bing figured that car manufacturers needed steel, so he gathered investors and began his own steel company, Bing Steel. Over the years he grew Bing Steel to be a $350 million company, and he became one of the most visible and successful black business owners in the country. A highlight for him was meeting President Reagan as he was honored for his success as a minority businessman.
The recent recession hit Detroit very hard, and along with a corruption scandal that undid mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, the city was in big trouble. Their finances were decimated, their infrastructure was crumbling, homes were abandoned, and people were fleeing the city. People turned to Dave Bing for help.
Bing was talked into running for mayor, a huge challenge for anyone, let alone someone who had never been involved in politics. Sharp tells an amazing story here, and this is the strongest section of the book. I was riveted by it, and the book became not only Bing's story, but the story of a once-proud All-American city that was coming undone.
Personal health issues, problems with the unions, a possible takeover of the city's finances by the state of Michigan, and a political scandal of his own created the biggest challenge of Bing's life. Could he turn it around and be successful one more time, when it was most critical for his adopted city?
Sharp shows Bing's successes and failures, his strengths and weaknesses, and we see the personal side of him as well as the professional. Dave Bing- A Life of Challenge brilliantly profiles one of the most interesting American men of the past 50 years, a man who lived up to his father's high standards and made the world around him a better place.
January 2, 2013
I won this book as part of Goodread's First Reads program.
Dave Bing is truly an inspirational public figure that is not as heralded as he should be. His life and this book should be read by ever athlete. Bing never settled for average and constantly expected greatness for himself. As a result, he excelled in professional sports, the world of business, and politics. He was a self-made man through his athletic prowess and a second time through his business acumen. How many people can say they dominated three completely different professional spheres?
This book isn't your typical athlete biography as Bing isn't your typical athlete. While he was naturally gifted, he suffered from an eye injury at a young age that affected his depth perception. Education was always as important to Bing as anything; he always wanted to challenge himself. Bing never took his athletic gifts for granted as he was always preparing for his post-playing days. He built a successful company from the ground up based more on his hard work than his name recognition. He prided himself on his character, which is what propelled him into the political arena. He felt called to help his adopted city when it needed him the most.
It appears Sharp had lots of access to Bing and his friends. Biographies like that tend to be puff books that puff up the subject. But Sharp does not shy away from Bing's missteps whether it was a contract hold out or political errors.
The book does tend to be very driven by race and politics, but Bing grew to fame in a very racially charged time, so it's understandable. But the political sections seem to plod along, especially when the same sections are mentioned in multiple places, making it feel repetitive. The book follows along a chronological path from Bing's childhood, through his playing days, and through Bing Steel. From there, it jumps back and forth a little bit, leading to the confusion.
This biography profiles a unique, inspirational man. Everyone can learn a thing or two from a man who always expected the best from himself and never let society or peers dictate who he was going to be.
Dave Bing is truly an inspirational public figure that is not as heralded as he should be. His life and this book should be read by ever athlete. Bing never settled for average and constantly expected greatness for himself. As a result, he excelled in professional sports, the world of business, and politics. He was a self-made man through his athletic prowess and a second time through his business acumen. How many people can say they dominated three completely different professional spheres?
This book isn't your typical athlete biography as Bing isn't your typical athlete. While he was naturally gifted, he suffered from an eye injury at a young age that affected his depth perception. Education was always as important to Bing as anything; he always wanted to challenge himself. Bing never took his athletic gifts for granted as he was always preparing for his post-playing days. He built a successful company from the ground up based more on his hard work than his name recognition. He prided himself on his character, which is what propelled him into the political arena. He felt called to help his adopted city when it needed him the most.
It appears Sharp had lots of access to Bing and his friends. Biographies like that tend to be puff books that puff up the subject. But Sharp does not shy away from Bing's missteps whether it was a contract hold out or political errors.
The book does tend to be very driven by race and politics, but Bing grew to fame in a very racially charged time, so it's understandable. But the political sections seem to plod along, especially when the same sections are mentioned in multiple places, making it feel repetitive. The book follows along a chronological path from Bing's childhood, through his playing days, and through Bing Steel. From there, it jumps back and forth a little bit, leading to the confusion.
This biography profiles a unique, inspirational man. Everyone can learn a thing or two from a man who always expected the best from himself and never let society or peers dictate who he was going to be.
March 22, 2013
I won this book on Librarything and have to review it. I found Mr. Bing to be an excellent role model for young men; his parents raised a very smart son. There are so few parents that still do raise their children. Anyway, I am not a HUGE fan of basketball but he was smart to treat his job as a job. You can't always go with the flow and hope for the best. If you want and deserve more, you have to make it happen.
He would start from the bottom and work his way up with no shame. Much respect.
He would start from the bottom and work his way up with no shame. Much respect.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews