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Backspin: One Player's Journey From the U.S. to Europe and Back Again.
Backspin traces the playing career of an athlete, beginning with the rigors of college life, and continuing through nine seasons in the European leagues. It is through the author's reflections of life before college, that we get an inside look at some of the quirky characters and unexpected events that help him cope with the challenges of a sometimes lonely life far from home.
Humorous, entertaining and above all inspirational, Backspin is a great read for students, athletes of all ages, and the families, coaches and friends that teach them, cheer for them, drive them to sporting events, and agonize along with them in hopes that someday, all of their efforts will pay off.
Humorous, entertaining and above all inspirational, Backspin is a great read for students, athletes of all ages, and the families, coaches and friends that teach them, cheer for them, drive them to sporting events, and agonize along with them in hopes that someday, all of their efforts will pay off.
- GenresSports
327 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 12, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 21, 2014
Rating:
4 of 5 stars (very good)
Review:
When most basketball fans in the United States think of professional basketball, the NBA immediately comes to mind. However, there are many professional leagues in Europe and Asia as well. Several American players will play in these leagues and will face challenges along the way. Pete Strobl was one of these players and he decided to write a book on his adventures in Europe when playing in several countries.
“Backspin” takes the reader through Strobl’s playing career at Niagara University and his stops in various European countries, including France, Austria and Germany. The adventures and experiences he has at each stop is described in vivid detail. Some of the stories are downright funny (the adventures of the grey Omega that he drove from California to Niagara University), some are poignant (how he felt when an inexperienced player took a bad shot at the end of a championship game) and some are uplifting (his story of courting and marrying his wife Sheryl and the birth of their children).
What I like best about this book is that Strobl never comes across as too emotional while telling these stories. Through his writing, he doesn’t come across as getting too excited about the highs, nor too depressed about the lows. He keeps an even keel throughout his career in Europe. He also writes well about his trials and tribulations of being an American in a foreign country and needing to quickly adapt to the culture and languages. My favorite story of these was early in his first stop in France, he was mocked by a store clerk by asking if she had any English language magazines – and she did it in English! Later, after he learned to speak French well, he returned, asked the same question in French, and got a much different reaction.
There is plenty of basketball talk as well for the hardcore fan, especially about his college career at Niagara and his days playing in France and Austria. He recalls important games, some of his memorable episodes with teammates and the work he put in to become a better player at each stop. This work ethic not only helped him on the court but also to be able to quickly adapt to new cultures and languages at each stop in Europe.
Overall, this is a very good book about Strobl’s life before, during and after his overseas professional career. Written in a very even-handed manner, it is a good read for those who like memoirs and for basketball fans. The latter category will even learn a little more about professional leagues that are not the NBA.
I wish to thank Mr. Strobl for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Did I skim?
No. The stories each are an integral part of what has made Strobl who he is today and each one of them tells an interesting fact or tidbit about his life.
Pace of the book:
Very good. It is not too slow so that it drags, nor is it a quick pace as each story should be absorbed instead of skimmed.
Do I recommend?
For readers who like personal introspection into the lives of the book’s subject, this is the perfect book. It covers more than just basketball - it truly is a book on the adventures of life.
Book Format Read:
Paperback
March 25, 2014
I am notoriously not in love with non-celebrity memoirs. Every rule has its exceptions though and I found Pete Strobl's BACKSPIN to be an engrossing book about being passionate and driven at the age of instant fame and cyncism.
Honestly, I gave it a chance because I never turn down a basketball-related book and was pleasantly surprised. Strobl can WRITE and I mean W-R-I-T-E. The first chapter describes his road trip from Los Angeles to Niagara College with his father. In these pages, he describes a attentionate, loving and proud father through the small, seemingly mundane gestures during the organization of the trip. Such a keen, observative and compassionate description opened me up.
Somethin I liked a lot about BACKSPIN were the 'backspin' segments where Strobl puts his life in perspective, stops narrating the moment and makes the reader understand why he acted a certain way in key moments of his life and what he learned from it. It was an astute narrative device that transformed BACKSPIN into an earnest, self-aware piece of literature.
It wasn't perfect, some passages made the editor inside me gnash his teeth, I would've loved also to hear a little more about how it was to be so close to the NBA and live among people who almost made it. How it is to be among the brokenhearted all the time. But I'm asking a little much here, BACKSPIN is already transcending the game of the non-celebrity memoir and sets out to be exactly what it aims: an inspiration to pursue things you love for the right reasons.
Honestly, I gave it a chance because I never turn down a basketball-related book and was pleasantly surprised. Strobl can WRITE and I mean W-R-I-T-E. The first chapter describes his road trip from Los Angeles to Niagara College with his father. In these pages, he describes a attentionate, loving and proud father through the small, seemingly mundane gestures during the organization of the trip. Such a keen, observative and compassionate description opened me up.
Somethin I liked a lot about BACKSPIN were the 'backspin' segments where Strobl puts his life in perspective, stops narrating the moment and makes the reader understand why he acted a certain way in key moments of his life and what he learned from it. It was an astute narrative device that transformed BACKSPIN into an earnest, self-aware piece of literature.
It wasn't perfect, some passages made the editor inside me gnash his teeth, I would've loved also to hear a little more about how it was to be so close to the NBA and live among people who almost made it. How it is to be among the brokenhearted all the time. But I'm asking a little much here, BACKSPIN is already transcending the game of the non-celebrity memoir and sets out to be exactly what it aims: an inspiration to pursue things you love for the right reasons.
July 10, 2014
“Backspin” is a highly entertaining memoir of basketball player Pete Strobl a scholarship athlete turned professional, playing for several European leagues between the years 2000 and 2008. Strobl’s passion for the sport and his gift for writing make the book a great read for all audiences, though the experiences Strobl shares about playing as a college athlete and his journey after college to pursue his dreams of the big leagues, provide valuable insight for aspiring college-scholarship athletes and their parents. “Backspin” begins with Strobl sharing his often amusing, experiences at a small-town college, Niagara University, on the east coast in New York State and a long way away from his home state California. The latter two-thirds of the book Strobl describes his turbulent career as a professional athlete playing for several teams within European Basketball leagues in countries that included France, Germany, Austria, Ireland and Switzerland over a period of nine seasons.
The ‘Backspins’
The ‘backspin’ segments within the chapters are brief snippets of Strobl’s life experiences pre-college days that give the reader insight into his tenacity and drive for not just the sport, but his approach to life. My favorite vignettes are the ones featuring Strobl and his dad, which reveal not only the deep influence of Strobl’s dad had on his character, but are touching, funny and real.
Three Helpful Lessons for Potential College Athletes and Parents
Between the pages the book holds helpful lessons for young athletes—either current college athletes or aspiring scholarship-athletes and their parents. It’s not a how-to book, but by reading of Strobl’s experiences coping with school, coaches, relationships and travel, the reader gets a glimpse into the challenges and opportunities of a college athlete. Three themes emerged from the book that may be of value for student-athletes and their families; summarized below.
1) The Scholarship-athlete’s Multiple Roles
A scholarship-athlete’s college experience greatly differs from a traditional student’s experience, which Strobl highlights perhaps unintentionally in his book. Strobl writes of his experiences in college and his multiple roles and the challenges associated with each. The roles include: student, athlete, scholarship-athlete and teammate, but it’s the role scholarship-athlete that appeared to be most challenging which Strobl recounts as:
“Playing basketball at this level was practically a full-time job, and the value of my full scholarship wasn’t lost on me. I knew I’d have to deliver on the court if I expected to stay on campus, and that required me to work harder than I ever had in the past. If that wasn’t enough to keep me busy, I had a second full-time job—staying on track to earn a college degree.” (p. 33)
Strobl also gives the reader insight into the student’s role; he describes accounting for every minute of his day, which according to Strobl was “the key to survival” (p. 33). It’s evident that he worked hard, and was able to balance his multiple roles successfully; Pete finished with not only an under-graduate degree, but also a MBA. Impressive.
Not surprisingly in order to handle all his roles, sacrifices were made, typical of most college athletes that play for a varsity team. Strobl mentions the sacrifices that he made for his scholarship experience, primarily his social life and friendships, “Between hustling back and forth from the library, the gym, cafeteria and weight room, there wasn’t much time left for anything or anyone else” (p. 66).
Takeaway: Scholarships can provide tremendous opportunities for young athletes to study at a school they wouldn’t have otherwise been able to attend if it weren’t for their sport, or have been able to afford, not to mention the experiences that can lead to fulfilling careers. However, the key to leveraging these opportunities is for the athlete and families to weigh the pros and cons of a scholarship offer, consider all factors and potential outcomes. Frequently, the cons outweigh the pros, and student-athletes don’t realize it until well into their first year. Considerations student-athletes and parents may want to consider when evaluating athletic-scholarship options:
- total cost of attending the school; the costs not covered by scholarship
- risks associated with a sports scholarship (injury, performance, etc.)—consider what the outcomes might be if the scholarship was not renewed in the 2nd or 3rd year
- fit between the athlete’s long-term career goals and what can be studied at the school, for example some programs require demanding workloads not compatible with pressures of a varsity athlete
- academic sacrifices which may include study abroad or work-study programs, research opportunities or internships
- value of the education associated with the school and program of study once the athlete is in the working world.
2) Leverage the Experiences Both Good and Bad
What makes the “Backspin” such an excellent read is the stories Strobl shares which are not only the highlights of his basketball career, but are of his disappointments, challenges and struggles. His career in Europe playing for several leagues is not all glamour, but reflects hard work, with Strobl often working with a great deal of uncertainty. His job was not guaranteed for longer than a season or two, he was often in a country where he didn’t speak the language, even the same one as his coach and often had to move to another country with little more than a days notice. Yet Strobl descriptions are inspirational at the same time. Strobl appeared to make the best of every situation, for instance even when he was benched for most of a season in college (p. 47) or working for a team that was broke and wasn’t paying its athletes, he was able to turn those into positives.
Takeaway: Experiences playing as a college-athlete and beyond are filled with favorable and seemingly negative experiences, though even the negatives can be turned into circumstances for reflection that can lead to personal growth, and opportunity. This is takeaway is not a cliché when you read “Backspin”.
3) Who’s looking Out For You? You.
This may sound harsh, but a scholarship contract between an athlete and a school is akin to a business transaction. It’s helpful to keep in mind that coaches are paid by universities to manage and coach a team to achieve a certain level of performance, and are also under a contract. Strobl writes of many instances of very positive relationships with his coaches, and many of his coaches that provide instructive life lessons, yet there are times his experience reveal that coaches actions and decisions are not always made in best interest of the athletes.
Takeaway: Athletes need to put their needs first, and be smart about what is being offered by administrators and coaches. Getting the most value out of a scholarship opportunity is essential for the athlete and his or her family.
Closing
“Backspin” is an excellent read, and an especially informative read for any scholarship-athlete. I wanted to learn more about what Strobl did after his basketball career, which I discovered through his site thescoringfactory.com, which is a basketball development program and organization which Strobl started with his wife, also a former basketball pro that played for several European leagues. Not surprising that Strobls’ hard work, extensive experience and talent all come together in his company, The Scoring factory.
This review was first posted on my blog School and Sports. Visit http://schooloversports.wordpress.com/ if interested in reading more about youth, sports and its affect on our culture.
The ‘Backspins’
The ‘backspin’ segments within the chapters are brief snippets of Strobl’s life experiences pre-college days that give the reader insight into his tenacity and drive for not just the sport, but his approach to life. My favorite vignettes are the ones featuring Strobl and his dad, which reveal not only the deep influence of Strobl’s dad had on his character, but are touching, funny and real.
Three Helpful Lessons for Potential College Athletes and Parents
Between the pages the book holds helpful lessons for young athletes—either current college athletes or aspiring scholarship-athletes and their parents. It’s not a how-to book, but by reading of Strobl’s experiences coping with school, coaches, relationships and travel, the reader gets a glimpse into the challenges and opportunities of a college athlete. Three themes emerged from the book that may be of value for student-athletes and their families; summarized below.
1) The Scholarship-athlete’s Multiple Roles
A scholarship-athlete’s college experience greatly differs from a traditional student’s experience, which Strobl highlights perhaps unintentionally in his book. Strobl writes of his experiences in college and his multiple roles and the challenges associated with each. The roles include: student, athlete, scholarship-athlete and teammate, but it’s the role scholarship-athlete that appeared to be most challenging which Strobl recounts as:
“Playing basketball at this level was practically a full-time job, and the value of my full scholarship wasn’t lost on me. I knew I’d have to deliver on the court if I expected to stay on campus, and that required me to work harder than I ever had in the past. If that wasn’t enough to keep me busy, I had a second full-time job—staying on track to earn a college degree.” (p. 33)
Strobl also gives the reader insight into the student’s role; he describes accounting for every minute of his day, which according to Strobl was “the key to survival” (p. 33). It’s evident that he worked hard, and was able to balance his multiple roles successfully; Pete finished with not only an under-graduate degree, but also a MBA. Impressive.
Not surprisingly in order to handle all his roles, sacrifices were made, typical of most college athletes that play for a varsity team. Strobl mentions the sacrifices that he made for his scholarship experience, primarily his social life and friendships, “Between hustling back and forth from the library, the gym, cafeteria and weight room, there wasn’t much time left for anything or anyone else” (p. 66).
Takeaway: Scholarships can provide tremendous opportunities for young athletes to study at a school they wouldn’t have otherwise been able to attend if it weren’t for their sport, or have been able to afford, not to mention the experiences that can lead to fulfilling careers. However, the key to leveraging these opportunities is for the athlete and families to weigh the pros and cons of a scholarship offer, consider all factors and potential outcomes. Frequently, the cons outweigh the pros, and student-athletes don’t realize it until well into their first year. Considerations student-athletes and parents may want to consider when evaluating athletic-scholarship options:
- total cost of attending the school; the costs not covered by scholarship
- risks associated with a sports scholarship (injury, performance, etc.)—consider what the outcomes might be if the scholarship was not renewed in the 2nd or 3rd year
- fit between the athlete’s long-term career goals and what can be studied at the school, for example some programs require demanding workloads not compatible with pressures of a varsity athlete
- academic sacrifices which may include study abroad or work-study programs, research opportunities or internships
- value of the education associated with the school and program of study once the athlete is in the working world.
2) Leverage the Experiences Both Good and Bad
What makes the “Backspin” such an excellent read is the stories Strobl shares which are not only the highlights of his basketball career, but are of his disappointments, challenges and struggles. His career in Europe playing for several leagues is not all glamour, but reflects hard work, with Strobl often working with a great deal of uncertainty. His job was not guaranteed for longer than a season or two, he was often in a country where he didn’t speak the language, even the same one as his coach and often had to move to another country with little more than a days notice. Yet Strobl descriptions are inspirational at the same time. Strobl appeared to make the best of every situation, for instance even when he was benched for most of a season in college (p. 47) or working for a team that was broke and wasn’t paying its athletes, he was able to turn those into positives.
Takeaway: Experiences playing as a college-athlete and beyond are filled with favorable and seemingly negative experiences, though even the negatives can be turned into circumstances for reflection that can lead to personal growth, and opportunity. This is takeaway is not a cliché when you read “Backspin”.
3) Who’s looking Out For You? You.
This may sound harsh, but a scholarship contract between an athlete and a school is akin to a business transaction. It’s helpful to keep in mind that coaches are paid by universities to manage and coach a team to achieve a certain level of performance, and are also under a contract. Strobl writes of many instances of very positive relationships with his coaches, and many of his coaches that provide instructive life lessons, yet there are times his experience reveal that coaches actions and decisions are not always made in best interest of the athletes.
Takeaway: Athletes need to put their needs first, and be smart about what is being offered by administrators and coaches. Getting the most value out of a scholarship opportunity is essential for the athlete and his or her family.
Closing
“Backspin” is an excellent read, and an especially informative read for any scholarship-athlete. I wanted to learn more about what Strobl did after his basketball career, which I discovered through his site thescoringfactory.com, which is a basketball development program and organization which Strobl started with his wife, also a former basketball pro that played for several European leagues. Not surprising that Strobls’ hard work, extensive experience and talent all come together in his company, The Scoring factory.
This review was first posted on my blog School and Sports. Visit http://schooloversports.wordpress.com/ if interested in reading more about youth, sports and its affect on our culture.
November 17, 2014
Sports fans who are looking for an interesting read will enjoy Pete Strobl's adventures in basketball. Readers will find the trials and tribulations, humor, successes all spoken straight from the hip. Strobl shares his personal experiences and how he learned and grew from them.
Strobl shares his experiences of traveling across country from Los Angeles to Niagara Falls. It was during this time that he experienced a lot of firsts. There was cold and snow, juggling education with sports at a major university. Although he had a great opportunity, Strobl had to face not being the guy that everyone went to. He wasn't getting as much playtime on the court, but he also knew playing ball was like a full time job. He made lots of friends and learned plenty from his coaches.
When Strobl was invited to play ball in Europe he jumped at the chance. Once again he was faced with lots of firsts. Flying to Europe was the longest flight he had ever been on, the scenery of vineyards and the foreign customs. In addition to that, he was miles from home and felt very alone. The European language and customs, playing basketball in Europe would also prove to be a challenge. With all of this piled on the stress to perform well and not to be sent home was a point where the ability to adapt would be beneficial.
Strobl has basically put together a memoir of his experiences as a basketball player who traveled to Europe. His career as a ball player created an environment where he could learn, grow and thrive. Readers will find photos and “Backspin” segments in which Strobl shares his personal thoughts from his childhood and other experiences. This is a good read for anyone interested in basketball and traveling abroad to play ball. There are highs and lows of doing this and Strobl doesn't leave anything out.
Strobl shares his experiences of traveling across country from Los Angeles to Niagara Falls. It was during this time that he experienced a lot of firsts. There was cold and snow, juggling education with sports at a major university. Although he had a great opportunity, Strobl had to face not being the guy that everyone went to. He wasn't getting as much playtime on the court, but he also knew playing ball was like a full time job. He made lots of friends and learned plenty from his coaches.
When Strobl was invited to play ball in Europe he jumped at the chance. Once again he was faced with lots of firsts. Flying to Europe was the longest flight he had ever been on, the scenery of vineyards and the foreign customs. In addition to that, he was miles from home and felt very alone. The European language and customs, playing basketball in Europe would also prove to be a challenge. With all of this piled on the stress to perform well and not to be sent home was a point where the ability to adapt would be beneficial.
Strobl has basically put together a memoir of his experiences as a basketball player who traveled to Europe. His career as a ball player created an environment where he could learn, grow and thrive. Readers will find photos and “Backspin” segments in which Strobl shares his personal thoughts from his childhood and other experiences. This is a good read for anyone interested in basketball and traveling abroad to play ball. There are highs and lows of doing this and Strobl doesn't leave anything out.
April 26, 2014
Pete Strobl seems like a good guy who has traveled some pretty cool paths over the last decade or so. I'll read anything about basketball and this book kept my attention, for the most part. Naive American goes abroad and finds out how much he doesn't know, and so on.
Still - how can I say this gently? - this book needs quite a bit of work. As with most of its genre-brothers, "Backspin" is cliche-ridden. Open any page and drop your finger at random. You found a cliche, didn't you? On two tries I hit, "the more he got, the more he gave" and "he opened the door to the gentle sound of rain." I didn't cheat, either.
In short, Strobl's book has the potential to be pretty good. The firm hand of a good editor would get it there. The book is self-published. As such, I suspect that Strobl skipped the part where the author generally submits a draft manuscript to a professional editor for recommendations. Not only would the editor catch the numerous typos, she would demand more character development and dialogue. She would also suggest alternatives to chapter titles such as "Bonjour" (the chapter on France) and "Prove It!"
Despite these literary nitpicks, I enjoyed learning about the life of a hard-working basketball player who never had a chance to be a superstar. I had wondered about the European basketball scene and Strobl did a nice job of showing how that looks to an earnest young American who loves playing the game.
In short: read if you love basketball; avoid if you can't help editing as you read.
Still - how can I say this gently? - this book needs quite a bit of work. As with most of its genre-brothers, "Backspin" is cliche-ridden. Open any page and drop your finger at random. You found a cliche, didn't you? On two tries I hit, "the more he got, the more he gave" and "he opened the door to the gentle sound of rain." I didn't cheat, either.
In short, Strobl's book has the potential to be pretty good. The firm hand of a good editor would get it there. The book is self-published. As such, I suspect that Strobl skipped the part where the author generally submits a draft manuscript to a professional editor for recommendations. Not only would the editor catch the numerous typos, she would demand more character development and dialogue. She would also suggest alternatives to chapter titles such as "Bonjour" (the chapter on France) and "Prove It!"
Despite these literary nitpicks, I enjoyed learning about the life of a hard-working basketball player who never had a chance to be a superstar. I had wondered about the European basketball scene and Strobl did a nice job of showing how that looks to an earnest young American who loves playing the game.
In short: read if you love basketball; avoid if you can't help editing as you read.
July 5, 2016
In depth look at playing basketball in Europe. I enjoyed the expat foibles as much as the basketball narrative.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews