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The Last Shot: City Streets, Basketball Dreams | 
 enlarge | Author: Darcy Frey
Publisher: Mariner Books
Category: Book
List Price: $13.00
Buy New: $4.15
You Save: $8.85 (68%)
New (28) Used (25) Collectible (2) from $2.73
Avg. Customer Rating:  42 reviews
Sales Rank: 31517
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 240
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.7
ISBN: 0618446710
Dewey Decimal Number: 796.323620974723
EAN: 9780618446711
ASIN: 0618446710
Publication Date: March 3, 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
It ought to be just a game, but basketball on the playgrounds of Coney Island is much more than that ? for many young men it represents their only hope of escape from a life of crime, poverty, and despair. In The Last Shot, Darcy Frey chronicles the aspirations of four of the neighborhood's most promising players. What they have going for them is athletic talent, grace, and years of dedication. But working against them are woefully inadequate schooling, family circumstances that are often desperate, and the slick, brutal world of college athletic recruitment. Incisively and compassionately written, The Last Shot introduces us to unforgettable characters and takes us into their world with an intimacy seldom seen in contemporary journalism. The result is a startling and poignant expose of inner-city life and the big business of college basketball.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 37 more reviews...
Coney Island B-Ball March 25, 2008
A classic piece of sports writing, but for everyone. The author is a writer for the New York Times Magazine. In this book he writes about the lives of some high school basketball players/high school students (in that order).
Like the other posters have noted, it's not just for basketball freaks. It's a well written story about some kids in the 90's who live in the projects in Brooklyn, Coney Island for the most part, and how much basketball means to them. In the book it seems like basketball is their only path to success. But they are up against the recruiters, hustlers and the SATS (which they need to get a 700 on but that's just out of reach for most).
You get to meet the student athletes, Russell, Corey, Tchak, and Stephon, their parents, coaches, recruiters, local prophets, etc, and the author treats them all with a level of respect the New York Times Magazine accords the suit wearing sharks.
If you get this book, you won't have to read long before you're committed to reading the whole thing. It's a very rare book indeed that leaves me wanting more. I would have loved to read a sequel. Alas, we only get an afterward, but the story had to end somewhere and the afterward was, well, quite the shock.
Hoop Dreams March 29, 2006
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
If you like hoops you would love this story. Darcey frey the author who's also a sports writter follows the life of three young men who's dream is to become professional basketball players.Living in the Coney Island section of Brooklyn these three men are faced with durgs violence, and everything you see on the streets of Brooklyn. A very inspirational story, and a indepth look on the career of Stephon Marbury.This is a book you would want to share with a friend.
Symphony of words January 27, 2006
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This book should be a classic, if it isn't already. As someone who hasn't a great deal of interest in basketball, I can throughly recommend it simply for the author's style. The man's prose reads like a dream as he brings the characters to life in an inimitable way. He enables you, the reader, to go right into the streets of New York and live the lives of each of his main characters, to get to know them, understand them and - in a sense - to *be* them. A definite must for your library.
Reality Check--I LOVED this book! December 16, 2005
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
The book, The Last Shot, journeys into the streets of Coney Island in New York City, and into the lives of four young men aspiring to become basketball all-stars. These boys of Coney Island are Russell Thomas, Corey Johnson, Stephon Marbury, and Tchaka Shipp, all of whom are "to-be" high-school seniors with the exception of Stephon who is yet a freshmen. Corey, Stephen, and Russell live right in the Coney Island "projects", or districts, amidst the violent gangs, drug dealers, and drunks of New York. We learn that even the police are rarely seen in this area although a reason for that is never provided. It seems as if the only way for boys to focus on positive things is through basketball. Numerous basketball courts exist in the projects but one, in particular is important to these four boys called the Garden. Countless hours are spent on this court, practicing shots, dribbling, playing pick-up games, and organized tournaments. Also playing basketball for their high school Varsity team, these young men are recruited by a large amount of NCAA basketball coaches. They all have the potential to play college ball at Division One schools but how do they deal with the negative influences that surround them daily? Missing the required 700 point SAT score would mean, sadly their hopes and dreams of playing high-level college basketball would be shattered. This story reveals the riveting truth behind where many of our NBA all-stars originate from.
S.K. --Grand Rapids, MI
The Last Shot October 21, 2005
0 out of 4 found this review helpful
The Last Shot
By. Darcy Frey
The Last Shot by. Darcy Frey takes place in the projects of Coney Island. All the characters are looking to go to a Division 1 Schools. They all have the talent but don't have the smarts to pass the SAT's. This book is a real page turner Darcy Frey is a very talented writer. I like how he actually uses an NBA superstar in this book. All the characters are great athletes. I like how it goes from Coney Island to the Nike basketball camp and follows the best player on the team Tchaka Shipp. There was no climax in this story. It shifts around so much that it couldn't really have a climax. Darcy Frey is a good sports writer. This book was rather long but it is worth reading. I give it a 5 out of 5 stars.
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