We're trying to improve Conversations.
Please take a brief survey and help us out.

The Book of Basketball

By Bill Simmons
Special to ESPN.com

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Editor's note: The following is excerpted from Bill Simmons' new book, "The Book of Basketball: The NBA According to the Sports Guy," copyright 2009 by Bill Simmons. Reprinted by permission of ESPN Books and Ballantine Books. This excerpt is from a chapter called "How The Hell Did We Get Here?" It's a breakdown of the ABA/NBA merger -- not just why it happened, but why some of the wrinkles remain ridiculous to this day. Summer of 1976: The Merger This gets my Greatest Summer Ever vote: our ...

Read full story | Create Your Profile

Activate your ESPN Profile!

Sort comments by: Most Recent | First Posted

Comments that include profanity, or personal attacks, or antisocial behavior such as "spamming" or "trolling," or other inappropriate comments or material will be removed from the site. We will take steps to block users who violate any of our terms of use. You are fully responsible for the content that you post.


Conversations in Real-Time

CONTESTS & PROMOTIONS

ESPN Fantasy Salary Cap
Create your own fantasy game day living room and win BIG!
Heisman Vote 2009
Vote for the next Heisman winner and enter for a chance to win a trip to the awards show. Mor
Engineered to Win Challenge
Test your football smarts by playing NFL trivia and enter each week for a chance to win a 2010 GMC Sierra.