{"product_id":"dynasty-restored-how-larry-bird-and-the-1984-boston-celtics-conquered-the-nba-and-changed-basketball-9781538159712","title":"Dynasty Restored: How Larry Bird and the 1984 Boston Celtics Conquered the NBA and Changed Basketball","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA historic look at the fabled 1983\u003c\/b\u003e-\u003cb\u003e84 Boston Celtics and an unforgettable season.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRonald Reagan declares the Soviet Union an Evil Empire. The Apple Macintosh personal computer makes its debut. Michael Jackson's \u003ci\u003eThriller\u003c\/i\u003e album dominates the pop charts. And Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics capture the NBA championship over Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and the Los Angeles Lakers. It was 1984, and for the NBA and the nation, the year was full of milestone moments.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eDynasty Restored: How Larry Bird and the 1984 Boston Celtics Conquered the NBA and Changed Basketball\u003c\/i\u003e, Thomas J. Whalen explores this fascinating and dramatic season. The NBA had been struggling, seen as a minor sports league and suffering from poor attendance, lagging television ratings, and embarrassing drug scandals. The Celtics were beset by locker room turmoil, disruptive coaching, ownership changes, and underperforming stars. But Whalen reveals how that all changed when Bird and his fellow \"Big Three\" frontcourt teammates Kevin McHale and Robert Parish, along with newcomer Dennis Johnson, banded together to lift the venerable franchise to its fifteenth world championship and helped to transform the league into a global entertainment brand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eDynasty Restored \u003c\/i\u003eoffers insight into the personal barriers Larry Bird had to overcome to achieve NBA stardom, discusses the personal tensions that existed on the team between Bird and McHale, and gives a probing analysis of the unique pressures Black Celtics players faced in a post-Boston Busing Crisis environment. And it shows how this singular season turbocharged the Celtics and the professional game to unprecedented heights. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThomas J. Whalen\u003c\/b\u003e is the author of many sports books and is associate professor of social science at Boston University. Whalen's work has appeared in the \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e, ABCNews.com, \u003ci\u003eWall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eUSA Today\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBoston Globe\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eLos Angeles Times\u003c\/i\u003e, and the AP. He has also appeared on several national broadcast outlets including CNN, NPR and Reuters TV. Whalen's books include \u003ci\u003eDynasty's End: Bill Russell and the 1968-69 World Champion Boston Celtics\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eSpirit of '67: The Cardiac Kids, El Birdos, and the World Series That Captivated American\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eKooks and Degenerates on Ice: Bobby Orr, the Big Bad Bruins, and the Stanley Cup Championship That Transformed Hockey\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Rowman \u0026 Littlefield Publishers","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50891943575826,"sku":"9781538159712","price":37.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_c99750c5-58ac-4022-af7f-ccee019f5a76.jpg?v=1738172768","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/dynasty-restored-how-larry-bird-and-the-1984-boston-celtics-conquered-the-nba-and-changed-basketball-9781538159712","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}