I finished reading “Doc: The Rise and Rise of Julius Erving” by Vincent M. Mallozzi this past weekend and I must say I really enjoyed reading it. It took me back to my younger days when I was one of the Dr. J fans who tried his best to master throwing a basketball at the rim because he couldn’t shoot. Dr. J was one of my favorite basketball players of all time and still is. So yeah, I did enjoy reading the book.

The book was really written by a fan for fans. On the penultimate page, the author writes: “It is a pity that Erving did not want to participate in this project (several calls were made to Erving’s representatives and his ex-wife, Turquoise, and their children, but most were not returned), because this whole book is basically a giant Valentine from one of his biggest fans. ” That sums it up pretty well, and what’s wrong with that? Dr. J Julius Erving had a legion of fans and I’m sure many will enjoy being taken back to those glory days just as I was.

Does the book shed light on things that are not yet available? Probably not, but the author did a great deal of research and talked to people to bring it all together in one source. Are there inaccuracies? Maybe, but talk to anyone about anything that happened in the past and you will discover inaccuracies. Happens.

Most of the book focuses on Erving’s basketball career. From its inception, through the ABA until his retirement from the NBA. Mallozzi does a good job of describing the electrifying performances of the legendary Dr. J. Reading the book led me directly to when I first saw some of those dumps on television as they happened. Other stories made me wish the ABA games and New York street games were recorded.

The last part of the book briefly covers some of the things that happened to Erving after his retirement. Much of this part is neither flattering nor as heroic as his exploits on the basketball court. There are snippets about the one-on-one comeback game he lost to Kareem, marital problems including illegitimate children, divorce, and his children’s problems. To be honest, I didn’t enjoy reading this as much as I did about his fabulous dunks and the professionalism and poise he had playing with and those with whom he played. He was a childhood hero and I enjoyed that part much more. Sure, I know he was human and had his flaws. Don’t we all do it? I just enjoyed reading about the positive elements in her life more than the negative ones. I am glad that the author included them in the book as they are part of Julius Erving, but I am also glad that these elements were a small part of the overall text.

If you are a fan of Dr. J., I would recommend this book to you. If you want to learn a little history about a player who captured basketball like few others and is still considered one of the greats of all time, check out this book. For me, I am very happy to have read it. It set me back and helped me relive some great memories of a childhood basketball hero.