Dr. J: The Autobiography

This first hand book has Julius Erving revealing all the intimate details of his life from the time he was a young boy through the time after he retired from the NBA, off the court as well as discussing all the feats he accomplished on the basketball court. He also talks about his way of approaching the game and how he was influenced by Elgin Baylor and Connie Hawkins and it makes sense. His thoughts about Pete Maravich (who he was a teammate with while with the Atlanta Hawks for a preseason) and George Gervin (who was his teammate while he played for the Virginia Squires) were very interesting. It sure would have been great to see Julius and Pete Maravich on a fast break with "Sweet" Lou Hudson for the Hawks! His observations about his Philadelphia 76ers teammates (Moses Malone, Bobby Jones, Maurice Cheeks, Doug Collins, Andrew Toney, etc.) were also interesting. I remember seeing Dr. J with the Sixers when he was doing the warm-up dunk lines with his teammates Daryl Dawkins and Lloyd Free before the game when I went to a Portland Trailblazers game and that alone was worth the price of admission! I also got to see him when he was a New York Net when they played against the Denver Nuggets (I was a kid living in Colorado at the time). Maybe Michael Jordan may have been a better basketball player but nobody was as exciting as Julius Erving in his prime! It was very interesting reading in this reviewers opinion and Julius even admits he had flaws just like the rest of us, despite the public persona that he was "perfect" on and off the court. I enjoyed reading this book and by the way he is just as successful now in business as he was in basketball.

This is an autobiography that not only captures changes in the world of basketball, but also the day to day life of a celebrity and athlete. I did not realize that the doctor had so much tragedy in his life -- early deaths of his father, brother, sister, and friends. Ervings happiness swings not with his celebrity status, but with the state of his family including his marriage.Erving comes accross as a very decent and kind person, but also one with a menacing flaw. With woman making themselves available to him on a daily basis, he secumbs to his sexual drive while married, and this causes much pain in his life subsequently. He has fathered two-three children out-of-wedlock, something he is not proud of. He financially supports these children, but in the case of Alexandra who is a pro tennis player, Dr. J.'s wife will not allow him to have a relationship with Alexandra. Dr. J is the father of seven children in total. He is perplexed why three of his sons -- raised in privledge -- have problems with drugs and the law.The underlying message of this book is that it is not celebrity that brings joy in our life, but the more simple things -- friends and family.

During Doc's extraordinary ABA career, he was quite simply the most exciting, innovative, boundary-stretching athlete that I've ever seen perform in any sport. (In the NBA, he was merely a superstar, one of the top 12 of all time.)This is a surprisingly well written book; thoughtful, philosophical, genuine and largely honest (though Doc does plainly hedge about a few things in later life). No so much a tell-all basketball gossip book as an description of one remarkable American's rise to great fame and his earnest struggle to balance the good and bad his life presented - not always as successfully as he might have liked, as he readily concedes.As a great fan of the 2-time ABA Champion NY Nets, it did leave me convinced that Doc would have been better served (both in '76-'77 and for posterity) by putting off the salary concerns that forced his "trade" to the (then talent-laden but utterly dysfunctional) Sixers, and instead entering the NBA with the title-winning '76 Nets intact. I suspect the latter would have brought him far more satisfaction (and titles) in the world's biggest media market (and his hometown), given him the freedom to continue in his own remarkable style (rather than conforming it to convention and the multi-star Sixers' needs), and would surely have delighted his fans even more.All told, a surprisingly substantial autobiography of a remarkable innovator, even if it does leave one wishing things had turned out somewhat differently.

After 45 years, my college brothers still call me Doctor because of my basketball moves and my first name, in deference to The Great Dr J. Oh, the book -- an excellent read. The Doctor fluently displays his life to us, his ups (literally) and downs, his riches, his skills, opinions and stories of his teammates, competition and decisive games, plus his family tribulations and his personal triumphs, conflicts and mistakes. The journey of a gifted athlete and the travels through life of a normal human being. I recommend it.

The more I read this book the better liked it. The biography of this sports legend is unique, Dr. J bares his soul. He is more interested with leaving a lasting personal legacy than preserving his professionals stature as a hero. He is extremely honest about his personal shortcomings. This in no way diminishes his greatness as a basketball player. Erving's writing style, while warm and sensitive, is also very compelling. I loved his wonderful ABA stories as well as those about his NBA years .Bottom line is that this book is terrific . The Doctor was a professional superman but a very down-to-earth human being. It took a lot of fortitude on his part to write a book that uncovers all aspects of his life with such brutal honesty.Read it and you will have a new appreciation for Dr. J.