ESPN Films 30 for 30: Bad Boys w/Grantland Book

The late Eighties and early Nineties were an extremely competitive era in the NBA. It was a time before the full watering down of the league, and a team had to be truly great to win the title then. The Detroit Pistons were such a team in 1989 and 1990, and this episode of ESPN's "30 for 30" looks back at the Pistons' brief but brilliant run. The Pistons drafted Isiah Thomas in 1981, and this episode recalls GM Jack McCloskey's building of the team and the addition of players around Thomas, as well as the hiring of legendary coach Chuck Daly. The Pistons suffered brutal losses to the Celtics in the 1987 Eastern Conference Finals and to the Lakers in the 1988 NBA Finals, but after a key trade, Detroit broke through in 1989 and defended their crown in 1990. Their run ended in 1991 at the hands of the Bulls and the team broke up afterward, but the Pistons of that era were a truly memorable team, and this is yet another great "30 for 30" episode. This DVD is rounded out with a bonus feature—Isiah Thomas, Doug Collins, Jalen Rose, and Bill Simmons discuss the Pistons of that era.

I've been waiting for the 30 for 30 set on DVD since they started running the documentaries. I've only been able to catch bits and pieces of them when aired, but I knew it was only a matter of time before the DVDs hit. If you have anybody on your holiday gift list that likes sports and is hard to buy for, try this. Just about everything in the sports world from Gretzky to Reggie Miller to the USFL is touched on, so any general knowledge sports fan, like myself, would be thrilled. I have not watched all 15 (remember, this is volume 1) of the films, probably 5 or 6 so far, and they are all pretty good. Some are more interesting than others, but that will come down to personal preference. The packaging is great. Inside the slide out box are six slim cases that have the films split across six discs. I bet they could have got it down to four, but then they couldn't charge as much! Some people may hate the "raffle" ticket type design that is on the packaging and the menus, but I really like it. My only complaint thus far is that the menus seem slow. It's possible that it's my PS3, so I will not deduct for it, but just wanted to mention it. All in all, a great collection for sports fans.

Amazing

I'm giving this a 5-star review for "Roll Tide / War Eagle" alone, which is one of the best SEC Storied (or 30 for 30) films ever. It's a favorite of mine as an SEC football fanatic; though I'm neither a Bama nor Auburn fan. That film should be mandatory viewing for any college football fan or casual observer, especially for those who are outside the SEC! Other great films in this series include: "The Believer;" "The Book of Manning" which really changed my opinion on the Manning family; "The Announcement;" and "The Play that Changed College Football." The documentary "Unguarded" is one of the most compelling films I've seen about the impact of addiction and is absolutely worth the $5! Don't miss it.

All the other reviews said it already - this is a must-have for sports fans in general. I'm a basketball fanatic but all the documentaries offer for compelling viewing. I particularly liked the stories about Reggie Miller, the Rotisserie League history and the Wayne Gretzky trade. I would have liked more behind-the-scenes features but the main stories are more than enough for me. I'll be getting volume 2 as soon as I can.

This may be the best gift I've given my husband ever, or at least the gift he was the most excited about. The good news is that even if you're just a casual sports fan, these documentaries are really well put together and interesting, so you won't mind watching them along with your serious fan. They run the gamut of sports and types of stories and documentary formats, so there's a lot of variety. I have to say, after watching almost all of them (including the second set), I feel much better versed in contemporary sports knowledge.....and I am totally ready to take on the green wedge in Trivial Pursuit!

I show the Chris Herren story during cinema therapy groups at a substance use treatment center. The clients absolutely love his story. It’s a very powerful message and the clients can really relate to his experience with substances. I would recommend for anyone running group therapy for substance use.

I grew up in the early 90's watching my beloved Lakers beginning to deteriorate. This was also the time I began listening to rap and hip-hop. And then the Wolverines show up and they were the team to watch. My friends and I entered into the Hoop-it-up basketball tournament in 92 and we were the 7th team to be named with some form of the Fab Five (We were the Fab 5ive). I hated Duke and wanted Michigan to crush them.Watching this documentary and seeing Chris Webber call the timeout was heartbreaking to watch again...not to mention laugh when he wasn't called for travelling. At the same time I was glad for George Lynch to be drafted by the Lakers. Overall, good documentary. What a blast of nostalgia, especially seeing Juwon do the Cabbage Patch!

First off,Ii am simply AMAZED that no one has reviewed this yet. Secondly..it's so incredibly hard to even BEGIN how to appraise this incredible box set. ESPN has put together 30 films by 30 film makers that dig below the skin of what seems like a routine sports story and uncovers social impacts,personal impacts and goodness knows what other impacts on people seemingly disconnected form the event! I have not yet seen all 30 films, but the ones I have seen have left me completely and utterly immersed in the story. I watched the Reggie Miller V The New York Knicks film and was so absorbed in it, i literally didn't flinch for the entire movie. There is some amazing archive footage to go in each and every film, some of it not relating to sports at all, but adds an incredible amount of depth to each documentary. Who would this series of film appeal to? It would be incredibly shallow to say that this set of films would hold most appeal for sports fans, because whilst sports is the subject, the human elements in each movie go so far beyond sports, it's greater appeal could stimulate anyone , even people who have zero interest in sports. These films are as much about life and humanity as they are about sports. as much about impact and emotion as they are about winning and losing, and more importantly, all of them are about evoking in each and every single viewer a level of stimulation rarely provided by a bundle of documentaries in a pretty box. If you are a lover of film/documentary/human interest at any level, this series of films will simply NOT disappoint you. All of them are aired on ESPN sports. I live in the UK and subscribe to ESPN, and although they frequently advertise this series, they very rarely ever show an episode, only if there is an error in scheduling will you likely to be able to see one. Fed up with this nonsensical tease, i took the drastic measure of getting the series sent from an overseas seller on Amazon. If you are in the UK, accept the material fact that any thing remotely of quality in the states will never ever be available here. Worth buying a region-free DVD player for alone. get it, watch it, share it with your friends and debate it. You will free your mind as well as fill it. I simply cannot recommend this box set enough but to say it is an extremely important and essential purchase.

Renee Richards ist eine einzigartige Frau. Sie hat sich ihr Recht errstritten, im Frauentennis teilnehmen zu dürfen. Sie hatte viele Matches gewonnen, aber auch viele verloren. Sie wurde später die Trainerin von Martina Navratilova und heute sagt sie: Transfrauen, die die männliche Pubertät durchlaufen haben, sollten nicht im Frauensport teilnehmen.

I saw one of these documentories on tv and thought it was absolutley great. I immediatly looked for them online to find out how to buy them. So far have watched about 12 out of the first 15 and have loved all of them. I can't wait to see the next 15. I just wish all 30 were included in the set instead of them being split up in sets of 15. My two favourite so far are: Without Bias and No Crossover. I highly recommend these films to any sports fan, documentery lover or anybody who just loves truly great stories. Cheers!

Great piece of memorabilia for this era!! Love Bad Boys basketball!!

For anyone who has not seen the ESPN 30 for 30 series, I highly recommend it. The documentaries are highly informative, engaging and tell great stories. This DVD is filled with them and I will be buying part two!