What’s the best gift a Wake Forest basketball fan could get?
A Tim Duncan autographed basketball would be nice.
A signed photo of Dickie Hemric?
How about “Demon Deacon Hoops: History of Wake Forest Basketball in the Twentieth Century”?
For author Barry Alan Lawing, the three years spent writing the book was a trial and a treat, as he found out tons of Wake Forest basketball trivia and talked to some big Deacons names.
Lawing, who has a master’s degree in history from Wake Forest and teaches history at Forsyth Tech Community College, was spurred to write the book for a variety of reasons.
His standard answer is “I was tired of going to book stores and seeing books on Carolina, State and Duke, so I went to the athletic department, pitched the idea, wrote an outline and they approved it.”
But the true story is, he did his thesis on the history of aviation in Winston-Salem. He wanted to do a book on Piedmont Airlines, but someone beat him to it.
So, “I thought I’d like to write another book.” Though no one has ever written a book on any Wake Forest sports, basketball is certainly the most popular.
And when his pitch sold, the Wake athletic department opened up the archives, let him use vintage pictures and tons of information.
After years of 15-plus hour days, researching, teaching and writing, Lawing can sit back now and say, “I’m very satisfied with the book.”
It’s style certainly says history, but it’s not stuffy at all. Lawing tried to write it from the perspective of a historian, alumnus and fan. ... I wrote things from a Wake Forest bias, of course, but I tried to be objective, too.”
Feedback indicates he was successful. “I haven’t heard one negative response. The Wake people have been very nice. ... Dave Odom talked about it on one of his radio talk shows.”
Wake liked the idea of the book and that Lawing was an insider, having attended the school and many of the games.
A weird coincidence shows up in his foreword. The first captain of the 1906 team actually lived across the street from Lawing in Winston-Salem. Dr. Vanderbilt Couch died when Lawing was just 4, but he never knew about the connection until he started doing research.
The most difficult part of the book was trying to describe Bones McKinney’s departure from Wake Forest. “I wanted to be true from a historical standpoint, but I didn’t want to offend anyone.” The great Coach McKinney had developed a load of personal problems by the time he left.
He has many favorite stories from the book, such as the time McKinney got back at Tar Heel coach Frank McGuire. McGuire had a habit of calling timeouts near the end of a rout to rub in the victory. McKinney turned the tables on him one time. Once, McKinney called the timeout and just waved to the fans. A few minutes later he called another timeout. Billy Packer told
Lawing, “This time he went into the stands, and he was talking to people.”
Lawing never got to talk to Tim Duncan, and he sure tried. Once he knew he would start the book, he started asking for an interview with the Deacon darling and Spurs standout.
He talked to Odom about recruiting Duncan and how quickly he grew into a great player.
But Duncan tends to limit his contact with the media in general. Lawing was tenacious. When the Spurs played in Charlotte, he went two hours early and “basically stalked” Duncan’s representative. “But in a nice way,” he adds. Duncan never did agree to the interview.
Lawing dreams of getting autographs of the players, and many former players have ordered books from him. “Most of them have really enjoyed it ... I ran into Dickie Hemric at the ACC tournament and he really liked the book.”
A good feeling for a big fan who put in a lot of work.
One of the things he enjoyed the most was finding out facts not even the most rabid fans are likely to know.
But the best part was seeing the finished product and seeing people enjoy it.
The book is chock full of photos, and adds some interesting information at the end: the Greatest Players of the Twentieth Century; the Five Greatest Coaches; the Five Deacon Home Courts; the Ten Greatest Teams since the founding of the ACC; the Ten Most Memorable Games.
The only thing a fan might want more of is names under group pictures.
Handsomely bound in Old Gold and Black, the book is available at the Wake Forest bookstore, Borders in Winston-Salem, in Barnes and Nobles across the state, and from Lawing.
The cost is $35 from retailers and $30 from Lawing or the bookstore. To reach Lawing, write to him at 2100 Silas Creek Parkway, Winston-Salem, NC 27103-5197; call (336) 734-7461; or e-mail
blawing@forsyth.cc.nc.us .
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