Personal Foul (book)
Encyclopedia
Personal Foul: A First-Person Account of the Scandal That Rocked the NBA is an autobiography written by former National Basketball Association
(NBA) referee Tim Donaghy
and published by Florida
-based VTi-Group, Inc. in December, 2009. Donaghy, who had resigned from the league as a central figure in the 2007 NBA betting scandal
, describes his involvement in and inner workings of the scandal, as well as his gambling addiction.
Originally named Blowing the Whistle: The Culture of Fraud in the NBA, the book was canceled by publisher Triumph Books because of liability concerns. Pat Berdan, Donaghy's liaison with Triumph, said the book was canceled after the NBA threatened legal action—which the NBA denies. Donaghy eventually found a new publisher, VTi-Group, that was willing to release his book. It was subsequently renamed Personal Foul: A First-Person Account of the Scandal That Rocked the NBA and released in December 2009.
"We approached Mr. Donaghy after learning that his original publishing deal fell through. With a background in web media and traditional publishing, Mr. Donaghy felt that our firm was the best fit to become the publisher for this unique project." said Benjamin Daniel, a project manager at VTi.
In the book, Donaghy describes his time as a referee in the CBA and NBA, discussing the NBA's inner workings, refereeing bias, TV media markets, owners in the NBA, marriage and divorce, NBA scandals, his time in jail, court process, solving the NBA's problems, and his life story.
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
(NBA) referee Tim Donaghy
Tim Donaghy
Tim Donaghy is a former professional basketball referee who worked in the National Basketball Association for 13 seasons, from 1994 to 2007. During his career in the NBA, Donaghy officiated in 772 regular season games and 20 playoff games...
and published by Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
-based VTi-Group, Inc. in December, 2009. Donaghy, who had resigned from the league as a central figure in the 2007 NBA betting scandal
2007 NBA betting scandal
The 2007 NBA betting scandal was a scandal involving the National Basketball Association and accusations that an NBA referee has bet on games...
, describes his involvement in and inner workings of the scandal, as well as his gambling addiction.
Originally named Blowing the Whistle: The Culture of Fraud in the NBA, the book was canceled by publisher Triumph Books because of liability concerns. Pat Berdan, Donaghy's liaison with Triumph, said the book was canceled after the NBA threatened legal action—which the NBA denies. Donaghy eventually found a new publisher, VTi-Group, that was willing to release his book. It was subsequently renamed Personal Foul: A First-Person Account of the Scandal That Rocked the NBA and released in December 2009.
"We approached Mr. Donaghy after learning that his original publishing deal fell through. With a background in web media and traditional publishing, Mr. Donaghy felt that our firm was the best fit to become the publisher for this unique project." said Benjamin Daniel, a project manager at VTi.
In the book, Donaghy describes his time as a referee in the CBA and NBA, discussing the NBA's inner workings, refereeing bias, TV media markets, owners in the NBA, marriage and divorce, NBA scandals, his time in jail, court process, solving the NBA's problems, and his life story.