Andrew Maraniss discusses his new book Games of Deception: The True Story of the First U.S. Olympic Basketball Team at the 1936 Olympics in Hitler's Germany.

This is the true story of the invention of a game, created by a thoughtful man named James Naismith. He wanted people to be the best they could be, and he believed exercise and healthy competition brought people together. And, it’s the story of evil men who used the Olympic Games, basketball, and propaganda to distract the world from the horrible things they were doing.

In this interview, Andrew and I talk about the prominent role that competitive sports, and sports writers played in his own life. We discuss how he overcame the challenges of moving to the South as a teenager, in part by meeting and writing about Perry Wallace, the first African-American to play basketball in the Southeastern Conference (SEC), and who would later be the subject of Andrew’s first book, Strong Inside. We focus on James Naismith’s invention of basketball, and the growth of the game. That leads us into the dark, real life characters on both sides of the ocean that were behind the lies of the Nazi propaganda effort to host those Olympics. Fortunately, there are great heroes and powerful lessons that we also cover throughout of the conversation.

His books are available in print and eBook. His web site is andrewmaraniss.com. You can find him on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter.

Visit me at adamdrinkwater.com • Instagram • Twitter • Patreon

Support the show