Don’t Be Afraid to Win

Don’t Be Afraid To Win, by Jim Quinn, pulls back the curtain on big-time sports. Long before free agency, owners treated athletes as disposable parts. In time, athletes demanded and won the right to collective bargaining. From the outset, attorney Jim Quinn fought to help pro athletes earn what they deserved. Not only did they deserve financial compensation. But also, owners owed them respect as indispensable partners in the business of pro sports.

The New York Times labeled Quinn as “instrumental in helping change the face of major professional sports.” Without doubt, Quinn’s influence over the modern sports industry spans decades. Back in the 1970s, he advocated for Oscar Robertson in his landmark basketball free agency case. Again and again, Quinn went toe-to-toe with owners in the four major leagues. At the core of his effort, the primary goal was to make sure the players got their due. In the early 1990s, he lined up against the behemoth National Football League. When the dust settled, he won the right to free agency for NFL players. Whether basketball, football, baseball, or ice hockey, players knew Jim Quinn would win them fair agreements.

In Don’t Be Afraid To Win, Quinn details significant cases and legal proceedings across major American sports. Also, he regales readers of courtroom battles he fought on behalf of players. Similarly, he reveals what happened behind the scenes when labor leaders sought economic justice. It didn’t matter that they “worked” in a sports arena. Further, he sheds light on well-known and little-known athletes who committed to larger causes than their own well-being. In the end, he argues that modern sports owes a debt to the leaders of the past. They risked their careers to achieve the goal.

Throughout his lengthy career, Quinn helped to empower athletes. He made it possible for them to speak and act in their best interests, as well as those of the sports community. In addition, he helped players overcome some of the toxic figures who sought to drag down league success for their own ego and greed.

Quinn’s unique point of view helps contemporary sports fans understand how we got here. On the one hand, he personally facilitated changes in the business of professional sports. Over and above that, he offers a masterful examination of the exponential growth of sports over the decades. Moreover, he explains how sports benefited from the rise of sports unions and free agency. Finally, he shows there is still fairness to be gained across the leagues.