Bradburd tells the more important story

Sometimes, some of the best stories aren’t taken by big-name publications such as Sports Illustrated and Time Magazine. In lieu of the start of the 2014-15 college basketball season, SLAM Magazine’s Rus Bradburd wrote an exceptional feature on Wisconsin’s Frank Kaminsky III.

 

What made the piece special was the angle that Bradburd took. Bradburd told Kaminsky’s story around his father, Frank Kaminsky II, who was a playground legend in Chicago’s south side during the 1980s and 1990s. By doing this, Bradburd took what was likely the most interesting aspect of Kaminsky III’s personal journey and centered the story around that.

Bradburd was not afraid to sacrifice the immediate purpose of telling Kaminsky III’s story to wait and instead give the audience a more satisfying backstory. Giving the audience this backstory gave the reader more perspective on the story’s main character, Kaminsky III.

Bradburd also wrote the piece in a way that gave the reader a sense of the ‘Kaminsky family values,’ as well as the values of Chicago’s south side. He used quotes from the Kaminsky family and certain phrases that made the reader feel like they were in the Kaminsky’s living room listening to them speak.

Through alternative storytelling form and a way of making the story sound authentic, Bradburd gave the reader a creative story that reads well. He let the reader see Kaminsky III’s story through an alternative lense, which in turn will allow the reader to better understand his story.