He was a real capitalist. He just needed capital.
Michael Rudman, Skybox patron 1995 – 2005, as quoted in Big Shot, an episode of ESPN’s 30 for 30 series. The 79 minute film tells of the major problem businessman John Spano had when buying the Islanders, an ice hockey team from Long Island, New York. You can find out more detail on the impact it had on Spano himself, the team and the community on a review by Digital Shortbread here.
Alex Raphael 
Hey! Thanks for the shout out Alex! I’m glad you’ve found this documentary, it’s one of the better ones from that early series. Good to see the word being spread about it
That line cracked me up. Everyone was so desperate to him to be successful. And as noted, he really did make an impact. And he almost got away with it. Which have been your favourites within the series so far?
That’s a hard question to answer accurately but a few that have really stood out for me are this most recent series’ episode chronicling the Duke men’s lacrosse team and the sexual harassment scandal they were involved in circa 2006. It’s called Fantastic Lies. Another amazing one that’s older is Reggie Miller vs The New York Knicks. For baseball, if recommend The Day the Series Stopped.
Those are both great. I love the fact Spike Lee was so proud to make the front page haha. Fantastic Lies was scary but brilliantly done. How the police and prosecutor had their own agendas and how quickly the media believed it. I also like Four Bulls of Buffalo. Survive and advance too. So much warmth in that underdog story, as well as the study of unusual tactics. And Into The Wind was hugely inspiring. And so sad too.
Funny quote. Sounds like an interesting documentary too
It’s a fantastic series. And as it’s all about American sports, including quite a few college ones, it means I get to be entertained and informed.
These 30 by 30s have really had some legs!
And I hope they keep running with it! I know they have the shorts and a football section, but I prefer the longer features.
A great line… I´ll look for this documentary… sounds really interesting!… all the best to you, dear Alex 😀
The whole series has been delightful. I hope you get the chance to see some of them.