THE NBA THROUGH THE EYES OF THE SPECTATOR PHOENIX SUNS EDITION www.nbaspectator.com 262 pages "The NBA Through the Eyes of the Spectator" is a "One-Size-Fits-All" book that enhances the education of the uninformed NBA fan. At the same time, it also serves as a unique and valuable reference book for the informed fan. NBA rules, terms, strategies and the history of NBA basketball are presented here in a sometimes humorous, easy-to-read and simple-to-understand style. "The NBA Through the Eyes of the Spectator" includes a concise, yet thorough, history of the Phoenix Suns franchise, year-by-year, from their inaugural season in 1968 through the 2012-13 campaign. Suns trades, draft picks, coaching changes, and team leaders are all presented, along with attendance figures, salary information and many fun-to-read anecdotes from years gone by. After reading this book... YOU... will hopefully become the person that can answer the questions for people around you... rather than be the one who asks them. Also included are entertaining... "behind the scenes..". stories about the 2011 NBA lockout... the lives of NBA referees and scouts...an amazing unique chart that details the NBA journey for over 500 active players... many trivia quizzes to challenge and amuse you... a history of the evolution of the NBA Draft...plus much more. No longer will you have to browse through countless websites (some with incorrect information) or read different books... to become an informed fan of basketball, the NBA and specifically the Phoenix Suns. It's all at your fingertips with... "THE NBA THROUGH THE EYES OF THE SPECTATOR."

This is Volume 2 of Tips, Techniques, and Best Practices for Scholastic / Collegiate Basketball Officials. Topics include: Handling the Opening Toss, Primary Coverage Areas (PCA), When A Dribble Begins and Ends, Interrupted Dribble, Dribbling and Palming, When a Try Begins, When a Try Ends, The Three Second Rule, Goaltending and Basket Interference, The Ten Second Count, Closely Guarded, Designated Spot, Breaking the Plane, Last Touch - First Touch, Backcourt Violations During the Inbounds, Understanding Player and Team Control, Timeouts: Who and When, Dealing with Injuries, Correctable Errors, Fouls by the Inbounding Team, Contact with the Basket / Net or Backboard, Sliding or Rolling with the Ball, Swinging Elbows, Coach and Bench Decorum, Legal Screens, Substitutes, Block - Charge, Double Fouls and the "Blarge," Throw-In Spots, Free Throws and Free Throw Coverage.

This book will teach you: How Ben went from living in a dairy farming village in the English countryside to playing college basketball in the United States-on a scholarship worth more than $160,000 How to get noticed by U.S. college coaches Need-to-know facts about U.S. college basketball and NCAA eligibility How to build self-confidence and take hold of great opportunities What to expect from life in the colonies

The Book of Record for Ivy League Basketball... Everyone thinks they know the story, but no one really does. Hutter's body of work (bow) ratings methodology is a brilliant conception for the purpose of establishing team and player rankings across generations. -Ted Silary, Philadelphia Daily News...TedSilary.com. Great stuff ...I did not realize that I witnessed the best of Ivy League basketball when I was at Penn. -Steven Greif, University of Pennsylvania. As both a college student during the Golden Age and longtime ACC basketball fan, I have to admit that Duke and North Carolina could not handle Penn and Princeton back in the day. -Russ Frank, Duke '71. The Golden Age of Ivy League Basketball is a "classic basketball book" for the "classic basketball fan." It captures and summarizes the nostalgic post-Bill Bradley era and also serves as a basic primer for Ivy League and NBA basketball history. The book enables classic readers to connect-the-dots associated with this memorable period and clears the fog surrounding their hazy but fond recollections. In addition to being chocked full of data, rankings, comparative analyses and sports trivia, it provides a historical overview pertaining to sports media issues which are of interest to both the "classic" and the "contemporary" basketball fan alike. Front cover: Columbia's Jim McMillian guarding Princeton's Bill Bradley during the Knicks/Lakers 1973 NBA finals. Printed in U.S.A.

"A reporting tour de force and an utterly gripping account... "Outside Shot" unmistakably triumphs, with the reader rooting hard for the Cardinals--and delighted that O'Brien has brought his considerable skills to telling their story." --Wayne Coffey, "New York Times Book Review"

The Cardinals of Scott County High School were beloved once---and with good reason. For years, the boys and their legendary coach gave fans in central Kentucky, deep in the heart of basketball country, just what they wanted: state titles, national rankings, and countless trips to Kentucky's one-of-a-kind state tournament, where winning and losing can change a young man's life.

But in 2009, with the economy sputtering, anger rising, and Scott County mired in a two-year drought, fans had begun to lose faith in the boys. They weren't the heroes of Scott County anymore; they were "mini-athlete gods," haunted by dreams, burdened by expectations, and desperate to escape through the only means they knew: basketball.

In "Outside Shot," Keith O'Brien takes us on an epic journey, from the bluegrass hills and broken homes of rural America, to inner-city Lexington, to Kentucky's most hallowed hall: Rupp Arena, where high school tournament games are known to draw twenty-thousand people, and where, for the players and their fans, it feels like anything is possible.

The narrative follows four of the team's top seniors and their coach as they struggle to redeem themselves in the face of impossible odds: once-loyal fans now turned against them, parents who demand athletic greatness, and scouts who weigh their every move. It delves deep inside the lives of the boys, their families, and their community---divided along lines of race, politics, religion, and sports. And it chronicles not only the high-stakes world of Kentucky basketball, but the battle for the soul of small-town America.

A story of inspiration and poignancy, filled with moments of drama on and off the court, "Outside Shot" shows that if it's hard to win basketball games, it can be even harder to win at life itself.

Coaches spend lots of time preparing to teach offense and defense before the start of practice each season. Most teams are reasonably well prepared to execute their basic offensive and defensive systems. Many of these same teams struggle when it comes to the game of basketball's "offensive" special situations Utter the words "half court trap defense" and many point guards simply panic. Go to a coaching clinic and ask how many coaches would like to learn about beating a full court press and watch the hands go up. These are issues even veteran coaches struggle with at times. Coaching Basketball's Offensive Special Situations covers a wide range of topics coaches need to deal with in order for their teams to successfully compete with the best teams on their schedule. Being well prepared for special situations is often the difference between a mediocre season and a great season. Some of the topics covered include: -- Planning for special situations -- Essential fundamentals and the drills to teach them -- Delay game offenses -- Principles for beating half court traps -- Half court trap offenses -- Principles for beating full court pressure defense -- Press breaker offenses -- Timeouts -- Quick hitters and set plays The information in this book is designed to help coaches successfully plan for most special situations that occur in typical games. This book will be a valuable reference tool for new and veteran coaches alike.

Growing up on the hardscrabble streets of LA in the late 1950s, Billy McGill stood out. At eleven he was dunking. At fifteen he was playing in pickup games against Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain--and holding his own, in part because he invented the jump hook shot, which no one could defend. How he went from college phenom, well on his way to becoming the greatest player Los Angeles ever produced, to sleeping in abandoned houses and washing up in a Laundromat sink is the story Billy "the Hill" McGill recounts here.

The first African American to play basketball for the University of Utah and the highest scoring big man in NCAA history, McGill was the first pick of the 1962 NBA draft. But the injury that would undo him--a knee injury in his junior year of high school--had already occurred, and it would worsen year after year until his career faded away. From college star (whose scoring record is still unbroken) to troubled player, bouncing around the NBA and the ABA, McGill takes us from the heights to his precipitous fall--and the slow recovery of a life he had never prepared for. A cautionary tale, written with a candor and authenticity rarely seen in pro athletes, his book is also the incredible story of one of the greatest unknown basketball players of all time.

A definitive treatise on modern basketball defense for players and coaches.

In an age dominated by overhyped athletes who are sometimes short on character, JoJo White's story offers a refreshing look back at one athlete's career-a career that was the product of genuine good values. In "Make It Count," author Mark C. Bodanza presents a biography of a man who triumphed both on and off the basketball court.

White's story is interwoven with ours as a nation. His basketball days were shaped by-and in a few cases, helped shape-events of monumental importance. Race relations, the war in Vietnam, and political tumult across the land punctuated White's years as both a Kansas Jayhawk and Boston Celtic. Bodanza shows how, through his years on the court, the point guard from St. Louis, Missouri, maintained a steady contribution to the game that became his passion while still a child. With each passing game, season, or team that formed a part of his playing days, White stayed true to principles learned before he donned his first high-school uniform.

"Make It Count" narrates a compelling chronicle of a sports career complete with drama, triumphs, and losses, as well as an affirmation that hard work has its reward. In life, as in basketball, JoJo White's approach to each opportunity that a new day presents has always been the same: make it count.

In the summer of 1962, the peripatetic and irrepressible Pete Gill was hired on a whim to coach basketball at tiny Ireland High School. There he would accomplish, against enormous odds, one of the great small-town feats in Indiana basketball history. With no starters taller than 5 10," few wins were predicted for the Spuds. Yet, after inflicting brutal preseason conditioning, employing a variety of unconventional motivational tactics, and overcoming fierce opposition, Gill molded the Spuds into a winning team that brought home the town s first and only sectional and regional titles. Relying on narrative strategies of creative nonfiction rather than strict historical rendering, Mike Roos brings to life a colorful and varied cast of characters and provides a compelling account of their struggles, wide-ranging emotions, and triumphs throughout the season."

Basketball Analytics is a must-read for any sports analytics enthusiast or student of the game of basketball. Authors Stephen Shea, Ph.D. (Professor of Mathematics) and Christopher Baker (Software Engineer) utilize their unique skill-set to introduce original metrics for analyzing player performance, team style and team construction in the NBA. While demonstrating an awareness of the industry's best ideas, the authors present original, objective and efficient strategies for understanding how teams win. New player performance statistics include Offensive Efficiency (OE), Efficient Offensive Production (EOP), Defensive Stops Gained (DSG), and Approximate Value (AV). OE reflects a player's ability to make the most fundamental offensive decisions. EOP adjusts a player's points and assists based on his efficiency. DSG gives a complete measure of a player's defensive contributions, without relying on individual player statistics like blocks and steals. AV is a measure of total player performance that rivals any publicly available statistic. Basketball Analytics introduces groundbreaking metrics on player involvement in the offense. Point, Rebound and Assist Balance aggregate player usage in these critical statistics. New studies on the NBA show whether teams should strive for balance or unbalance. An NBA draft pick value study determines the average value of each pick and the likelihood of landing a star or role player with each draft position. The results of this study are used to discuss topics including the biggest draft blunders and steals, the draft success of each NBA team, and the quality of each draft class dating back to 1977. This valuable understanding of the NBA Draft creates a foundation for discussing various approaches to team development and construction. Additionally, the authors discuss redefining the positions on the court, unpredictability in the game, data visualization, and applications of spatial tracking technology. There are many intensely debated questions surrounding the NBA today. Who are the most valuable players, and how do they compare to past greats? Which players have the greatest impact on their team's defense? Should Kobe Bryant be concerned with getting his teammates involved in the offense? How do offenses differ in the clutch, and which players thrive in these situations? How difficult is it for a team to rebuild through the draft? Basketball Analytics introduces new statistics and new concepts to explore these questions and more.

When the 3-point shot was introduced to the game of basketball it was a bit controversial. Today, the 3-point shot has not only become an accepted part of the game, it has changed the game. The 3-point shot has forced defenses to extend in order to cover the shot, creating better offensive spacing. The penetration game has improved as a result, creating even more offensive opportunities. Players love the more open game and so do the fans. Yet not every coach or every team has embraced the 3-point shot. Some coaches still struggle with how to integrate the shot into the team offense. It is no longer enough to simply space the offense behind the 3-point line as the defense has become more sophisticated in defending the shot and great 3-point shooters. Fine Tuning Your Three-Point Attack offers 150 concepts to improve your team's 3-point offense, drills to teach offensive building blocks essential to a balanced and effective 3-point offensive attack. Nearly 200 diagrams and photographs are used to illustrate the concepts included in the book. Also included are inbounds plays for the baseline and sideline, quick-hitters and secondary breaks for the fast break attack. Attack a zone defense is covered as well as concepts for basic offensive building blocks that can be incorporated into any offense to generate 3-point shots. In addition to the offensive concepts included, Coach Sivils takes a look at the reasoning behind utilizing the 3-point shot, possible issues with the 3-point shot as well as the opportunities the tactics can create for a team. What are coaches saying about Fine Tuning Your Three-Point Attack: "Kevin Sivils's books should be required reading for coaches I'm always impressed by the shear number of solid, time-tested and thought-provoking ideas he presents, giving the reader a "one-stop shopping" resource. In Fine Tuning Your Three-point Attack he has great suggestions not only for coaching the shooter, but the concepts and drills you need to be aware of generate open looks from the arc. His section on quick-hitters, sideline and underneath OB plays alone are worth the price of the book, and will help you make the three-point shot an integral part of your offense " Coach Doug Porter - Head Women's Basketball Coach Olivet Nazarene University - National Collegiate Scoring Champions "His thought provoking approach makes for an easy read and will definitely stimulate thought and, most likely, change the way you go about coaching offense." Rusty Rogers - Two-time NAIA Division II Women's Basketball National Championship Coach and Two-time NAIA National Coach of the Year "Coach Sivils does an outstanding job of breaking down the individual components, skills, and base blocks of being an efficient and effective 3-point shooter, then putting the pieces back together to highlight the impact of the 3-point shot and how it continues to shape the game today." Daniel Koutsis - Assistant Men's Basketball Coach Calumet College "Coach Sivils clearly brings his experience in the game of basketball to his writing. He is a great teacher who acquire great gifts over the years and it's great he wants to share those gifts with other coaches." Bill Reidy - Long time successful High School and AAU Basketball Coach "Prolific basketball author Kevin Sivils provides another soup to nuts scoring guide. While at its core, offensive basketball is a game of cutting and passing, Coach Sivils helps players and coaches achieve their full potential SHOOTING the basketball. The three-point rule revolutionized basketball over thirty years ago, and "Fine Tuning" presents an advanced treatise on the benefits, limitations, and mechanics of enhancing your perimeter game." Ron Sen, MD, - Middle School Basketball Coach

Breathe new life into your off season workouts by making them fun for your players. Bring back the joy you and your players felt when first discovering how much FUN the great game of basketball is to play Run a 3-on-3 off season league for your players. Combine fun with needed playing time and individual skill development in a competitive 3-on-3 off season league. Author and veteran coach Kevin Sivils outlines a detailed plan on how to make a 3-on-3 league fun, exciting, different and something your players will look forward to in the off season. Topics covered include: The need for change, getting players to take ownership of the league, how to score games, a unique way to keep standings, providing players with focus so they will improve their individual skills, officiating, and much more. Don't let your off season be drudgery for your players when it could be fun and something they look forward to

Within the pages of this book, you will find a detailed approach to teaching a Match Up Zone Defense that has twice the state of Texas in scoring defense. Using man-to-man principles within the concept of a zone defense, Coach Biddison takes you through a step by step process of not only how to run the defense, but how to teach it. In a sense, the Flex Match-Up Zone takes the very best of the man-to-man techniques and combines them with the best zone principles to form a defense that often times confuses the offense. This defense rotates, or flexes, to take on a different shape every time the ball moves or players positions change. The fact that sometimes it appears as a 1-2-2, other times as a 1-3-1, and still other times as a man-to-man defense, literally takes the offense out of their comfort zone.

The Dark Side of High School Sports Coach Carnovale, with 40 years of coaching experience, tackles the do's and don'ts of coaching. In particular, the unscrupulous coaches and the health of the athletes, and of coursed the meddling parents. There are many irresponsible and unscrupulous individuals who are lurking in the ranks of High School sports and parents need to be vigilent.

In the three years since its inception, Basketball Prospectus has quickly become required reading for anyone who's passionate about college basketball and wants to better understand both the game and their favorite team. Now the distinctive and detailed college hoops insight that Prospectus provides all season long has been collected into one definitive book for the coming year: College Basketball Prospectus 2010-11.

Coaching Youth Basketball is challenging in many ways for the adults who undertake the task. While many club and youth league coaches have a good understanding of how to play the game of basketball, these same coaches often struggle to find ways to teach the skills, tactics and strategies need to have success in the sport of basketball. 201 Drills for Youth Basketball provides the solution to this challenge. Included in this 400+ page manual are drills for: --Man-to-Man Defense --Competitive Rebounding --Lay-ups --Free Throws --Shooting Drills --Fast Break Drills --Drills for Essential Fundamentals Illustrated with extensive diagrams, each drill is described in as concise a manner as possible. Use the drills as described in the book, adapt the drills to your own specific team and the requirements of the players or use the drills as a basis to design your own drills. Eight time Coach of the Year award winner Kevin Sivils has shared many of his favorite drills that helped his varsity teams win nearly 500 games in 22 seasons. Also included in the book are brief suggestions for planning practice, selecting drills and guidelines for planning to develop shooters.

In the four years since its inception, Basketball Prospectus has quickly become required reading for anyone who's passionate about college basketball and wants to better understand both the game and their favorite team. Now the kind of Prospectus hoops insight that the New York Times has called "indispensable" has been collected into one definitive book for the coming year, College Basketball Prospectus 2011-12.

This is a basketball story about bullies. This picture book is part of the bully series of "Adventures in SportsLand" that focuses on bullies. This series consists of ten (10) children picture books (Baseball, Football, Basketball, Hockey, Soccer, Golf, Tennis and Volleyball) - two in Spanish - that are fun, attractive and educational. These non-violent books subliminally teach children how to better understand the handling of bullies. This bully series is aimed toward children who are just beginning to interact with sport teams, coaches, fans and players. These stories will serve as an educational tool as the characters play out real life situations and learn how to cope and handle them. Also it serves as an excellent means for an adult to start a conversation with a child about bullies, sportsmanship, family, moral values, good behavior, playing fair and most important - just having fun. Each book contains 32 illustrated pages that feature LuckySports characters (some helpful, some not) that are given a second chance in life as sport cartoon characters in a magical world of SportsLand, where sport is KING and playing is FUN. Children will experience all the ACTION, FUN and ADVENTURE of SportsLand. What is Adventures in SportsLand? Adventures in SportsLand's Bully Series is a collection of sports stories that teach children - (who are just beginning to interact with sports teams, coaches, fans and players) - about sports, along with good behavior, confidence building, playing fair and most important... just having fun. These books will help children (adults too ) to better understand how to handle bullies. Bullies in school, sports and playground are timely issues. Bully influence can impact and shape young children's future views of life.

Tips, Techniques, and Best Practices for Scholastic / Collegiate Basketball Officials. Topics include: Personal & Partner Pregame Pointers, Sanctity of the Locker Room, Referee in Small Bites, Striving for Excellence, Freedom of Movement and Setting the Tone, Why Do Officials Miss Plays?, Going by the Book, Game Awareness, Above the Ring Rulings, Leading From the Lead, On The Trail and in the Center, SDF: Start -- Develop - Finish, Shot Blocking --What To Look For Fouls on Rebounds, R S B Q -- Rhythm, Speed, Balance, Quickness, Match Ups WIF -- Windup, Impact and Follow Through, Hand Checks, Body Language & Signals, Variation of Whistles, Preparing for the Final Moments, What's Your Officiating Personality?, Personalities and Officiating Experience.

Is there anyone who's been to an NBA game lately that hasn't felt ripped-off? Griping about the cost of tickets has become as routine as the opening tip-off. And it's no wonder; while America confronts a continuously bumpy economy, the Lakers, Knicks, and even the woeful Hornets peddle seats at hundreds - sometimes even thousands - of dollars, pricing out the majority of their fans. But just outside their glistening arenas, on the city pavements and internet classifieds, lurks a dirty little secret: Good tickets can be had for pennies on the dollar...if you know how to play the system. For one frugal fan, that's when the adventure begins. With years of professional experience as a value-conscious investor and years of semi-professional experience as a sports-obsessed haggler, Motez Bishara sets off on a madcap thirty-one game, cross continental quest to buy the best NBA tickets at the lowest possible prices. From Miami to Portland, hilarious anecdotes and insightful interviews combine to uncover the rapidly evolving ticketing industry. By maximizing those trends, Beating the NBA empowers fans to achieve the most elusive victory in all of sports: bagging a great deal.