Between 1972 and 1974, the Mighty Macs of Immaculata College -- a small Catholic women's school outside Philadelphia -- made history by winning the first three women's national college basketball championships ever played. A true Cinderella team, this unlikely fifteenth-seeded squad triumphed against enormous odds and four powerhouse state teams to secure the championship title and capture the imaginations of fans and sportswriters across the country. But while they were making a significant contribution to legitimizing women's sports in America, the Mighty Macs were also challenging the traditional roles and obligations that circumscribed their Catholic schoolgirl lives. In this vivid account of Immaculata basketball, Julie Byrne goes beyond the fame to explore these young women's unusual lives, their rare opportunities and pleasures, their religious culture, and the broader ideas of womanhood they inspired and helped redefine.

"Stuff Good Players Should Know" may very well be the best book ever written for basketball players. It is conversational and easy to understand, yet filled with subtle insights into the game of basketball. "Stuff" is page after page of creative concepts, common sense, and special tips that cannot be found anywhere else. "Stuff" is like having a coach right beside you, in your room, discussing the fine points of the game. Basketball fans will enjoy it, but players shouldn't be without it.

In Young, Black, Rich, and Famous, Todd Boyd chronicles how basketball and hip hop have gone from being reviled by the American mainstream in the 1970s to being embraced and imitated globally today. For young black men, he argues, they represent a new version of the American dream, one embodying the hopes and desires of those excluded from the original version.  Shedding light on both perception and reality, Boyd shows that the NBA has been at the forefront of recognizing and incorporating cultural shifts—from the initial image of 1970s basketball players as overpaid black drug addicts, to Michael Jordan’s spectacular rise as a universally admired icon, to the 1990s, when the hip hop aesthetic (for example, Allen Iverson’s cornrows, multiple tattoos, and defiant, in-your-face attitude) appeared on the basketball court. Hip hop lyrics, with their emphasis on “keepin’ it real� and marked by a colossal indifference to mainstream taste, became an equally powerful influence on young black men. These two influences have created a brand-new, brand-name generation that refuses to assimilate but is nonetheless an important part of mainstream American culture. This Bison Books edition includes a new introduction by the author.

A complete basketball guide and training book that'll upgrade your b-ball game to a higher level. Learn the secrets of ball handling techniques, shooting techniques, passing, defense, rebounding and much more. Your game is guaranteed to go from a D- to a A+ within a couple of months. Its easy and its fun.

National bestseller reveals the man behind eight NBA championships

"A must for any serious student of basketball."
--Gary Dretzka, "Chicago Tribune

"Mindgames follows the journey of Phil Jackson to the top of basketball's coaching hierarchy, a rise that took him from failure and obscurity in the CBA to eight championship rings in the NBA. Along the way he turned multimillionaire players on to meditation, transformed the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls from a one-man show into a five-man team of domination, and, after battling with Bulls management, ended one dynasty to start another on the West Coast.

Sportswriter Roland Lazenby, author of the bestselling "Blood on the Horns and "Mad Game, reveals the fascinating elements of Jackson's life and mental approach to coaching that have made followers of his players but also have made him--perhaps not surprisingly--unpredictable and sometimes unpopular to outsiders. It is also a detailed basketball story, with entertaining accounts from Jackson's years with the New York Knicks under the legendary Red Holzman to his remarkable eight championships coaching first the Chicago Bulls and then the Los Angeles Lakers. This paperback edition of "Mindgames includes a new chapter on the 2000-2001 season, in which Jackson and the Lakers overcame the perils of success and team-breaking player infighting to capture their second consecutive NBA title.

In "Mindgames, Lazenby compellingly portrays a man with a unique determination to control the competitive environment he inhabits. A clear picture of the Jackson mystique emerges: philosopher, teacher, manipulator, counselor, psychologist, shaman, champion, master of mind games.

When James Naismith invented the game of basketball in 1891, he couldn't have imagined the soaring popularity and how inventive the game continues to be. Played on all continents and just about every country on earth, "hoops" provides a ton of athleticism and excitement to players, coaches and fans alike. With this third book from best-selling author Adam E. Murray, you will find some of the most memorable words ever spoken about the game. In "129 Greatest Basketball Quotes from the Game's Most Famous People," you will some pure gems you are not soon to forget. From world class athletes like Lebron James and Michael Jordan to coaches like Phil Jackson and John Wooden to celebrities like Zac Effron and Ashley Judd, to writers such as Jim Murray and Dave Barry, you will be taking a deep dive into a vast pool of basketball's greatest messages from this hand-picked collection. In it, you'll learn: ---What Shaq believes was the reasons for his 40% free throw percentage... ---Who Michael Jordan's true heroes of his life are (Hint: NOT athletes) ---What Charles Barkley would have caused had he not played basketball ---What Ice Cube's going to buried with (Yes, it has to do with hoops) Plus 125 other brilliantly entertaining quotes from players, coaches and celebrities. Love the game of basketball? You're gonna love "Basketball: 129 Greatest Basketball Quotes from the Game's Most Famous People." Here's to putting more hoops into your life

Teams play like they practice. Even in ideal circumstances time for practice is limited. Coaches need to make the most of available practice time. Better Basketball Practices contains valuable information in the areas of: * Overriding Purpose * Planning for optimum learning during practice * Planning to plan practice * Setting the tone for practice * Creating organized, efficient and productive practices * Building intensity in practice * Planning for special situations * Planning for late season practice * Ideas about quality practices * Common coaching mistakes in planning practice Includes 34 simple drills designed to teach essential fundamentals of the game. Complete with 74 diagrams and descriptions of each drill and possible variations. Learn from a veteran head coach with over 460 career varsity wins and 8 Coach of the Year awards. Build a better team and a better basketball program by planning, organizing and conducting better basketball practices.

Cowboy Up As the dark clouds of World War II were looming on the horizon, an American original named Kenny Sailors was capturing the attention of the country and leading the University of Wyoming basketball program on an astonishing run to the NCAA championship. Sailors, pioneer of the modern jump shot, took New York's Madison Square Garden by storm while leading the Cowboys to a national championship. Before the confetti was cleaned up, the All-American was off to war. The Wyoming treasure would return to campus in Laramie and later became one of the NBA's early stars. Cowboy Up weaves the brilliant tapestry of Wyoming's rich hoops history -- from the program's original championship team of the 1930s to high-soaring Flynn Robinson and the dazzling Fennis Dembo -- around Sailors' remarkable story. If you love basketball history, then you need to get acquainted with Sailors and the golden age of the Cowboys.

In the spring of 1968, the Omaha Central High School basketball team made history with its first all-black starting lineup. Their nickname, the Rhythm Boys, captured who they were and what they did on the court. Led by star center Dwaine Dillard, the Rhythm Boys were a shoo-in to win the state championship. But something happened on their way to glory. In early March, segregationist George Wallace, in a third-party presidential bid, made a campaign stop in Omaha. By the time he left town, Dillard was in jail, his coach was caught between angry political factions, and the city teetered on the edge of racial violence. So began the Nebraska state high school basketball tournament the next day, caught in the vise of history. "The Rhythm Boys of Omaha Central" tells a true story about high school basketball, black awakening and rebellion, and innocence lost in a watershed year. The drama of civil rights in 1968 plays out in this riveting social history of sports, politics, race, and popular culture in the American heartland.

On a scorching hot day in July 1936, thousands of people cheered as the U.S. Olympic teams boarded the S.S. Manhattan, bound for Berlin. Among the athletes were the 14 players representing the first-ever U.S. Olympic basketball team. As thousands of supporters waved American flags on the docks, it was easy to miss the one courageous man holding a BOYCOTT NAZI GERMANY sign. But it was too late for a boycott now; the ship had already left the harbour. 1936 was a turbulent time in world history. Adolf Hitler had gained power in Germany three years earlier. Jewish people and political opponents of the Nazis were the targets of vicious mistreatment, yet were unaware of the horrors that awaited them in the coming years. But the Olympians on board the S.S. Manhattan and other international visitors wouldn't see any signs of trouble in Berlin. Streets were swept, storefronts were painted, and every German citizen greeted them with a smile. Like a movie set, it was all just a facade, meant to distract from the terrible things happening behind the scenes. This is the incredible true story of basketball, from its invention by James Naismith in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1891, to the sport's Olympic debut in Berlin and the eclectic mix of people, events and propaganda on both sides of the Atlantic that made it all possible. Includes photos throughout, a Who's-Who of the 1936 Olympics, bibliography, and index

The Butler Way opens with a discussion of the Butler Way. Barry Collier, a former Butler player, was hired as coach in 1989 and slowly rebuilt a program that has declined since the days of Tony Hinkle. Collier emphasized the Butler way which featured team play. Fans will also be pleased to read about the famed Hinkle Fieldhouse, the greatest coaches, teams, players, and great moments in the storied history of Butler basketball.

Sports Illustrated's chief NBA writer, Jack McCallum, only planned to spend the preseason with the Phoenix Suns as an "assistant coach" -- and then write a story about his experiences. Instead, he stayed on with the Suns throughout their exciting and controversial 2005-2006 season. Gaining access to everything from locker-room chats with superstar point guard Steve Nash, to coaches' meetings with maverick coach Mike D'Antoni, McCallum learned what makes this wildly popular, innovative, and international assemblage of talented players and brilliant coaches tick -- making Seven Seconds or Less an all-access look at one of the greatest shows in sports.

New York Times Bestseller Fame. Sex. Pain. Drugs. Death. Booze. Money. Addiction. Redemption. Dizzying heights. Rock-bottom depths. Desperation and elation-sometimes in the same hour. Not to mention power . . . and the struggle for it. The world knows Lamar Odom as a two-time NBA world champion who rocketed to uncharted heights of fame thanks to being a member of both the storied Los Angeles Lakers and the ubiquitous Kardashian empire. But who is Lamar, really? Fans have long praised his accessibility and genuine everyman quality-he is a blinding talent who has suffered a series of heartaches, setback, and loss. But until now, his most candid moments have remained behind closed doors . . . sometimes face-down on the floor. In Darkness to Light, Lamar gives readers an intimate look into his life like never before. His exclusive and revealing memoir recounts the highs and lows of fame and his struggle with his demons along the way to self-discovery and redemption. From the pain of his unraveled marriage to Khloe Kardashian to the harmful vices he used to cope-and the near-death experience that made him rethink everything about his life-this is Lamar as you have never before seen him. Lamar brings basketball fans directly into the action of a game during the Lakers championship years. He shares his personal account of the lifelong passion that started as one shining light in a childhood marked by loss and led to his international fame as one of the most extraordinary athletes of all time. In this profoundly honest book, Lamar invites you to walk with him through the good times and bad, while looking ahead to a brighter future.

Charles Barkley has never been shy about expressing his opinions. Michael Jordan once said that we all want to say the things that Barkley says, but we don’t dare. But even die-hard followers of the all-time NBA great, the star of TNT’s Inside the NBA and CNN’s TalkBack Live, will be astonished by just how candid and provocative he is in this book—and just how big his ambitions are. Though he addresses weighty issues with a light touch and prefers to stir people to think by making them laugh, there’s nothing Charles Barkley shies away from here—not race, not class, not big money, not scandal, not politics, not personalities, nothing. “Early on,” says Washington Post columnist and ESPN talk show host Michael Wilbon in his Introduction, “Barkley made his peace with mixing it up, and decided the consequences were very much worth it to him. And that makes him as radically different in these modern celebrity times as a 6-foot-4-inch power forward.”

If there’s one thing Charles Barkley knows, it’s the crying need for honest, open discussion in this country—the more uncomfortable the subject, the more necessary the dialogue. And if the discussion leader can be as wise, irreverent, (occasionally) profane and (consistently) funny as Charles Barkley, so much the better. Many people are going to be shocked and scandalized by I May Be Wrong but I Doubt It, but many more will stand up and cheer. Like Molly Ivins or Bill O’Reilly, Charles Barkley is utterly his own thinker, and everything he says comes from deep reflection. One way or another, if more blood hasn’t reached your brain by the time you’ve finished this book, maybe you’ve been embalmed.


From the Hardcover edition.

From The Breaks of the Game to Summer of '49, David Halberstam has brought the perspective of a great historian, the inside knowledge of a dogged sportswriter, and the love of a fan to bear on some of the most mythic players and teams in the annals of American sport. With Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls he has given himself his greatest challenge and produced his greatest triumph. In Playing for Keeps, David Halberstam takes the first full measure of Michael Jordan's epic career, one of the great American stories of our time. A narrative of astonishing power and human drama, brimming with revealing anecdotes and penetrating insights, the book chronicles the forces in Jordan's life that have shaped him into history's greatest basketball player and the larger forces that have converged to make him the most famous living human being in the world.

Like millions who love college basketball, John Feinstein was first drawn to the game because of its intensity, speed, and intelligence. And like many, he now feels that the vast sums of money involved in NCAA basketball—TV money, sponsorship money, alumnae money—have turned college basketball into a division of the NBA, rather than the beloved amateur sport it was in the past.

Feinstein went in search of college basketball played with the passion and integrity it once inspired. He found it in a place called the Patriot League. The Patriot League is one of the NCAA's smallest Division I conferences, a group of schools that includes Colgate, Holy Cross, Lafayette, Lehigh, Bucknell, Army, and Navy. No one leaves these schools early to join the NBA. Few have athletic scholarships. The players ride on team buses the day of the game—and back to campus the same night. No private planes or deluxe hotels. They carry full course loads of real college classes, without the lavish support network provided at larger schools.

John Feinstein spent an unforgettable season with the players of the Patriot League, and in The Last Amateurs he tells their amazing stories. Every year, these players compete against top programs like North Carolina and Indiana. Every year, one team from the Patriot League enters the NCAA Tournament, joining into the national dream of a David-and-Goliath upset. And every year, virtually every senior in the Patriot League basketball program graduates from college—a success rate unparalleled in the richer conferences.

The Last Amateurs is John Feinstein at his brilliant best, capturing the passion of players for whom sports are neither pastime nor profession, but something more. For anyone who enjoys college basketball, this is an unforgettably moving and enlightening look inside the game at its purest and most intense.

For the countless basketball fans who were spellbound by the Los Angeles Lakers' 2003-2004 high-wire act, this book is a rare and phenomenal treat. In The Last Season, Lakers coach Phil Jackson draws on his trademark honesty and insight to tell the whole story of the season that proved to be the final ride of a truly great dynasty. From the signing of future Hall-of-Famers Karl Malone and Gary Payton to the Kobe Bryant rape case/media circus, this is a riveting tale of clashing egos, public feuds, contract disputes, and team meltdowns that only a coach, and a writer, of Jackson's candor, experience, and ability could tell. Full of tremendous human drama and offering lessons on coaching and on life, this is a book that no sports fan can possibly pass up.

The charismatic basketball coach at the University of Connecticut reveals the victorious secrets behind his team's breathtaking journey to the 1999 NCAA Division I National Championship--and along the way shares his philosophy for winning.
It was one of those games that basketball fans will talk about for years. Here was the seemingly unbeatable Duke Blue Devils pitted against the first-time finalist Connecticut Huskies, and at stake was the ultimate crown: the National Championship. On that unforgettable night in St. Petersburg, Jim Calhoun and his amazing team wrote a new chapter in the storied history of the UConn Huskies program, putting the perfect exclamation point on a season to remember.
But behind the high drama that fateful night in Florida lay an even more fascinating tale of one man's rise to college basketball preeminence. In Dare to Dream, the Huskies iron-willed coach, Jim Calhoun, for the first time shares his own story about his inspirational family and the tragedies they faced; about his early successful years at Northeastern, where he began to compile the first half of a unique double (he's the only coach to have won at least 250 games at two different Division I schools); and about his assumption of ultimate responsibility at the sleeping giant in Storrs, Connecticut.
Along the way, Jim Calhoun paints fascinating portraits of the players who have done battle for him, and of the unsung heroes behind the scenes whose hard work and dedication to Connecticut basketball have kept the dream alive. In just thirteen years, Jim Calhoun has turned the Huskies into one of the leading basketball programs in the country, and in this moving, funny, and inspiring book, he takes us behind the scenes to show us just how he did it.

"From the Hardcover edition."

In his first memoir written especially for young readers, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar will focus on his relationships with several important coaches in his life - including his father, his high-school coach and Coach Wooden - as he tells the story of his life and career. At one time, Lew Alcindor was just another kid from New York City with all the usual problems: He struggled with fitting in, with pleasing a strict father, and with overcoming shyness that made him feel socially awkward. But with a talent for basketball, and an unmatched team of supporters, Lew Alcindor was able to transform and to become Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. From a childhood made difficult by racism and prejudice to a record-smashing career on the basketball court as an adult, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's life was packed with "coaches" who taught him right from wrong and led him on the path to greatness. His parents, coaches Jack Donahue and John Wooden, Muhammad Ali, Bruce Lee, and many others played important roles in Abdul-Jabbar's life and sparked him to become an activist for social change and advancement. The inspiration from those around him, and his drive to find his own path in life, are highlighted in this personal and awe-inspiriting journey.

The world listens when Michael Jordan speaks

Here is just a sample of what you’ll find inside:

"People can fly. Some fly higher than others, that’s all."

"You can practice shooting eight hours a day, but if your technique is wrong, then all you become is very good at shooting the wrong way. Get the fundamentals down and the level of everything you do will rise."

"My heroes were my parents. I can’t see having anyone else as my heroes."

"Confidence allows you to progress in something you’re attempting to accomplish, whether it’s playing basketball or baseball, or whether it’s trying to succeed in business."

"This is going to sound wild–but my ultimate dream is to get a potbelly."

(This book has not been prepared, approved, licensed, or endorsed by Michael Jordan.)

Six years after Michael Jordan won his last NBA championship, American basketball hit rock bottom.  The perception of NBA players reached an all-time low.  Team USA lost three times, disgracing the nation at the 2004 Olympics.   With great historical sweep, bringing in the voices of all-time greats like Jordan, Bill Russell, Julius Erving and Jerry West, the book will show how American basketball bottomed out.  It will chart the path of Jerry Colangelo, a great sportsman who set out to change the stained image of USA Basketball.  And with great insight and fresh detail, it will show how two of the best players in history – Kobe Bryant and LeBron James – spun their own tails of redemption in while winning gold medals.

'Lakers Glory' captures the enormity of Minneapolis-Los Angeles Lakers basketball: the great players, teams, magical moments, riveting rivalries, an all-time Lakers team (imagine picking a center for that group!), rosters of all fifteen championship squads, and more, as told by Lakers players, managers, coaches, opponents, fans, and the media.