Mike O'Malley was looking forward to the upcoming year. The new college graduate had decided to take a year off before pursuing his dream of becoming a high school history teacher. Mike wanted to spend some quality time with his father before he had to move away to find a teaching position. What Mike would find in a few short months was a new home, a new job, and the love of his life. Along the way his integrity and character would be tested. He would be disappointed by people he trusted. He would be personally attacked and maligned. Ultimately his faith in the decency of people would be restored. Join the rookie coach on his journey through Life and Basketball.

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.

A riveting portrait of two legendary players whose fierce rivalry came to define one of the most exciting periods of professional basketball

In Celtic green was Larry Bird, the hick from French Lick with laser-beam focus, relentless determination, and a deadly jump shot--a player who demanded excellence from everyone around him and whose caustic wit left opponents quaking in their high-tops. Magic Johnson was Mr. Showtime: young, indomitable, a magnetic personality with all the right moves, he was a pied piper in purple and gold and he burned with an inextinguishable desire to win. Their uncommonly competitive relationship came to symbolize the most thrilling rivalry in the NBA--East vs. West, physical vs. finesse, old school vs. Showtime, even white vs. black. Each pushed the other to greatness, and together Bird and Johnson collected eight NBA Championships and six MVP awards, helping to save a floundering NBA. "When the Game Was Ours" chronicles an electric era in sports history, revealing for the first time the inner workings of two players dead set on besting each other.