22 Best Basketball Books
Basketball is a popular category for many book lovers. Our team at Speechify has curated a list of the top Basketball audiobooks everyone must read.
See the top 22 Basketball audiobooks below.
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Forged by Fire
- By: Sharon M. Draper
- Narrator: Sharon M. Draper
- Length: 3 hours 44 minutes
- Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
- Publish date: October 10, 2008
- Language: English
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4.36(8413 ratings)
4.36(8413 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0010.99 USDGerald is only three years old when his mama leaves him alone in the house while she visits her drug dealer. He finds the hot thing she uses to light her cigarettes and in no time, the house is ablaze. Mama is sent to prison, and Gerald goes to liveGerald is only three years old when his mama leaves him alone in the house while she visits her drug dealer. He finds the hot thing she uses to light her cigarettes and in no time, the house is ablaze. Mama is sent to prison, and Gerald goes to live with his Aunt Queen. When he turns nine, Gerald unhappily learns that his mama is being released from jail and wants her son back. Suddenly, he must switch from a loving home to a household dominated by his abusive stepfather. When Gerald learns a terrible secret about his stepfather and the half-sister he has grown to love, he’ll have to find the courage to do what’s right. Author Sharon M. Draper, a National Teacher of the Year Award winner, tackles tough issues like physical and sexual child abuse. Thomas Penny’s empathetic narration makes Forged by Fire and unforgettable listening experience.
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Living Out Loud
- By: Craig Sager
- Narrator: Holter Graham
- Length: 6 hours 31 minutes
- Publisher: Macmillan Audio
- Publish date: November 08, 2016
- Language: English
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4.29(269 ratings)
4.29(269 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0019.99 USDNew York Times Bestseller A moving and inspiring memoir from the beloved sports broadcaster Craig Sager on his battle with leukemia and how he maintained a positive outlook on life in face of incredible circumstances.This program is read by HolterNew York Times Bestseller
A moving and inspiring memoir from the beloved sports broadcaster Craig Sager on his battle with leukemia and how he maintained a positive outlook on life in face of incredible circumstances.
This program is read by Holter Graham and Craig Sager II.
“Time is something that cannot be bought, it cannot be wagered with God, and it is not in endless supply. Time is simply how you live your life.” –Craig SagerThanks to an eccentric wardrobe filled with brightly colored suits and a love of sports that knows no bounds, Craig Sager is one of the most beloved and recognizable broadcasters on television. So when the sports world learned that he was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) there was an outpouring of love and support from everyone who was inspired by his colorful life and his fearless decision to continue doing the job he loved–despite being told that he would have only three-to-six months to live. Sager has undergone three stem cell transplants–with his son as the donor for two of them–and more than twenty chemotherapy cycles since his diagnosis.
In Living Out Loud, Craig Sager shares incredible stories from his remarkable career and chronicles his heroic battle. Whether he’s sprinting across Wrigley Field mid-game as a college student with cops in pursuit, chasing down Hank Aaron on the field for an interview after Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s home run record, running with the bulls in Pamplona, or hunkering down to face the daunting physical challenges of fighting leukemia, Craig Sager is always ready to defy expectations, embrace life, and live it to the fullest.
Including a foreword by Charles Barkley and with unique insight and narration from his son Craig Sager II, this entertaining, honest, and introspective account of a life lived in sports reveals the enduring lessons Sager has learned throughout his career and reminds you that no matter what life throws at you, to always look at the bright side.
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Wish It Lasted Forever
- By: Dan Shaughnessy
- Narrator: Dan Shaughnessy
- Length: 6 hours 51 minutes
- Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
- Publish date: January 01, 2021
- Language: English
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4.24(488 ratings)
4.24(488 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0017.99 USDFrom award-winning Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy, an “entertaining” (The Wall Street Journal) and nostalgia-filled retelling of the 1980s Boston Celtics’ glory years, which featured the sublime play of NBA legend LarryFrom award-winning Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy, an “entertaining” (The Wall Street Journal) and nostalgia-filled retelling of the 1980s Boston Celtics’ glory years, which featured the sublime play of NBA legend Larry Bird.
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Today the NBA is a vast global franchise–a billion-dollar industry seen by millions of fans in the United States and abroad. But it wasn’t always this successful. Before primetime ESPN coverage, lucrative branding deals like Air Jordans, and $40 million annual player salaries, there was the NBA of the 1970s and 1980s–when basketball was still an up-and-coming sport featuring old school beat reporters and players who wore Converse All-Stars.
Enter Dan Shaughnessy, then the beat reporter for The Boston Globe who covered the Boston Celtics every day from 1982 to 1986. It was a time when reporters travelled with professional teams–flying the same commercial airlines, riding the same buses, and staying in the same hotels. Shaughnessy knew the athletes as real people, losing free throw bets to Larry Bird, being gifted cheap cigars by the iconic coach Red Auerbach, and having his one-year-old daughter Sarah passed from player to player on a flight from Logan to Detroit Metro.
Drawing on unprecedented access and personal experiences that would not be possible for any reporter today, Shaughnessy takes us inside the legendary Larry Bird-led Celtics teams, capturing the camaraderie as they dominated the NBA. Fans can witness the cockiness of Larry Bird (who once walked into an All-Star Weekend locker room, announced that he was going to win the three-point contest, and did); the ageless athleticism of Robert Parish; the shooting skills of Kevin McHale; the fierce, self-sacrificing play of Bill Walton; and the playful humor of players like Danny Ainge, Cedric “Cornbread” Maxwell, and M.L. Carr.
For any fan who longs to return–for just a few hours–to those magical years when the Boston Garden rocked and the winner’s circle was mostly colored Boston Green, Wish It Lasted Forever is a masterful tribute to “the Celtics from 1982-1986 [that] is so good even fervent Celtics haters will have trouble putting it down” (New York Post). -
Epic Athletes: Stephen Curry
- By: Dan Wetzel
- Narrator: Eric Owusu
- Length: 2 hours 28 minutes
- Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
- Publish date: January 01, 2022
- Language: English
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4.24(39 ratings)
4.24(39 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0014.95 USDWhen you think of Stephen Curry, one word comes to mind: greatness. From shooting three-pointers with laser precision to his clutch ability to hit buzzer-beaters time and again, he has established himself as one of the best players in proWhen you think of Stephen Curry, one word comes to mind: greatness. From shooting three-pointers with laser precision to his clutch ability to hit buzzer-beaters time and again, he has established himself as one of the best players in pro basketball.
But greatness was never a guarantee for Steph. The son of a talented NBA player, he dreamed of one day playing professionally just like his dad. Yet Steph, who was always smaller and weaker than the competition, was told over and over that he would never be talented enough to be a college star or NBA player–let alone the MVP of the entire league. Through tenacity and hard work, he proved them all wrong and went on to dismantle the record books.
With the high energy of a TV commentator, this engaging biography tells the story of an NBA All-Star and the path he took to achieve his dreams.
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The Playbook
- By: Kwame Alexander
- Narrator: Kwame Alexander
- Length: 1 hours 7 minutes
- Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
- Publish date: February 14, 2017
- Language: English
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4.23(2619 ratings)
4.23(2619 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.008.99 USDA companion book to his bestselling and Newbery winning book The Crossover, The Playbook is Kwame Alexander’s dynamic, sports-infused guide to life! You gotta know the rules to play the game. Ball is life. Take it to the hoop. Soar. What canA companion book to his bestselling and Newbery winning book The Crossover, The Playbook is Kwame Alexander’s dynamic, sports-infused guide to life! You gotta know the rules to play the game. Ball is life. Take it to the hoop. Soar. What can we imagine for ourselves? What if we were the star players, moving and grooving through the game of life? What if we had our own rules of the game to help us get what we want, what we aspire to, what will enrich our lives? The Playbook is intended to provide inspiration for kids ages ten and up to help them succeed on and off the court. Each rule contains wisdom from inspiring athletes and role models such as Nelson Mandela, Serena Williams, LeBron James, Carli Lloyd, Steph Curry and Michelle Obama. Kwame Alexander also provides his own words of inspiration and uplift, as he shares his stories of overcoming obstacles and winning games.
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Falling Short
- By: Ernesto Cisneros
- Narrator: Timothy Andres Pabon
- Length: 5 hours 11 minutes
- Publisher: Quill Tree Books
- Publish date: March 15, 2022
- Language: English
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4.23(713 ratings)
4.23(713 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0021.99 USDErnesto Cisneros, Pura Belpre Award-winning author of Efren Divided, is back with a hilarious and heartfelt novel about two best friends who must rely on each other in unexpected ways. A great next pick for readers who loved Ghost by Jason ReynoldsErnesto Cisneros, Pura Belpre Award-winning author of Efren Divided, is back with a hilarious and heartfelt novel about two best friends who must rely on each other in unexpected ways. A great next pick for readers who loved Ghost by Jason Reynolds or The First Rule of Punk by Celia C. Perez.
Isaac and Marco already know sixth grade is going to change their lives. But it won’t change things at home–not without each other’s help.
This year, star basketball player Isaac plans on finally keeping up with his schoolwork. Better grades will surely stop Isaac’s parents from arguing all the time. Meanwhile, straight-A Marco vows on finally winning his father’s approval by earning a spot on the school’s basketball team.
But will their friendship and support for each other be enough to keep the two boys from falling short?
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Play Their Hearts Out
- By: George Dohrmann
- Narrator: Emily Rose Speer
- Length: 15 hours 7 minutes
- Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
- Publish date: January 01, 2010
- Language: English
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4.22(4186 ratings)
4.22(4186 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0024.95 USDEight years of unfettered access and a keen sense of a story’s deepest truths allow Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist George Dohrmann to take readers inside the machine that produces America’s basketball stars. Drawing on eight years ofEight years of unfettered access and a keen sense of a story’s deepest truths allow Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist George Dohrmann to take readers inside the machine that produces America’s basketball stars. Drawing on eight years of reporting and telling the very specific tale of one talented young recruit, his coach, and his teammates, Dohrmann immerses listeners in the world of grassroots basketball, where men hunt for future NBA stars and young boys and their parents navigate a tumultuous course in pursuit of basketball glory.
At the book’s heart are the personal stories of two compelling figures: Joe Keller, an ambitious coach with a master plan to find and promote “the next LeBron,” and Demetrius Walker, a fatherless latchkey kid who falls under Keller’s sway and struggles to live up to unrealistic expectations. In Play Their Hearts Out, Dohrmann presents a thoroughly compelling narrative, exposing the gritty reality beneath so many dreams of fame and glory.
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The Sense of Wonder
- By: Matthew Salesses
- Narrator: Jee Young Han
- Length: 6 hours 9 minutes
- Publisher: Hachette Audio
- Publish date: January 17, 2023
- Language: English
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4.14(66 ratings)
4.14(66 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0024.99 USDFrom the author of PEN/Faulkner finalist Disappear Doppelganger Disappear and Craft in the Real World comes a searing masterwork on the ways Asian Americans navigate the thorny worlds of sports and entertainment when everything is stacked againstFrom the author of PEN/Faulkner finalist Disappear Doppelganger Disappear and Craft in the Real World comes a searing masterwork on the ways Asian Americans navigate the thorny worlds of sports and entertainment when everything is stacked against them.
An Asian American basketball star walks into a gym. No one recognizes him, but everyone stares anyway. It is the start of a joke but what is the punchline? When Won Lee, the first Asian American in the NBA, stuns the world in a seven-game winning streak, the global media audience dubs it “The Wonder”–much to Won’s chagrin. Meanwhile, Won struggles to get attention from his coach, his peers, his fans, and most importantly, his hero, Powerball!, who also happens to be Won’s teammate and the captain. Covering it all is sportswriter Robert Sung, who writes about Won’s stardom while grappling with his own missed hoops opportunities as well as his place as an Asian American in media. And to witness it all is Carrie Kang, a big studio producer, who juggles a newfound relationship with Won while attempting to bring K-drama to an industry not known to embrace anything new or different.
The Sense of Wonder follows Won and Carrie as they chronicle the human and professional tensions exacerbated by injustices and fight to be seen and heard on some of the world’s largest stages. An incredibly funny and heart-rending dive into race and our “collective imagination that lays bare our limitations before blasting joyfully past them” (Catherine Chung). This is the work of a gifted storyteller at the top of his game. ... Read more -
Hang Time
- By: Elgin Baylor
- Narrator: Elgin Baylor
- Length: 12 hours 49 minutes
- Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
- Publish date: April 10, 2018
- Language: English
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4.11(123 ratings)
4.11(123 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0024.99 USDElgin Baylor’s memoir of an epic all-star career in the NBA-during which he transformed basketball from a horizontal game to a vertical one-and his fights against racism during his career as a player and as general manager of the LA ClippersElgin Baylor’s memoir of an epic all-star career in the NBA-during which he transformed basketball from a horizontal game to a vertical one-and his fights against racism during his career as a player and as general manager of the LA Clippers under the infamous Donald Sterling People think of Elgin Baylor as one of the greatest basketball players in the history of the game-and one of the NBA’s first black superstars-but the full extent of his legacy stretches beyond his spectacular, game-changing jump shots and dunks. With startling symmetry, Baylor recounts his story: flying back and forth between the U.S. Army and the Lakers, his time as a central figure in the great Celtics-Lakers rivalry and how he helped break down color barriers in the sport, his 1964 All-Star game boycott, his early years as an executive for the New Orleans Jazz, and twenty-two years as general manager for the notorious L.A. Clippers and Donald Sterling, spent fighting to draft and sign young, black phenoms-only to be hamstrung by his boss at every turn. No one has seen the league change, and has worked to bring change, more than Baylor. Year after year, he continued to fight and persevere against racism. At the beginning of his career, he was forced to stay in separate hotel rooms. From those days to today’s superstardom, he has had a front-row view of the game’s elevation to one of America’s favorite sports. For the first time, Elgin Baylor tells his full story. He’s played with the legends, lived with them, and knows more about the NBA than anyone living, and is finally ready to set the record straight.
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The Rise: Kobe Bryant and the Pursuit of Immortality
- By: Mike Sielski
- Narrator: Landon Woodson
- Length: 13 hours 29 minutes
- Publisher: Macmillan Audio
- Publish date: January 11, 2022
- Language: English
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4.1(421 ratings)
4.1(421 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0026.99 USDIncludes a bonus episode from the podcast I Am Kobe. The inside look at one of the most captivating and consequential figures in our culture–with never-before-heard interviews. Kobe Bryant’s death in January 2020 did more than rattle theIncludes a bonus episode from the podcast I Am Kobe.
The inside look at one of the most captivating and consequential figures in our culture–with never-before-heard interviews.
Kobe Bryant’s death in January 2020 did more than rattle the worlds of sports and celebrity. The tragedy of that helicopter crash, which also took the life of his daughter Gianna, unveiled the full breadth and depth of his influence on our culture, and by tracing and telling the oft-forgotten and lesser-known story of his early life, The Rise promises to provide an insight into Kobe that no other analysis has.
In The Rise, listeners will travel from the neighborhood streets of Southwest Philadelphia–where Kobe’s father, Joe, became a local basketball standout–to the Bryant family’s isolation in Italy, where Kobe spent his formative years, to the leafy suburbs of Lower Merion, where Kobe’s legend was born. The story will trace his career and life at Lower Merion–he led the Aces to the 1995-96 Pennsylvania state championship, a dramatic underdog run for a team with just one star player–and the run-up to the 1996 NBA draft, where Kobe’s dream of playing pro basketball culminated in his acquisition by the Los Angeles Lakers.
In researching and writing The Rise, Mike Sielski had a terrific advantage over other writers who have attempted to chronicle Kobe’s life: access to a series of never-before-released interviews with him during his senior season and early days in the NBA. For a quarter century, these tapes and transcripts preserved Kobe’s thoughts, dreams, and goals from his teenage years, and they contained insights into and told stories about him that have never been revealed before.
This is more than a basketball audiobook. This is an exploration of the identity and making of an icon and the effect of his development on those around him–the essence of the man before he truly became a man.
A Macmillan Audio production from St. Martin’s Press
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Barkley
- By: Timothy Bella
- Narrator: Korey Jackson
- Length: 16 hours 46 minutes
- Publisher: Harlequin Audio
- Publish date: November 01, 2022
- Language: English
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4.1(104 ratings)
4.1(104 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0031.99 USD*A LitHub Most Anticipated Book of 2022* The definitive biography of Charles Barkley, exploring his early childhood, his storied NBA career, and his enduring legacy as a provocative voice in American pop culture He’s one of the most*A LitHub Most Anticipated Book of 2022*
The definitive biography of Charles Barkley, exploring his early childhood, his storied NBA career, and his enduring legacy as a provocative voice in American pop culture
He’s one of the most interesting American athletes in the past fifty years. Passionate, candid, iconoclastic, and gifted both on and off the court, Charles Barkley has made a lasting impact on not only the world of basketball but pop culture at large.
Yet few people know the real Charles. Raised by his mother and grandmother in Leeds, Alabama, he struggled in his early years to fit in until he found a sense of community and purpose in basketball. In the NBA he went toe-to-toe with the biggest legends in the game, from Magic to Michael to Hakeem to Shaq. But in the years since, he has become a bold agitator for social change, unafraid to grapple, often brashly, with even the thorniest of cultural issues facing our nation today.
Informed by over 370 original interviews and painstaking research, Timothy Bella’s Barkley is the most comprehensive biography to date of one of the most talked-about icons in the world of sports.
Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.
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The Gold Standard
- By: Mike Krzyzewski
- Length: 7 hours 11 minutes
- Publisher: Hachette Audio
- Publish date: April 06, 2009
- Language: English
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4.09(384 ratings)
4.09(384 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0014.98 USDHalf a book on basketball, half a book on management techniques, The Gold Standard captures Coach K’s personal style and approach to getting different (and sometimes difficult) people to work hard and succeed in reaching a commonHalf a book on basketball, half a book on management techniques, The Gold Standard captures Coach K’s personal style and approach to getting different (and sometimes difficult) people to work hard and succeed in reaching a common goal.... Read more
“In all forms of leadership, whether you are a coach, a CEO, or a parent, there are four words that, when said, can bring out the best in your team, your employees, and your family…I BELIEVE IN YOU. These four words can mean the difference between a fear of failure and the courage to try.”
In his previous bestselling books, Coach K has guided readers to success the way he has guided his teams at Duke University–with the power of his inspirational words and phenomenal leadership skills.
But that was with college kids. Now, Coach K has stepped up to take on an entirely new challenge: volunteering to coach the US Olympic Basketball team.
Comprised of some of the biggest NBA stars, Coach K had to work with huge egos and personal rivalries in order to create an American team that could win against the best competition in the world and restore Team USA to the gold standard of basketball.
This is more than a celebratory book–it’s Coach K’s first-hand account of how he dealt with such stars as Lebron James, Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony, and all the rest to buy into his “total team” play. -
Epic Athletes: LeBron James
- By: Dan Wetzel
- Narrator: Damany Jackson
- Length: 2 hours 42 minutes
- Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
- Publish date: January 01, 2022
- Language: English
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4.03(28 ratings)
4.03(28 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0014.95 USDEpic Athletes: LeBron James is an inspiring biography for young listeners of the best basketball player of the modern era from celebrated sports journalist Dan Wetzel!Whether you call him King James or simply LeBron, one thing is certain: LeBronEpic Athletes: LeBron James is an inspiring biography for young listeners of the best basketball player of the modern era from celebrated sports journalist Dan Wetzel!Whether you call him King James or simply LeBron, one thing is certain: LeBron James is the face of the NBA. At just eighteen, and facing sky-high expectations, LeBron headed straight from high school to the pros. Cool under pressure, he went on to shatter the record books and become the most popular athlete in America.
Yet nothing was ever handed to LeBron. As a kid, he had to move homes constantly, even separating from his mother for a time. But through all the adversity, he took his natural talent and combined it with hard work to set himself on a path to greatness. Filled with sports action, this exciting biography tells the story of a living NBA legend.
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Sacred Hoops
- By: Phil Jackson
- Narrator: Phil Jackson
- Length: 1 hours 52 minutes
- Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
- Publish date: January 01, 1995
- Language: English
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4.01(3914 ratings)
4.01(3914 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0010.95 USD“Not only is there more to life than basketball, there’s a lot more to basketball than basketball.” — Phil JacksonOne of the most successful coaches in NBA history, Chicago Bulls head coach Phil Jackson provides an inside“Not only is there more to life than basketball, there’s a lot more to basketball than basketball.” — Phil Jackson
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One of the most successful coaches in NBA history, Chicago Bulls head coach Phil Jackson provides an inside look at the higher wisdom of teamwork with Sacred Hoops — Jackson’s philosophy of mindful basketball and his lifelong quest to bring enlightenment to the competitive world of professional sports.
A new paradigm of leadership based on Eastern and Native American principles, Jackson’s approach flies in the face of the egoistic, winner-take-all attitude that has changed the face of American sports. Rather than winning through intimidation, Jackson — who describes himself as a Zen Christian — stresses awareness, compassion and most of all selfless team play. Filled with stories about Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Toni Kukoc and other members of the Bulls, Sacred Hoops reveals how Jackson directs his players to act with a clear mind; to respect the enemy and be aggressive without anger or violence; to live in the moment and stay calmly focused in the midst of chaos, so that the “me” becomes the servant of the “we.”
In Sacred Hoops, Jackson takes us inside the mind of the thinking man’s coach as he builds one of the greatest teams of all time. Not just for sports fans, this inspiring memoir is for anyone interested in the potential of the human spirit. -
The Black Fives
- By: Claude Johnson
- Length: 20 hours 49 minutes
- Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
- Publish date: May 24, 2022
- Language: English
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4(22 ratings)
4(22 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0029.99 USDA groundbreaking history of Black basketball African Americans were making moves in basketball generations before the rise of the NBA. Their pioneering efforts helped popularize the sport in big cities and small towns alike and shaped the game weA groundbreaking history of Black basketball
African Americans were making moves in basketball generations before the rise of the NBA. Their pioneering efforts helped popularize the sport in big cities and small towns alike and shaped the game we know and love today. From the
invention of the game in 1891 to the racial integration of all-White professional leagues in the 1950s, dozens of teams–then often called “fives”–of African American players were founded and flourished. This was a time of visionary
players, managers, and impresarios who blazed a trail, battled discrimination and marginalization, and created rich, meaningful events that strengthened their communities in the face of Jim Crow oppression.But this era, known as the Black Fives Era, has been forgotten, overlooked, unacknowledged, and squashed. It is barely known today. For more than two decades, Claude Johnson has made it his mission to change that. A fiercely
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committed advocate, Johnson has researched, preserved, exhibited, taught, and honored this important African American experience, unearthing what might have remained buried in an unmarked grave. The Black Fives is the result of his work, a
landmark narrative history that braids together the stories of these pioneers and rewrites our understanding of the true history of the game. -
From the Outside
- By: Ray Allen
- Narrator: JD Jackson
- Length: 7 hours 32 minutes
- Publisher: HarperAudio
- Publish date: March 27, 2018
- Language: English
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3.96(500 ratings)
3.96(500 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.004.99 USDThe record-holding two-time National Basketball Association champion reflects on his work ethic, his on-the-court friendships and rivalries, the great teams he’s played for, and what it takes to have a long and successful career in thisThe record-holding two-time National Basketball Association champion reflects on his work ethic, his on-the-court friendships and rivalries, the great teams he’s played for, and what it takes to have a long and successful career in this thoughtful, in-depth memoir.
Playing in the NBA for eighteen years, Ray Allen won championships with the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat and entered the record books as the original king of the three-point shot. Known as one of the hardest-working and highest-achieving players in NBA history, this most dedicated competitor was legendary for his sharp shooting. From the Outside, complete with a foreword by Spike Lee, is his story in his words: a no-holds-barred look at his life and career, filled with behind-the-scenes stories and surprising revelations about the game he has always cherished.
Allen talks openly about his fellow players, coaches, owners, and friends, including LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, and Kevin Garnett. He reveals how, as a kid growing up in a military family, he learned about responsibility and respect–the key to making those perfect free throws and critical three-point shots.
From the Outside is the portrait of a gifted athlete and a serious man with a strongly defined philosophy about the game and the right way it should be played–a philosophy that, at times, set him apart from colleagues and coaches, while inspiring so many others, and lead to the most pivotal shot of his career: the unforgettable 3-pointer in the final seconds of Game 6 of the 2013 NBA finals against the San Antonio Spurs. Throughout, Allen makes clear that success in basketball is as much about what happens off the court as on, that devotion and commitment are the true essence of the game–and of life itself.
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Boy21
- By: Matthew Quick
- Narrator: Ben Lukens
- Length: 5 hours 8 minutes
- Publisher: Hachette Audio
- Publish date: June 10, 2014
- Language: English
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3.96(6508 ratings)
3.96(6508 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0017.98 USDYou can lose yourself in repetition–quiet your thoughts; I learned the value of this at a very young age. Basketball has always been an escape for Finley. He lives in broken-down Bellmont, a town ruled by the Irish mob, drugs, violence, andYou can lose yourself in repetition–quiet your thoughts; I learned the value of this at a very young age.
Basketball has always been an escape for Finley. He lives in broken-down Bellmont, a town ruled by the Irish mob, drugs, violence, and racially charged rivalries. At home, his dad works nights, and Finley is left to take care of his disabled grandfather alone. He’s always dreamed of getting out someday, but until he can, putting on that number 21 jersey makes everything seem okay.
Russ has just moved to the neighborhood, and the life of this teen basketball phenom has been turned upside down by tragedy. Cut off from everyone he knows, he won’t pick up a basketball, but answers only to the name Boy21–taken from his former jersey number.
As their final year of high school brings these two boys together, a unique friendship may turn out to be the answer they both need.
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Brothers on Three
- By: Abe Streep
- Narrator: Shaun Taylor-Corbett
- Length: 10 hours 38 minutes
- Publisher: Macmillan Audio
- Publish date: September 07, 2021
- Language: English
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3.89(446 ratings)
3.89(446 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0026.99 USD“A heart-stomping, heart-stopping read. Unsentimental. Unforgettable. Astonishing. Brothers on Three captures the roar of a community spirit powered by blood history, loyalty, and ferocious love.”–Debra Magpie Earling, author of“A heart-stomping, heart-stopping read. Unsentimental. Unforgettable. Astonishing. Brothers on Three captures the roar of a community spirit powered by blood history, loyalty, and ferocious love.”
–Debra Magpie Earling, author of Perma Red
From journalist Abe Streep, the story of coming of age on a reservation in the American West and a team uniting a communityMarch 11, 2017, was a night to remember: in front of the hopeful eyes of thousands of friends, family members, and fans, the Arlee Warriors would finally bring the high school basketball state championship title home to the Flathead Indian Reservation. The game would become the stuff of legend, with the boys revered as local heroes. The team’s place in Montana history was now cemented, but for starters Will Mesteth, Jr. and Phillip Malatare, life would keep moving on–senior year was only just beginning.
In Brothers on Three, we follow Phil and Will, along with their teammates, coaches, and families, as they balance the pressures of adolescence, shoulder the dreams of their community, and chart their own individual courses for the future.
Brothers on Three is not simply a story about high school basketball, about state championships and a winning team. It is a book about community, and it is about boys on the cusp of adulthood, finding their way through the intersecting worlds they inhabit and forging their own paths to personhood.
A Macmillan Audio production from Celadon Books
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The Last Enforcer
- By: Charles Oakley
- Narrator: Adam Lazarre-White
- Length: 9 hours 27 minutes
- Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
- Publish date: January 01, 2022
- Language: English
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3.74(297 ratings)
3.74(297 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0019.99 USDIn this “incredible read on some incredible days and nights in the old association” (Adrian Wojnarowski, ESPN senior NBA insider) Charles Oakley–one of the toughest and most loyal players in NBA history–tells his unfilteredIn this “incredible read on some incredible days and nights in the old association” (Adrian Wojnarowski, ESPN senior NBA insider) Charles Oakley–one of the toughest and most loyal players in NBA history–tells his unfiltered stories about his basketball journey and his relationships with Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, Phil Jackson, Pat Riley, James Dolan, Donald Trump, George Floyd, and many others.
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If you ask a New York Knicks fan about Charles Oakley, you better prepare to hear the love and a favorite story or two. But his individual stats weren’t remarkable, and while he helped power the Knicks to ten consecutive playoffs, he never won a championship. So why does he hold such a special place in the minds, hearts, and memories of NBA players and fans?
Because over the course of nineteen years in the league, Oakley was at the center of more unbelievable encounters than Forrest Gump, and nearly as many fights as Mike Tyson. He was the friend you wish you had, and the enemy you wish you’d never made. If any opposing player was crazy enough to start a fight with him, or God forbid one of his teammates, Oakley would end it.
“I can’t remember every rebound I grabbed but I do have a story–the true story–of just about every punch and slap on my resume,” he says.
In The Last Enforcer, Oakley shares one incredible story after the next–all in his signature “unflinchingly tough, honest, and ultimately endearing” (Harvey Araton, New York Times bestselling author) style–about his life in the paint and beyond, fighting for rebounds and respect. You’ll look back on the era of the 1990s NBA, when tough guys with rugged attitudes, unflinching loyalty, and hard-nosed work ethics were just as important as three-point sharpshooters. You’ll feel like you were on the court, in the room, can’t believe what you just saw, and need to tell everyone you know about it. -
Furious George
- By: George Karl
- Narrator: Danny Campbell
- Length: 8 hours 46 minutes
- Publisher: HarperAudio
- Publish date: January 10, 2017
- Language: English
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3.7(373 ratings)
3.7(373 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.004.99 USDThe most outspoken and combative coach in NBA history–and one of the most successful, amassing more than 1,175 victories, the sixth best winning record ever–reflects on his life, his career, and his battles on and off the basketballThe most outspoken and combative coach in NBA history–and one of the most successful, amassing more than 1,175 victories, the sixth best winning record ever–reflects on his life, his career, and his battles on and off the basketball court in this no-holds-barred memoir
A man of deep passion and intensity, George Karl earned his bad boy reputation while playing at the University of North Carolina, a rap that continued through the five years he spent with the San Antonio Spurs–and long after he stopped playing.
Karl’s beery nights, fistfights, and barking followed him into a thirty-five-year coaching career. In a game defined by big stakes and bigger egos, rabid fans and an unforgiving media, Karl was hired and fired a dozen times. After leading a team beset by injuries and with no superstar to its best season of all time–an achievement that earned Karl the title NBA Coach of the Year–he was dumped by the Denver Nuggets in 2013. Less than a year and a half later, Karl was at the helm of the Sacramento Kings, snarling and bellowing on the sidelines before being cut loose in May 2016.
Intense, obstinate, and loud, Karl has never backed down from a confrontation, whether with management, officials, or star players, as NBA legends from Allan Iverson to Gary Payton to Carmelo Anthony to Demarcus Cousins can attest. Telling his story, Karl holds nothing back as he speaks out about the game that has defined his life, including the greed, selfishness, and ass-covering he believes are characteristic of the modern NBA player, and the rampant corruption that leads all the way to the office of the NBA commissioner, David Stern. Karl also reveals how he’s learned to deal with the personalities, the pressure, and the setbacks with a resilience he acquired from his three bouts with cancer.
Raw, hard-hitting, and brutally honest, Furious George is as thrilling, unpredictable, and entertaining as the game that has defined Karl’s life.
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Let Me Tell You a Story
- By: John Feinstein
- Narrator: Arnie Mazer
- Length: 3 hours 0 minutes
- Publisher: Hachette Audio
- Publish date: April 01, 2005
- Language: English
Regular Price:Try for $0.0014.98 USD“Did I ever tell you about Wilt Chamberlain?” “Did I ever tell you about Bob Cousy?” “Did I ever tell you about Joe DiMaggio?” Whenever Arnold “Red” Auerbach starts a sentence with those six words“Did I ever tell you about Wilt Chamberlain?” “Did I ever tell you about Bob Cousy?” “Did I ever tell you about Joe DiMaggio?” Whenever Arnold “Red” Auerbach starts a sentence with those six words — “Did I ever tell you about . . .” — anyone within earshot should prepare to hear a marvelous story.
As a living legend among sports fans, Red Auerbach — the fiery coach who led the Boston Celtics to nine NBA championships, eight of them consecutive — has long been renowned for his formidable personality: brash, opinionated, and unfailingly accurate. As a coach, he had a great eye for talent, drafting such Hall of Famers as Bill Russell and Larry Bird, and managed to build a powerful franchise with an abiding legacy. Red never stood still along the sidelines and was never seen without his trademark cigar.
Now in retirement, at age eighty-seven, he remains a lively part of the game, still consulted by coaches, players, and general managers. And his admirers continue to be legion. Not long ago a former president postponed a meeting with Bill Gates so as not to pass up the chance to talk with Red. For the past several years, John Feinstein has met regularly with Red Auerbach and his friends in a series of raucous, unforgettable sessions.
Out of those smoke-and-laughter-filled rooms have emerged the stories of Red’s life, from his childhood on the playgrounds of Brooklyn to his triumphs at the famed Boston Garden, where he coached for sixteen years. Just listen as Red colorfully recalls all the players and coaches he has worked with and played against: Bill Russell, Larry Bird, Bob Cousy, Wilt Chamberlain, Sam Jones, and Michael Jordan — you name them, the basketball greats are all here. Red holds nothing back.
In Let Me Tell You a Story, Red Auerbach’s unique experiences in sports and John Feinstein’s unparalleled skills as a storyteller combine to produce one of the most richly entertaining books ever written about the game of basketball.
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Kobe
- By: Nelson Pena
- Narrator: Cary Valentine
- Length: 4 hours 37 minutes
- Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
- Publish date: January 01, 2022
- Language: English
Regular Price:Try for $0.0014.95 USDKobe Bryant’s incredible, record-shattering basketball career reads like a road map for the pursuit of greatness. Though he came onto the NBA scene brimming with talent, it was his relentless work ethic, his tireless pursuit of knowledge, hisKobe Bryant’s incredible, record-shattering basketball career reads like a road map for the pursuit of greatness. Though he came onto the NBA scene brimming with talent, it was his relentless work ethic, his tireless pursuit of knowledge, his unflappable confidence, and his turbo-charged ambition that drove him to become an icon with a lasting legacy. Kobe: Life Lessons from a Legend offers courtside seats to the breathtaking highs and game-changing lows of Kobe Bryant’s life and reveals valuable insights for anyone who wants to make their own lofty dreams come true.
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Cliff Weitzman
Cliff Weitzman is a dyslexia advocate and the CEO and founder of Speechify, the #1 text-to-speech app in the world, totaling over 100,000 5-star reviews and ranking first place in the App Store for the News & Magazines category. In 2017, Weitzman was named to the Forbes 30 under 30 list for his work making the internet more accessible to people with learning disabilities. Cliff Weitzman has been featured in EdSurge, Inc., PC Mag, Entrepreneur, Mashable, among other leading outlets.
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