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.

    During that period he trained a record-breaking fifteen world champions and countless top contenders--wiping away their sweat and blood and instilling whatever it took to win."My View from the Corner" is his story in his own words. It is also the story of the legendary ring warriors he has forged into champions, including all-time greats Muhammad Ali, "Sugar" Ray Leonard, and George Foreman, as well as champs such as Willie Pastrano and Carmen Basilio.But you won't just read about prize fighters. Dundee can't tell his tale without including an amazing cast of characters who could only exist in the larger-than-life world of professional boxing. You'll find engrossing stories involving everyone from sportscaster Howard Cosell to artist LeRoy Nieman to mobster Frank Costello. Muhammad Ali also contributes a foreword of his own--delivering his personal insights on Dundee--the man, the friend, and the boxing trainer.The veteran trainer gives you a ringside seat and the inside scoop into what really happened during such classic sports moments as:The Ali-Liston rematch, which even today many believe was "fixed" The Rumble in the Jungle (Ali vs. Foreman) where Dundee was accused of loosening the ring ropes in order to let Ali perform his now famous "rope-a-dope" The second Leonard-Duran fight known for Duran uttering the infamous ""no mas""--Dundee reveals Duran never actually spoke those words Foreman vs. Moorer where George Foreman made history by becoming the oldest man to win the Heavyweight Championship Leonard vs. Hagler, which ended with one of the most controversial decisions in boxing historyFor the first time, Dundee also candidly discusses his feelings about Ali's conversion to Islam, the mob and its influence on boxing, training Russell Crowe for "Cinderella Man" (which Dundee also appeared in), the psychology of training fighters, and much more."My View from the Corner" is filled with the depth and insight that can only come from a man who truly loves what he does . . . and is unquestionably the best in the world at it.

    Taking the guesswork out of saving and finding money for college, this is a practical and insightful must-have guide for every parent.

    If you're reading this then you must be a Stephen Curry fan, like so many others. As a fan, you must wonder how this man is so talented and want to know more about him. Stephen Curry is considered as one of the greatest basketball players in the world and it's been an honor to be able to watch him play throughout his career. This book will reveal to you much about Stephen Curry's story and the many accomplishments throughout his career. Here Is A Preview Of What You'll Learn... Youth and Family Life High School and College Career Professional Career and Personal Life Legacy, Charitable Acts and much more! If you want to learn more about Stephen Curry, then this book is for you. It will reveal to you many things that you did not know about this incredible basketball star! Download today! About the Author: Inspirational Stories is a series aimed at highlighting the great athletes of our society. Our mission is to present the stories of athletes who are not only impactful in their sport, but also great people outside of it. The athletes we write about have gone above and beyond to become impactful in their community and great role models for the youth, all while showing excellence in their profession. We publish concise, easily consumable books that portray the turning points in the lives of these great athletes, while also giving the context in which they occurred. Our books are especially great for children who look up to sports figures. Hopefully these athletes can serve as a source of inspiration and their stories can provide life lessons that are practical for fans of any demographic.

    Author H.A. Dorfman details appropriate coaching strategies aimed at perfecting the player's mental approach to performance. Coaching the Mental Game will become the Bible for coaches who strive to make their athletes the most complete performers possible. Not only a wonderful asset to athletic coaches, this book will also prove to be a motivational resource for workers in all industries as well as in the game of life.

    Perhaps second only to parents, coaches can impact young people as no one else can. But most coaches fail to do the teaching, mentoring, even life-saving intervention that their platform provides. Too many are transactional coaches; they focus solely on winning and meeting their personal needs. Some coaches, however, use their platform. They teach the Xs and Os, but also teach the Ys of life. They help young people grow into responsible adults; they leave a lasting legacy. These are the transformational coaches. These coaches change lives, and they also change society by helping to develop healthy men and women. InSideOut Coaching explains how to become a transformational coach. Coaches first have to “go inside” and articulate their reasons for coaching. Only those who have taken the InSideOut journey can become transformational. Joe Ehrmann provides examples of coaches in his life who took this journey and taught him how to find something bigger than himself in sports.He describes his own InSideOut experience, starting with the death of his beloved brother, which helped him understand how sports could transcend the playing field. He gives coaches the information and the tools they need to become transformational. Joe Ehrmann has taken his message about the extraordinary power of sports all over the country. It has been warmly endorsed by NFL head coaches, athletic directors at major universities, high school head coaches, even business groups and community organizations. Now any parent-coach or school or community coach can read Ehrmann’s message and learn how to make sports a life-changing experience.

    They were run on the cheap and were once the very example of how not to manage a team. They hired inept coaches---one of whom (Clive Rush) was nearly electrocuted when he grabbed a microphone at his introductory press conference. In 1968 their scouting director, Ed McKeever, suggested they draft a wide receiver . . . before someone in the organization realized the player had been dead for six months. They plucked ex-players out of the stands minutes before kickoff---Bob Gladieux was enjoying a beer at the game when he heard his name called over the P.A. (The Patriots had cut a player earlier that morning and found themselves short. Gladieux, who would go on to spend four years in the league as a running back, made the tackle on the opening kickoff.) And they played in a run-down stadium that was one of the worst venues in professional sports. There were brief moments of success, but on each occasion, front-office infighting would invariably cause the franchise to slide back down to the basement again. But in the first four months of 2000, everything changed. The hiring of head coach Bill Belichick and Vice President of Player Personnel Scott Pioli and the drafting of quarterback Tom Brady turned the fortunes of the franchise around. And their nontraditional approach to acquiring personnel---remembering that it's not about collecting talent, it's about assembling a team---quickly led to three Super Bowl titles in four seasons. It's a feat that, in the salary cap era, with free agency, planned parity and balanced scheduling, is in many ways even more impressive than anything achieved by the past dynasties of Green Bay, Pittsburgh, Dallas, and San Francisco.Along the way, Christopher Price has had a front-row seat for football history, chronicling the rise to power of the NFL's unlikeliest superpower. Price takes the reader inside the franchise to give him a dynamic portrait of a mighty organization at the height of its power. Readers are immersed in the locker room during the strange and tumultuous days of 2001 and 2003, when major personnel moves involving a pair of the most popular players in franchise history---Drew Bledsoe and Lawyer Milloy---threatened to rock their championship foundation to the core. Readers get an up-close look at the team that dominated the league on the way to a record-setting winning streak in 2004. And Price analyzes what went wrong when they fell short in 2005 and 2006, and how they plan to return to Super Bowl form in 2007. The Blueprint  will explore how the Patriots went from the dregs to a dynasty, becoming the gold standard for professional sports franchises everywhere. It will prompt sports fans (and those who study organizations) to acknowledge what many football insiders have believed for a long time: when it comes to building a successful system, the Patriots have the Blueprint. Praise for Christopher Price's Baseball by the Beach: A History of America's National Pastime on Cape Cod "[Price] provides anecdotes bound to amuse some, astound others, and inform all."---Cape Cod Times "[Price] captures the true essence of the game and its people."---Front Row, New England Sports Network "An excellent job . . . a solid, definitive story of the Cape Cod Baseball League."---The Cape Codder

    She was soon breaking state records, but life away from the courts was less happy. Here, Lisa recounts her metamorphosis from a gangly teen to a world-famous athlete.

    He is also the winner of more National Coach of the Year awards than any other college coach. Garrido’s former teams at Cal State Fullerton and, more recently, at the University of Texas together have compiled a total of five College World Series championships under his leadership. But despite his unmatched record as a winner, Coach Garrido is not a win-at-all-costs coach. He teaches his players to focus on developing character, being good teammates, mastering all facets of the game, and playing with joy in the moment rather than focusing on the scoreboard. Augie teaches that the challenges faced in the batter’s box or on the pitcher’s mound are universal—and that the lessons learned on the diamond are applicable off the field, too. Life Is Yours to Win follows the coach’s journey of self-discovery and his evolution from being driven by fear to being motivated by passion. His unique and compelling book offers this revered leader’s philosophy on life and his thoughtful approach to helping young men understand both who they are and how they can be successful in their work, their relationships, and their communities. Every individual will find advice worth following including: •BE A PLAYER, NOT A PROSPECT—If you want to be considered a star in your field, whatever that may be, you need to be fully engaged. Augie once had his Labrador retriever demonstrate the joy of play to a team that needed a reminder of why they loved baseball as children. •STEP UP, SUPERMAN—Augie stages a costumed Superhero Scrimmage each Halloween to remind his players that their inner superhero is just waiting for the perfect moment when preparation meets opportunity, potential is fulfilled, and destiny is realized. •THE FEARLESS FIELD—To be successful in the often cruel game of baseball, players must master fear and other emotions so they are energized rather than paralyzed. Augie once rented a hearse and placed a casket on the pitcher’s mound to help a slumping Cal State Fullerton team bury their fears and put losses behind them. •BUDDHA AT BAT—Bunting and other “small ball” skills are not as glorified as home runs and big plays, but Coach Garrido’s teams are known for putting players in scoring position and winning games by following a Zen-like philosophy of claiming small victories during each at bat, in each inning that add up to winning records. Augie’s coaching methods are unconventional, but his creativity and wry humor provide masterful life lessons. His insights will help you both on and off the field by providing fresh approaches to conquering fears, living with joy and passion in each moment, establishing personal principles, and appreciating the value of both losing and winning. This is a book by a beloved college coach but it is packed with Major League insights and anecdotes featuring many of baseball’s greatest players and most inspiring spirits. Life Is Yours to Win will appeal to anyone who appreciates the wisdom of a proven winner in sports and in life.

    Basketball clinics, a revolving door of coaches, incensed parents, and the importance of the right sneakers—is that what the game is about? Told from the perspective of four unlikely friends, Nora Raleigh Baskin's poignant novel focuses on the action, drama, and fun of playing ball and explores what it takes to be a winner of the game—both on the court and off.

    He hadnt yet moved to the Los Angeles Lakers, with whom he would bring his total to an astounding nine NBA titles. In his thought-provoking memoir, he revealed how he directs his players to act with a clear mind--not thinking, just doing; 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; to put the "me" in service of the "we" -- all lessons applicable to any person's life, not just a professional basketball player's. This inspiring book went on to sell more than 400,000 copies. In his new introduction, Jackson explains how the concepts in Sacred Hoops are relevant to the issues facing his current team--and today's reader.

    Well – sort of close. He ended up in the minor leagues of professional basketball instead, in the storied and now defunct CBA, a league that has turned out a record-setting number of NBA players and coaches, such as Phil Jackson and George Karl. It wasn’t glamorous, in fact the playing conditions in the CBA were pretty grim; near-empty arenas, interminable bus rides to nowheresville, oddball coaches, little loyalty from management, meager pay, these were a few realities of CBA life. And yet, even as it chipped away at your dignity and made little economic sense to remain, the CBA drew you in with the allure of action and the prospect of an NBA call-up. And it could inspire, like when you and your teammates caught a rhythm that made you remember why basketball is such a beautiful game, or when you saw guys continue to strive, to persevere, even if their dreams weren't fully realized.Carson writes honestly, hilariously and often touchingly of his running and gunning days as a CBA also-ran, with flash backs to his college days where the future seemed brighter than a new pair of Nikes. A top recruit with superior ballhanding and shooting skills along with a sixth basketball sense, in 1997 Carson was a Sporting News All-American freshman who broke Gary Payton's freshman scoring record and a few years later helped his team at Purdue get within a game of the Final Four.

    You'll find Jim in the same place every week, failing to organise a bunch of lads into something resembling a team while on the far side of the park his opposite number, a wannabe Mourinho in brashly monogrammed tracksuit, struts the sidelines, shouting - always shouting. This is the hilarious story of Jim White's time as manager of his son's football team: the highs, the lows, and the dog turd in the centre circle. At this level, winning spirit is not so much about passion, pride and belief as praying that your star centre forward has remembered his boots. Most importantly, it's about the enduring relationship between fathers, sons and football. This is the story no one who has ever watched his or her child play sport will want to miss.

       Hoop dreams aren’t just for players. The fever that grips college basketball prospects hoping to strike big-time NBA gold afflicts coaches, parents, and sneaker executives as well. Every one of them has a stake in keeping America’s wildly dysfunctional, incredibly lucrative youth basketball machine up and running—no matter the consequences. In Play Their Hearts Out, George Dohrmann offers an up-close and unforgettable look inside the maw of that machine. He shares what he learned from his years spent embedded with a group of talented young recruits from Southern California as they traveled the country playing in elite Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) events. It’s a cutthroat world where boys as young as eight or nine are subjected to a dizzying torrent of scrutiny and exploitation. Coaches vie to have them on their teams. Sneaker companies ply them with free shoes and gear. “All-star camps” are glorified cattle auctions, providing make-or-break opportunities to secure the promise of an elusive college scholarship.   At the book’s heart are the personal stories of two compelling figures: Joe Keller, an ambitious AAU coach with a master plan to find and promote “the next LeBron”—thereby paving his own path to power and riches; and Demetrius Walker, a fatherless latchkey kid who falls under Keller’s sway and struggles to live up to the unrealistic expectations his supposed benefactor has set for him. As their fortunes take shape and the pressure mounts—Demetrius finds himself profiled in Sports Illustrated at age fourteen, while Keller cultivates his business empire—Dohrmann weaves in the stories of numerous other parents, coaches, and players. Some of them see their prospects evaporate as a result of poor decisions and worse luck. Others learn how to thrive in a corrupt system by playing the right angles. Written with incomparable detail and insight, Play Their Hearts Out is a thoroughly unique narrative that reveals the inner workings of an American game, exposing the gritty reality that lies beneath so many dreams of fame and glory.

    They generate millions of dollars of revenue for the NBA and their teams. They inspire adulation. But underneath all the glitz, the money, and alley-oops is a seamy underbelly, a rash of lawlessness that is gripping the NBA.Based on a first-of-its-kind investigation into the criminal histories of 177 NBA players from the 2001–2002 season, Out of Bounds shows that an alarming four out of every ten NBA players have a police record involving a serious crime. They are All-Stars and they are journeymen, involved in crimes ranging from armed robbery to domestic violence to gun possession to rape.Out of Bounds takes a hard look at shocking cases, with graphic accounts of physical and sexual violence and other outrageous conduct by players. In all, more than 250 people are named, including many prominent NBA players. It exposes the environment and culture that encourages such criminal behavior. It also explains the unique challenges these cases pose for law-enforcement agencies and prosecutors. And Out of Bounds takes readers inside the hidden yet critically vital role that lawyers, agents, and fame play in insulating criminally accused players from accountability.Author Jeff Benedict, an expert on athletes and crime, draws his conclusions from exhaustive research. In addition to his criminal-background checks, the author retrieved documents from law-enforcement agencies, courts, and private attorneys. He conducted more than 400 interviews with police officers, prosecutors, defense lawyers, players, agents, victims, witnesses, and coaches. What emerges is a disturbing and appalling picture of men who live above the law.A seminal and important work, Out of Bounds will forever change how we look at the NBA and its stars' lives of excess and privilege.