Eight years of unfettered access, a keen sense of a story’s deepest truths, and a genuine compassion for his subject allow Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist George Dohrmann to take readers inside the machine that produces America’s basketball stars.   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.

Disgruntled parents, win at all costs, troublemakers, playing time, balancing talent, and tracking drop-outs... These are just some of the issues faced head-on in Coaching Kids. Coaches experience many problems many created by excluding parents from the process. In a fun and lighthearted manner full of real-world examples, Coaching Kids provides concrete ways to involve parents in the process and is a step-by-step guide to kid-coaching basics and trouble management. It is the perfect primer for organizing and coaching kids K through middle school. Much has been written about coaching kids. Most books are sport specific covering only one sport and going into depth on its mechanics. Others are more general mostly feel-good psychological stuff. They often focus on how to make the participants feel better not necessarily perform better. Very little, however, has been written on the basic challenge of coaching kids in general, regardless of the sport, and even less on organizing kid sports from the coach's and league's viewpoints.

This is a collection of short but extraordinarily powerful essays as to how Coach K of Duke inspires, motivates, and teaches his basketball players about the game of life, both on and off the court.

STUFF Good Players Should Know may very well be the best book ever written for basketball players and fans. 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 can not be found anywhere else.

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 Wisdom of Wooden is John Wooden’s final book, completed just weeks before his passing in June 2010. In it he shares his most treasured memories and never-before-seen photographs as he looks back on an extraordinary life on and off the court. Hailed by many as the greatest coach in the history of American sports, John Wooden is as famous for his personal philosophy as he is for his career achievements. He inspired, guided, and motivated generations of fans with his bestselling books on leadership, values, family, and the true meaning of success. Coach Wooden wrote his final book, The Wisdom of Wooden: My Century On and Off the Court, in the last months before his death. Filled with his most treasured memories and more than 100 photographs, many never-before seen, it captures a life spent teaching, guiding, and serving others. Starting with his father’s now-famous 7 Point Creed—including “Make Each Day Your Masterpiece,” “Help Others,” and “Be True to Yourself,”—Coach Wooden affirms the principles to true success that helped him become an All American at Purdue University, a winning coach at Indiana State University, and an iconic sports figure at UCLA. Yet anyone who knows John Wooden knows his record on the court was only part of the story. In The Wisdom of Wooden the legendary coach offers readers a rare glimpse not just behind the scenes but inside the man; not just on the court but in the huddles; not just his maxims but his poems, those he wrote and those he loved; not just the people he inspired, but the family, friends, and fans who inspired him; not just the lessons he taught but the lessons he learned; not just what was on his mind but what was in his heart. Ultimately it was the life he lived that served as a model for his greatest lesson of all: a deep commitment to family, friends, and faith—the bedrock values of the man we all called, “Coach.” Praise for John Wooden “The Wisdom of Wooden has given me the life that I have . . . Thanks, Coach, for your faith and patience.”—Bill Walton “The Wisdom of Wooden is a lifetime of Coach Wooden’s ideas on how to live life without sacrificing your moral principles. His life is a prime example of how this can be done--one that we can all learn from.”—Kareem Abdul-Jabbar “John Wooden sets an example for all of us by constantly striving to be the best in every aspect of his life. Throughout my life, I have found inspiration and direction in the Bible. Today, I also find inspiration and direction in the words of John Wooden.”—Tom Coughlin, Head Coach, New York Giants “One hundred years—what an amazing life. But here’s what's even more amazing about John Wooden and the timeless verities his life has embodied. One hundred years from now they will still be talking about his accomplishments and his approach.”—Bob Costas "There has never been a finer man in American sports than John Wooden, or a finer coach."--Sports Illustrated

More than a Game is the odyssey of Jackson's journey—from New York Knick and world champion, to CBA coach, to six-time Chicago Bulls world champion, to this year's L.A. Lakers world champion—and the lessons in leadership he learned each step of the way. It is the tale of Rosen's journey as well, carrying the torch for the game of basketball through careers as star college player, CBA coach, and preeminent novelist of the game. It is also the story of the system jackson coaches, the powertriangle, as put forth by Lakers assistant coach Tex Winter. The triangle can be understood as a philosophy of basketball and life—one that values role players almost as much as star players, and where fundamentals rule. More Than a Game is also a story of the friendship between Jackson and Rosen, forged in the sacred brotherhood of the hoop.