Basketball Books

I am a 16 year old basketball fan and this book is every thing i ever wanted in a book. Up until i read this reading was like torture to me. But now i read all the time I can't wait until Craig Strohm writes another.

I think this is the best book I have ever read in my whole life! I used to hate to read but now I love it! This is actually the first book I've read. It is my favorite. It made me love basketball and it is my most favorite sport.

Having spent over twenty-five years teaching in classrooms in Alaska, I've read numerous survival stories. Comeback is an artfully told story about a teacher/coach and his survival - filled with tension and intrigue. The fiction will captivate readers; the truth will rend your heart. I'm a fan out of the author's past who continues to be one...

I've been a player for years, but never a coach. This is a great book for the basics in coaching skills as well as everything else that comes with coaching - team dynamics, setting up try-outs, dealing with parents - you name it, it's in there!

If you coach girl's basketball -- at any level -- this book will help you immensely. Coach Hatchell goes beyond discussing the simple fundamentals of coaching and X's and O's; she delves deeper into the mentality of a coach and the various nuances that can occur (though the fundamentals are important and they are covered in great detail). The Complete Guide To Coaching Girls' Basketball: Building a Great Team the Carolina Way is loaded with discussions and drills regarding fundamentals, offense and defense. The basics are here if you are just starting out as a coach or if you coach younger girl's. If you coach high school age girls and are more experienced, there is also a wealth of information. There are numerous drills, plays, and sets that will benefit the most experienced of coaches and teams. Coach Hatchell also talks at length about team and game management; a couple of areas that are often overlooked and sometimes difficult to learn. She does a masterful job discussing these areas and giving helpful ideas and tips.

The one aspect of this book that really sets it apart are the 'Ask the Coach' boxes throughout. In these, Coach Hatchell gives her answer to questions such as "What's a good drill to teach the behind-the-back dribble?" and "How do I get my kids to make good cuts in our press break?". The 'Ask the Coach' boxes are loaded throughout the book and the answers are very insightful and interesting.

The Complete Guide To Coaching Girls' Basketball: Building a Great Team the Carolina Way is a must-have addition to your coaching library. It is a well-written book that is very easy to understand and easy to follow. This is one of those coaching books you will want with you at all times -- any information you may be searching for is right in the book.

The only coaching book you may ever need! Coach Hatchell hasn't left anything aside. From the psychology of young women and how to deal with it, to the most subtle nuances of coaching, it is all in there. Well illustrated, the explanations are easy to understand and the chapters are arranged in a logical way. I wish the photos would have been in full color instead of black & white but it would have made the book more expensive. I highly recommend it to anyone, whether you are a senior coach or just stepping in the field.

Matt Brzycki (Princton U.) and Shaun Brown (Boston Celtics) did an outstanding job of putting together a comprehensive strength and conditioning plan for basketball players at all levels. Our players are challenged, physically and mentally, each and every time they enter the weight room or step on the court by utilizing the same principles outlined in this book. I highly recommend this great resource to all players and coaches wanting to learn more about serious training.

I purchased this book for my son during his sophomore year in HS. He was a scrawny 6'2" forward who had been cut from his HS team the year before. Within 6 months he had transformed his body and his game, consistently being the strongest and fastest player on the court. He followed this book religiously through high school and it earned him a number of individual and team awards his senior year, as well as a full scholarship to play Div 1A basketball in college. He still uses it as a guide today.
I cannot recommend this book enough

Matt Brzycki and Shaun Brown provide in-depth training information that cover principles of strength training, to conditioning parameters, to nutrition. Coaches and athletes alike will benfit from straightforward explanations from two of today's fitness experts. Check out their Q&A section; common questions that most beginners can't find answers to in other publications are covered in a clear-cut fashion. This book is a must read for coaches and athletes who want to taker their training to the next level, or are just starting out.

Ms. Lopez gives us a work that is thorough in its research and skillfully crafted. The reader is unobtrusively drawn in by a warmth that results from the author's personal interviews with many of the informants. The African American athletes and the University of Houston Coaches become so much more than a record of facts about racial integration; each person has a unique story set against a common backdrop of the cultural and historical context of the South. The facts are threaded with stories, thoughts, reports and comments that reveal the humanity, the courage, the tenacity and the passion of all involved. A book that will appeal to many across diverse disciplines and not just sports fanatics ! ASIN:0786437219 Cougars of any Color: The Integration of University of Houston Athletics, 1964-1968]]

This book is a must read. "Cougars of Any Color" documents how the University of Houston broke down the racial sports barriers prevalent throughout the South. Reading this book made me proud to be not only a supporter of The University of Houston, but of the accomplishment of three brave athletes, their teammates, and their coaches. A great book.

The University of Houston should be proud of it's contribution to collegiate sports. "Cougars of Any Color" tells a story of courage and determination by UH to dismantle segregated athletics. This book has very thorough documentation and first person accounts and is a quick read.

Denny Miller has had the distinction of playing both Tarzan and Superman, a feat no other actor has matched, though he treats his appearances as the legendary heroes with self-deprecating humor. Indeed, humor is the mainstay of his biography, a good-natured reflection on a long career in movies, TV and commercials with anecdotes about the performers he's worked with along the way, including Katharine Hepburn, Bette Davis, Peter Sellers, Jack Lord and many, many others. There are also reflections on his UCLA basketball career (under legendary coach John Wooden), his time as an infantryman in Germany, and - most surprising of all - his bouts with clinical depression. And, as one might expect from a man who is still in great shape at age 70, there's some solid physical fitness advice. Miller attributes his career more to luck than talent, and seems very grateful to have the life that it's afforded him - a welcome change from the usual gossipy egocentric star bio. With his positive outlook on life and easy good humor, he remains a role model.

Didn't You Used To Be What's His Name? is the superbly illustrated, organized, and presented autobiography of Denny Miller -- a man who was a professional actor playing such roles as Tarzan and King Arthur, has portrayed cowboys, surfers, and for fourteen years was the product spokesman for Gorton's Fisherman. Black-and-white photographs, fascinating tales of showbiz, and the sometimes humorous, sometimes touching, always dedicated exploits of a true professional actor makes for an engaging and intrinsically interesting Hollywood life story.

I had the good fortune of running into Denny "Scott" Miller, and his lovely, supportive wife Nancy, on Sunday, September 18th, at the Weatherford Hotel in Flagstaff, Arizona. It was a day full of activities in Flagstaff, and Denny was doing a book signing in the lobby. What a nice, interesting guy he is, and what an interesting book he's written!

Who, you may ask, is Denny Miller? He will cheerfully acknowledge that you may not remember him. In fact, the title of his new book is, "Didn't You Used To Be What's His Name?" But I had no trouble remembering who he is. First of all, as an MGM contract player, back when MGM was hitting the skids as a movie studio, he starred in the 2nd worst Tarzan movie ever filmed, 1959's "Tarzan, the Ape Man" (it was the first worst, until Bo Derek came along with her version of the story, and nudged it out of worst place!). This epic used stock footage from 1950's "King Solomon's Mines", as well as black and white footage from the Johnny Weissmuller original, tinted, to make it fit in.
But Denny Miller himself is an appealing personality. I'm glad to have this book, both as a Tarzan fan, and as a fan of his. Miller is a great-looking guy with a winning smile, and an engaging personality. Over the years, he's redeemed himself in a series of movie and TV roles, not the least of which was as one of the leads in the series, "Wagon Train". In that series, he called himself "Scott" Miller, in case "Denny" doesn't resonate with "Wagon Train" fans.

This book is a rollicking romp through his life, his Hollywood years, and his more recent work as the grizzled Groton seafood skipper (and he's perfect as that character!). It is abundantly illustrated. He has worked with an astonishing number of the biggest names that show business has to offer, and there are revealing shots of many of them. "Wagon Train" had a policy of featuring a different guest star each week. That, and his subsequent movie and TV commercial jobs paired him with many stars, from Lucille Ball, Sammy Davis, Jr. and Katharine Hepburn, to Peter Sellers, Barbara Stanwyck and Frank Sinatra. His dish is delicious. For the most part, he's admiring and generous. But a few big names, like Bette Davis and Charles Bronson, don't come off too well.

When I think of the roles he might have played! He'd have made a great Superman, or Flash Gordon. And he'd have had the acting chops to bring them off! Miller is a loyal, sharing friend. He acknowledges and pays tribute to many who have influenced him, and helped him along the way. In spite of all the gunfights, barroom brawls, misfired special effects and dead lions and rhinos in his movie wake, he comes across as an easygoing guy with a great sense of humor, who loves having a good time with friends and family.On top of all this, Miller has packed into his pages a lot of wisdom. He has many
important things to say about life, health and physical fitness. It's the teacher in him I guess (another of his jobs). You'll find a lot of hints about the benefits of happiness:
humor, and good health - both physical and mental. I hope he writes more.

Denny Miller the man emerges from the pages of this book. A man of thought on many subjects. A likeable, generous guy who we'd like to relax with, and listen to his stories. Since that's not possible, we can hang out with his book - read his stories. So get the book. Kick back with it. Have a good time. And, as Denny Miller himself would say, Stay Healthy!

The book can be obtained from most book stores, or from Miller's own company;

To Health With You Publishers LLC
8550 Charleston Blvd.,
#102-374
Las Vegas, NV, 89117

Did I mention that I liked the book?

Art Scott,
Historian,
Mystery writer,
Flagstaff, AZ

Down and Out, by Ed Cadenhead is a wonderful book for the mature reader. I'm 12 and this book was age appropriate for me. It has everything a teenage kid would want in a book. It has action, sports, and comedy.This is one of my favorite books.. AND I DON'T EVEN LIKE TO READ THAT MUCH!! I would recommend this book to almost every teenage kid. Its wonderful!!!!

I have recently had the opportunity to preview "Down and Out", the first novel by Ed Cadenhead, an attorney living in Seminole Oklahoma. The book is centered upon the life of a fourteen-year-old star athlete from a small town in Oklahoma. It involves a great deal of football and basketball and I usually care very little for reading about sports. "Down and Out" however, turned out to be much more than a book about sports and I was pleasantly surprised.
The story told by Cadenhead is not complex but it deals with deep and important issues. It is probably best suited for young males in high school or college, but I found myself drawn to the story and still find myself thinking about it frequently.
The central character in the book is Anthony "A-Rod" Rodman and we first meet him when he is fourteen years old. A narrator, that often seems to reveal his own inner thoughts, describes him in almost poetic terms. We learn that he is a child at heart and loves to play football and basketball more than anything. He is forced to come of age though, by Tyrone, an evil and despicable drug dealer. Tyrone frames A-Rod in a drive-by shooting and forces him to sell drugs for him in order to get the evidence he needs to clear himself with the police. A-Rod is then pursued by members of a rival gang, mentally tortured by Tyrone and questioned by the law. The whole time this is happening, he simply wants to perform on the football field and basketball court. There are young black militants though that accuse him of being an "uncle Tom", playing for the white establishment, which sour even this experience for him.
As the story develops, we are allowed inside a world of drugs and gangs and violence. It is more than a superficial blood and guts story though. "Down and Out" is rich with symbolism and deals with difficult issues that many students face today. As a licensed therapist, I find it important to have students face and deal with issues like drugs, anger, race and violence in a safe environment before they are forced to deal with them in the real world. "Down and Out" provides an excellent springboard for discussion of these issues. The language and activities in "Down and Out" may strike some readers as rough or inappropriate for young adults. However, in order to attract and keep the attention of young readers, the language must be realistic or it will be recognized as fake.
By the end of the book, I felt I knew the characters and that I could predict how they would behave in situations outside of the book. This is a tribute to the author and means a great deal to me as a reader. I would recommend this book to most readers. I would encourage parents to read it and to have your children read it. For young men however, I consider it a must read. I often hear high school students complain that the books assigned in class are not relevant to their lives. As a result, they have no interest in reading them. That will not be a complaint about "Down and Out". I believe readers can learn a great deal about life and about themselves from reading and discussing "Down and Out".

Note: ...

My 13yr. son and I both read this book. He immediately took it to school and gave it to his health teacher (who coaches football and teaches health and antidrug leactures), and his English teachers so she could consider it as the next book for the class to read. He warned her it had strong language, but like Catcher in the Rye, it startles kids by reading words they may not be able to speak at school but they hear on the bus everyday. The story is facepaced and bittersweet, it makes a completely non sports person appreciate a rare and gifted talent and appreciate how vulnerable it is.

There a scores of books on the storied tradition of Notre Dame football, but very few on ND basketball, which has had many great moments of its own. And very few of those books provides the insights of Coffey's book. Instead of the traditional approach to a team's history, the author focuses on anecdotes provided by the players and other behind the scenes participants. This gives us a sense of their perceptions of what was happening, rather than the interpretations of the journalist. Coffey lets the book write itself (not trying to diminish his hard work), and the final result is something that I thoroughly enjoyed. Certainly a must for Irish fans, and I think any fan of college basketball would enjoy it as well.

This work is incredibly thorough. Coffey allows his interviewees to tell their stories without tramping all over them with his own opinions. He lets the reader absorb the anecdotes and in the few cases where his subjects disagree, leaves it up to us to decide which side of the fence we fall on. It's unusual to find an author who's willing to just get out of the way like that. As someone else told me, I feel like I was invited to a big party with everyone who ever contributed to ND basketball and got to listen in on all the best conversations.

Not having Digger in there is a disappointment, but since Digger has his own book right now, it's understandable why he didn't want to participate.

If you like Notre Dame or college basketball (or both), this one is a must have.

Coffey interviewed seemingly countless old ND players and people associated with Notre Dame Basketball over its first 100 years. What you get is a wonderful portrayal of the program, through the words of those that were there; the very guys who woke up some of those famous Notre Dame "echoes", albeit on the basketball court. And herein lies the beauty of this book; Coffey helps shine a light on the fantastic tradition of ND Basketball, one naturally overshadowed by the legendary exploits of the Football team. For example, Coffey notes that ND is the only Div I school ranked in the Top 20 in total wins and winning percentage in BOTH football and basketball, a surprising fact to even the most ardent college sports fan. Of particular interest to me were the portrayals of the players from what's popularly referred to as "the greatest generation". They just don't make men like this anymore, and Coffey lets them tell their stories. Also gripping is the account of ND's 71-70 victory over the mighty Bruins of UCLA in 1974. In addition, Coffey concludes with the current roster recapping last season, and looking forward to 2004-5. This book is a must-have for the Notre Dame fan, and a great read for the fan of college hoops as well.

There are a great variety of drills from all over the country and different programs, and they encompass every skill development need and many possible numbers of players I could be working with at any one time. It is a great boost to my normal practice plan and drills.

I couldn't be happier with this book. It gave me many drills to use with my team from some of the best coaches in the game.
It's a great addition to any serious coach's library.

Join some of the nation's finest womens' coaches as they share the drills they use at the most premiere women's camp in the country. The book contains ten chapters (over 100 Drills) that examines everything from nutrition to skill development. Coaches sharing drills include Tara Van Derveer, Joe Ciampi, Matt Brzycki, Kristie Curry, and more.
If you truly understand basketball this book is even better than the First Edition. Although in-depth, this book is not complicated or hard to understand. It is a user friendly resource, that any coach or player, should possess. This book is a must for the beginner, intermediate and/or advanced player/coach.

I normally browse and skip sections in books like this but found myself reading word for word. Wonderful photographs, history of the girl's game of basketball and how it evolved. I learned how unique girl's playing the sport really was. I learned Iowa 6 on 6 was covered heavily by media all over the USA. I am wondering if something special was allowed to die with the advent of 5 on 5 girl's basketball. I found that many 6 on 6 players were quite successful playing 5 on 5 college ball. Lot's more to think about the directions we are sometimes led in the name of progress.

This was such an entertaining book, especially for those of us that grew up in Iowa, and fell in love with the game the way it's played there. It brings back memories and conjures up images of many nights spent admiring those high school heroes and hoping to someday join their ranks.

Upon finishing this magnificent book, do I laugh or do I cry? Girls' high school basketball and teaching young girls to play basketball is my life. But what relevance does this book have? This is the history of girls' basketball in a state far away from mine. There are no diagrammed plays or secrets to success. Is it worth the hardcover price? To that question I answer an emphatic " yes! " There are a number of men and women in North America, who like myself, have dedicated themselves to girls' high school basketball. We can give you a dozen reasons why we love girls' basketball and why we have dedicated our lives to it. We can give you another dozen reasons why basketball is so important to the lives of our young female athletes. But still, when all has been said, words cannot adequately capture what the experience means to all those involved. Within the 200 pages of text, this book explains an American phenomenon that has its roots in Iowa and has proceeded to touch the lives of millions of girls, coaches and communities. That is why in reading six-on-six, I sometimes laughed and sometimes was swept up in emotion. This book is a comprehensive history of girls' basketball in the state of Iowa. The research is careful, thorough and disciplined. But in addition to covering the history of girls' basketball in Iowa, the book represents one of the best documentations of the history of basketball ever printed. The photos and interviews take you into the lives of the players -- how they played the game, how they overcame the obstacles of the early years in terms of facilities, equipment and transportation and most importantly, what basketball did for them personally....how they felt about the emerging game of basketball. It also covers how the game changed and why the changes were made. Iowa is unique in girls' basketball. It is the only state that since the 1920s, has continuously sanctioned interscholastic play and it does so with an independent sanctioning body that is separate from the boys. Those of us who live in the big metropolitan areas tend to think of Iowans as down-home conservative people who live a stable uncomplicated life. While their may or may not be some truth to the latter, what is perfectly clear is that Iowa is the most progressive state in the union when it comes to girls' athletics. They implemented Title IX fifty years before it became the law of the land. They appreciate, support, praise and celebrate their high school female athletes. In Iowa, the Iowa girl is queen. How did this develop? Why in Iowa? All of this is explained. But the best part of the book are the interviews that give you a glimpse into the lives of the girls, coaches, superintendents and sport writers that made all this possible.... men and women that had great vision and understood why basketball and sports is so important to the lives of teenage girls. As mentioned, the book is not about strategy or tips but through interviews, I learned some things that have helped me in my coaching. These have to do with the psychology of girls and why certain aspects of the game and experience are so important to girls. And why as a coach, I must respect the girls' wishes. If girls' basketball means a lot to you, read this book. You will be inspired by one of the great success stories of the 20th century.

The Garden and the Knicks, a match made in heaven. This book delivers the best insight into the New York Knicks and its best players. From Clyde, to Willis, from Patrick to Houston, this book tells it all. Even has some great storys and pictures of the Old Garden a definent must read

this is a Must have Book for any Fan of the NBA.this Book talks about all of the Great Knicks&is truly Great to reflect on.those Great Knicks Days seems so long ago but they really weren't that long ago.Clyde the Glide,Earl The Pearl through the Present.

If you're a Knicks fan - or even just a basketball junkie - Garden Glory is for you. An easy read with great stories told by those who lived it. I could never have gone to the Old Garden, but the mental pictures the book creates is marvelous.

But the big unanswered question that I need to know is: What was Spree REALLY wearing when they came to his house in Milwaukee?

A must read...