The New York Times–bestseller from the Hall of Fame basketball legends. "Finally a book that tells the story of Magic and Larry from their vantage point." —Denzel WashingtonIn Celtic green was Larry Bird, the hick from French Lick, with laser-beam focus, relentless determination, and a deadly jump shot, a player who demanded excellence from everyone and whose caustic wit left opponents quaking in their high-tops. Magic Johnson was Mr. Showtime, a magnetic p...

Bobby "Slick" Leonard has etched his name forever on the Mount Rushmore of Indiana basketball, and in Boom, Baby! he shares memories from his storied career. Leonard takes readers inside the Indiana locker room with legendary head coach Branch McCracken and onto the court when he hit the deciding free throws as the "Hurrying Hoosiers" topped Phog Allen's Kansas Jayhawks. He recalls the NBA's early years, including being drafted by a Baltimore Bullets team that folded soon after selecting h...

Even if you thought you knew everything about basketball legend Larry Bird, this book is full of surprises. Bird speaks with amazing candor, offering a personal and honest look at his career with the Celtics, his experience with the '92 Olympics Dream Team, and his transition from superstar player to respected coach. Bird offers striking revelations about his health problems and how they shaped the man and his game. He shows how the things he learned as a player formed his thinking as a co...

NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author Jack McCallum (DREAM TEAM) gives an inside look at the legendary Boston Celtics during a season of change."One of the five best NBA books ever written."—Bill Simmons, ESPNIn the 1990-91 basketball season, the Boston Celtics were a team in transition, both on and off the court. Jack McCallum, also the author of the critically-acclaimed SEVEN SECONDS OR LESS, chronicled this crucial year from the back-room planning on draft day to Larry ...

They were the Beatles of basketball, the Mercury Seven in sneakers.In Dream Team, acclaimed sports journalist Jack McCallum delivers the untold story of the greatest team ever assembled: the 1992 U.S. Olympic Men’s Basketball Team that captivated the world, kindled the hoop dreams of countless children around the planet, and remade the NBA into a global sensation.As a senior staff writer for Sports Illustrated, McCallum enjoyed a courtside seat fo...

The New York Times bestseller about the legendary basketball star's impact on the sport during his team's championship seminal season. With a new introduction by Sam Smith, NBA Hall of Fame columnistA highly competitive force of nature, Michael Jordan's ambition and endurance drove him—and his Chicago Bulls teammates—to victory. After three years of consecutive losses to the "Bad Boys" Detroit Pistons in the playoffs, the Bulls defeated them in the 1991 Eas...

The New York Times bestselling author of Sweetness delivers the first all-encompassing account of the 1980s Los Angeles Lakers, one of professional sports’ most-revered—and dominant—dynasties.The Los Angeles Lakers of the 1980s personified the flamboyance and excess of the decade over which they reigned. Beginning with the arrival of Earvin “Magic” Johnson as the number-one overall pick of the 1979 draft, the Lake...

The Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist looks at the life and times of the Chicago Bulls superstar—"The best Jordan book so far" ( The Washington Post ).New York Times BestsellerOne of sport's biggest superstars, Michael Jordan is more than an internationally renowned athlete. As illuminated through David Halberstam's trademark balance of impeccable research and fascinating...

**"Through candor and comprehensiveness, Jackson writes a convincing revisionist take, in which he emerges as an excellent coach . . . highly readable . . . reflects Jackson’s polymathy." —The New York Times Book Review"Part sports memoir, part New Age spirit quest, part pseudo-management tract . . . But the primary thing with Jackson—as with all the old bards, who were also known for repeating themselves—is the voice." —Sam Anderson, The New York Times Magazine

"A must read!" —USA TODAYHow big was the pressure? How deep was the division? Those were the questions that would beg answering long after the Chicago Bulls had completed their strife-ridden 1997-98 season in the National Basketball Association. BLOOD ON THE HORNS details the infighting & conflict between Jordan, coach Phil Jackson, teammate Scottie Pippen and the team's general manager, Jerry Krause, and managing partner, Jerry Reinsdorf. Through exclusive interviews with the team ...

Heaven Is a Playground was the first book on the uniquely American phenomenon of urban basketball. Rick Telander, a photojournalist and former high school basketball player, spent part of the summer of 1973 and all of the summer of 1974 in Brooklyn living the playground life with his subjects at Foster Park in Flatbush. He slept on the floor of a park regular’s apartment, observing, questioning, traveling, playing with, and eventually coaching a ragtag group of local teenagers who...

The complete autobiography of legendary basketball star Shaquille O'Neal, covering both his storied career and his colorful life off the court.Superman. Diesel. The Big Aristotle. Shaq Fu. The Big Daddy. The Big Shaqtus. Wilt Chamberneezy. The Real Deal. The Big Shamrock. Shaq.You know him by any number of names, and chances are you know all about his legendary basketball career: Shaquille "Shaq" O'Neal is a four-time NBA champion and a three-time NBA Final...