10. Moneyball, by Michael Lewis.
The story of Oakland A's general manager Billy Beane and how he is able to keep his team in contention each year despite a limited budget. Best chapter for me is right at the beginning, where Beane and his scouts go through their list of prospects for the upcoming draft. Beane's first question about each prospect; "What's his makeup?" This told me that for Beane, as it should be for any coach, strong character is the quality most prized in any player.
9. My Losing Season, by Pat Conroy
Before he became a best selling author ("The River is Wide", "The Great Santini", "Beaches", Conroy was a basketball player at the Citadel.
8. Lance Armstrong's War, by Daniel Coyle
A very revealing book, not only of the enigmatic Armstrong, but of the whole professional cycling culture.
7. You Gotta Have Wa, by Leonard Whiting
The story of Americans playing professional baseball in Japan. Uses the game of baseball to demonstrate the differences between American and Japanese society. Funny and enlightening.
6. Friday Night Lights, by H.G. Bissinger
The author follows the fortunes of one high school football team in Texas and in so doing reveals the depth to which the sport affects the entire state.
5. The Miracle of St. Anthony, by Adrian Wojnarowski
Amazing story of one high school's basketball season. How the coach and two nuns singlehandedly keep the school, in a poor neighborhood, in an old building with no heat and no gym, in operation, and how the coach, despite the hardships, manages to have a successful season and get most of players into college, too.
4. Playing for Keeps, Michael Jordan and the World He Made, by David Halberstam
A book about Michael Jordan's basketball career and how he changed the entire sports industry.
3. The Match, by Mark Frost
One millionaire, Eddie Lowery, bets another, George Coleman, that two of his employees, Ken Venturi and Harvie Ward, can beat any two golfers that Coleman can find in a match. Coleman comes up with a team of Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson, the two best professionals of the era. The story of the match is great, but so is the author's use of the setting to describe the state of the country and the world of golf at that time.
2. Seasbiscuit, by Laura Hillenbrand
A fascinating account of how a run of the mill horse became one of the greatest thoroughbreds in history and the greatest hero of his time at a time, the Great Depression, when he was needed most.
1. Heaven is a Playground, by Rick Telander
A white sportswriter from Chicago decides to go to Brooklyn for a few days to write an article on black street basketball. He ends up staying for the whole summer.
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