Game Face: A Lifetime of Hard-Earned Lessons On and Off the Basketball Court

by Bernard King, Jerome Preisler Narrated by Bernard King

Overview

A memoir by the NBA Hall of Fame player, active from 1977-1993 and widely regarded as one of the all-time great New York Knicks.

NBA Hall of Famer Bernard King is one of the most dynamic scorers in basketball history. King was notoriously private as a player, and rarely spoke to the press-not about his career and never about his personal life. And even beyond his prolific scoring, King will forever be remembered for the gruesome knee injury he suffered in 1985. Doctors who told him he'd never play again were shocked when he not only became the first player to return to the NBA from a torn ACL, but returned at an All Star level. In Game Face, King finally opens up about his life on and off the court. In his book, King's basketball I.Q. is on full display as he breaks down defenses using his own unique system for taking shots from predetermined spots on the floor. King talks about matching up against some of the all-time NBA greats, from Michael Jordan, Julius Erving and Charles Barkley to Larry Bird, Patrick Ewing and many others. He also tackles issues of race and family off the court, as well as breaking a personal cycle of negativity and self-destructiveness with the help of his family. Engaging, shocking, revelatory, yet always positive and upbeat, Bernard King's memoir appeals to multiple generations of basketball fans.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

09/25/2017
King, the prolific scorer and NBA Hall of Famer, played basketball with a scowl, and, as he explains in this honest if uneven memoir, his game face arose from darkness. He grew up in 1960s Fort Greene, Brooklyn: his father, who worked for the Housing Department, was a stoic recluse devoted to his Bible and church; King’s mother routinely beat him with a strap and kitchen broom. King writes that his game face “allowed me to shut out the hurt, protect myself from the outside world.” The basketball court was “the only place I felt free,” King writes. That passion brought him massive success, including captaining his hometown Knicks in the mid-’80s. The first half of the book is a tender, gripping portrait of a young man seeking salvation. It’s when this pain festers years later that King retreats from his personal story and turns to stories from the court. He glosses over his recovery from alcoholism and a failed first marriage that he entered into to look stable for NBA executives. His ongoing relationship with his parents is only given surface treatment, save for a poignant resolution with his mother. The memoir is solid, but could have been memorable if King were as fearless on the page as he was on the court. (Nov.)

From the Publisher

"Game Face is impossible to put down. Reading about Bernard's trials and tribulations takes you beyond the player to the man—and the redemptive resolve that makes him who he is today."
—Former New York Knick and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer, Earl "The Pearl" Monroe

"With his offensive skills and patented scowl, Bernard was one of the NBA's fiercest competitors. After reading his book, I know how he got that way. Talk about a slam dunk, Game Face is flat-out fantastic!"—Charles Barkley, Two-Time Inductee, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame

"Bernard and I have been close for over forty years, our friendship running from Tennessee to New York and wherever else our paths took us. Seeing him come into the locker room with his game face on always got us ready to play. This book provides a clear, dramatic window into what Bernard went through, as a basketball player and person, to reach a level of greatness that few achieve."—Ernie Grunfeld, President, Basketball Operations, Washington Wizards

"Bernard King is a hero and a great role model for me. He changed our game in a legendary way, proving beyond doubt that you can come back from adversity and still have intentional greatness Bernard's focus is something that everyone from business to sports should apply to their lives. Game Face reveals where it came from. It's an enlightening, inspirational story readers will long remember."—Nancy Lieberman, Naismith Memorial Basketball, Hall of Fame, Class of 1996

"A tender, gripping portrait."—Publishers Weekly

"As half of the Ernie and Bernie Show, Bernard King ushered in the golden era of Tennessee Vols basketball. Game Face matches the style with which Bernard played, charging courageously ahead through his journey into the Hall of Fame. I couldn't stop reading."—Rick Barnes, Head Coach, University of Tennessee Basketball Vols

Product Details

BN ID:	2940173400086
Publisher:	Hachette Audio
Publication date:	11/07/2017
Edition description:	Unabridged
Sales rank:	1,161,512

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