Steve Nash: The Unlikely Ascent of a Superstar - Hardcover

Feschuk, Dave; Grange, Michael

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0307359476 ISBN 13: 9780307359476

Publisher: Random House Canada, 2013

Synopsis

From the authors of the national bestseller Leafs AbomiNation, the story behind the success of one of Canada's greatest athletes, NBA all-star Steve Nash.

A small man in a big man's game, a white man in a game dominated by black men, a rare Canadian in a US-based industry, the unlikely rise of Steve Nash, from Victoria high school to Hollywood hardwood, is compelling proof that great things await those who refuse to accept less of themselves. Nearly 2 decades into a Hall of Fame-bound career, Nash is a 2-time MVP, an 8-time all-star and wearer of one of the league's top-selling jerseys. And no one but Nash saw it coming.

With the combination of wit and comprehensive reporting that distinguished Leafs AbomiNation, Feschuk and Grange tell the extraordinary story of drive, confidence, commitment and learning to do without that post-game beer that turned a Canadian's improbable NBA dream into the stuff of sporting legend. They convincingly bust a host of oft-repeated myths. That Nash is an inferior athlete is one: he might be one of the best athletes in the world, when factors like coordination, vision, balance and work ethic are given weight alongside size, speed and power. The myth that he overcame his upbringing in Canada to make it in the NBA is another: Growing up in Victoria, B.C., in the mid-1980s was more likely why he turned into the player he did.

Revealing, playful and a perfect read for any sports fan, Steve Nash is the inspiring story of the consummate athletic outlier.

About this title

About the Author

MICHAEL GRANGE and DAVE FESCHUK are the best-selling co-authors of Leafs AbomiNation: The Dismayed Fan's Guide to Why the Leafs Stink and How They Can Rise Again. Together they bring some 3 decades of sports-writing experience to this, their second joint effort. Grange, a multi-platform journalist for Rogers Sportsnet since 2011, appears regularly on Prime Time Sports, the most-listened-to sports talk show in Canada. Formerly of The Globe and Mail, where he covered the NBA and other sports for more than 15 years, he is a senior writer at Sportsnet Magazine and an on-air correspondent on Sportsnet's various television outlets. Feschuk, a Toronto Star sports columnist since 2003, has been a regular fixture on the pro basketball beat since he joined the National Post 1998. He can be seen and heard frequently on TSN's Off the Record and TSN radio.

Review

“Sharp and insightful.... This book does a more than credible job of capturing the particular genius of Steve Nash.”
—Times Colonist
 
“The details of the patriotic overtures...are fascinating.... [O]n the radar of most BC hoops fans.”
—The Province 

“The writing is compelling.... Interviews with coaches and teammates, as well as Nash himself, add depth and perspective.”
—Publishers Weekly

"The bio piece brings Nash's start in Victoria back to life with new relevance, with a revisionist approach based on modern sports science.... The authors unearth telling data through interviews with legendary Vikes coach Ken Shields and 1980s Vikes player Ian Hyde-Lay."
—Victoria News

Edition details

• Publisher: Random House Canada
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 0307359476
• ISBN 13: 9780307359476
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 224