basketball stories

Nikki, thirteen, dreams of being a great basketball player but struggles on her new, elite team while also juggling school stress, her non-traditional family, and revelations about her biological father.

Layla's hard work pays off when she moves from a substitute to starting player and captain of the basketball team, but her best friend and teammate Danika causes trouble.

"For twelve-year-old Autumn Holloway, a week at Blazing Hoops wheelchair basketball camp is a dream come true. She has high hopes that it will be her ticket to making friends and connections in the adaptive sports community. But Autumn struggles to fit in with her wealthier fellow campers. To make matters worse, she has to use a borrowed basketball wheelchair that keeps needing repairs. It takes a chance encounter with the campus custodial staff to help Autumn realize that, no matter where she's from or how she speaks, she belongs at camp--and on the court--just as much as anyone else"--Provided by publisher.

"In need of money to pay her basketball fees, fourteen-year old Malia King registers for a refereeing course at her middle school. Refereeing gives her a whole new perspective on the game, and helps to improve her own play. But things get complicated when Malia is assigned to referee her younger sister Flo's games, especially when she makes a call that leads to a big loss for her school. As people around Malia start pressuring her to favor the team from her own school she has to choose between calling a fair game or becoming a social outcast"--Provided by publisher.

"Fourteen-year-old Griffin Finch attends school on scholarship and is struggling to stay on the basketball team. Griffin spends the summer playing basketball on a street court for the Running Rebels in a hardscrabble neighborhood. But a summer of fast, high-scoring play ends with Griffin running home, frightened by violence in the street. Griffin makes his school team and persuades a Running Rebels teammate to apply for a basketball scholarship. Opposing ideas of how basketball should be played emerge. How can Griffin convince Coach and the rest of his team that they need to play run-and-gun basketball to win? Can he bring together his schoolmates and his friends from Regent Park?"--Provided by publisher.

"Fourteen-year-old Jordan lives for basketball. Wyatt calls her Jordan the Jock. The players on her team want their new uniforms to be short, tight and sexy, rather than being functional. Her best friend is more concerned with how she looks. Jordan thinks she found an ally in Amin, who plays basketball and clearly admires his older sister, who plays at the college level. But when Amin doesn't stand up for her against Wyatt, she feels more alone than ever and wonders if she should give up the game. But then she meets Amin's sister, who shows her that there is no shame in being a girl and a strong athlete"--Provided by publisher.

"Jo loves playing basketball in gym class, and she is surprised when she makes the school team. Because she has to babysit her younger brother, she's afraid her mom will make her give up her place on the team, so instead, Jo hatches a plan to have a neighbor secretly babysit so she can play. But the deception and secrets start getting to her after a few close calls. While Jo shows initiative and problem-solving skills both on and off the court, will her mom see it that way when she's found out?"--Provided by publisher.

"Fourteen-year-old Jordan lives for basketball. Wyatt calls her Jordan the Jock. The players on her team want their new uniforms to be short, tight and sexy, rather than being functional. Her best friend is more concerned with how she looks. Jordan thinks she found an ally in Amin, who plays basketball and clearly admires his older sister, who plays at the college level. But when Amin doesn't stand up for her against Wyatt, she feels more alone than ever and wonders if she should give up the game. But then she meets Amin's sister, who shows her that there is no shame in being a girl and a strong athlete"--Provided by publisher.

"Bennett Ryan is one of the region's very best basketball players. In fact, she single-handedly led her team to an undefeated state championship. But when she is forced to switch schools in her senior year, she must first fit in with her old rivals on this new team, then face her old team in the most heated playdowns of her young career"--Provided by publisher.

In the summer of 1988, twelve-year-old Chuck Bell is sent to stay with his grandparents, where he discovers jazz and basketball and learns more about his family's past.