Sports Great Tim Duncan

Children's Literature

Tim Duncan, seven-foot star of the San Antonio Spurs, breaks the stereotype of the uneducated athlete who will never have a profitable career once his basketball days are over. Sportswriter John Albert Torres shows a picture of a young man who put his education before sports and has honed his talent through years of practice. Duncan originally had planned a career as an Olympic swimmer, but Hurricane Hugo struck his home of St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands in 1989, destroying the only Olympic-size pool on the island and leaving Duncan with nowhere to swim. Rather than dropping out of athletics, he took up basketball, where his height of six feet one inch at the age of fourteen made up for his lack of aptitude for the sport. Over the years, he studied the techniques of great players of the NBA and applied the practices to his own game, becoming one of the most versatile players basketball has ever seen. This story of Duncan's career from high school to 1999 is an inspiration to would-be basketball players who may not have a lot of talent but are willing to work hard and combine smarts with physical ability to be the best. Part of the "Sports Great" series, this book is also a good selection for students looking for short biographies or success stories. It is accompanied with sharp, black-and-white action photographs. 2002, Enslow, $17.95. Ages 9 to 12. Reviewer: Carlie Kraft AGES: 9 10 11 12