Basketball For Kids

How do the best basketball players go from playing pick-up games on a neighborhood court to scoring big-time contracts in the NBA and WNBA? With hard work and determination! Discover the paths players take to turn their street ball and high school hoop dreams into college and professional careers.

Think pro basketball begins with the opening tipoff? Think again! In this Sports Illustrated Kids book, go behind the scenes of a typical game day in professional basketball—from cleaning the hardcourt and mascot madness to locker room pep talks and postgame interviews.

Klay Thompson's skill with a basketball runs in the family. His father was drafted into the NBA in 1978. But it's Klay's own star qualities that shine as he plays for the Golden State Warriors. Known for his shooting ability, Thompson has helped his team win big. Find out more about his career moments and behind-the-scenes facts in this electric biography in the Stars of Sports series.

James Harden was a top pick in the 2012 NBA draft, but he wasn’t an instant superstar. Harden worked tirelessly to improve his skill. His dedication paid off, both for him and the Houston Rockets.

Slovenian basketball star Luka Doncic’s talent was obvious from an early age. He went from playing in the EuroLeague to the NBA all by the young age of 19. Listeners will learn about his struggles and successes on his way to becoming a star player and the NBA Rookie of the Year!

Breanna Stewart is a basketball superstar! She dominated in high school. Stewart then went on to play college ball for the UConn Huskies. From there she was tapped to play for Team USA in the Olympics—where she scored the last shot! Find out how Breanna overcame a difficult childhood to go on to achieve her dreams.

This Sports Illustrated Kids title combines fast-paced action, famous plays, and SEL skills to show what sets your favorite athletes and teams apart—on and off the court.

Embiid made his NBA debut in 2016 and was named to the All-Star Game in 2018. That same year, he became one of just seven players with 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, and 200 blocks in his first 100 games. Discover how Embiid overcame injuries to become one of the NBA’s brightest stars.

Elena Delle Donne made her WNBA debut in 2013 and earned the Rookie of the Year award. It was just a glimpse of what was to come. Delle Donne has been an All-Star six times, and she led the Washington Mystics to a championship win in 2019. Get the highlights of Delle Donne’s amazing career and learn about her community involvement off the court.

Leonard was just 20 years old when he was first drafted in the NBA. Since then, he has had many triumphs, and has helped lead his teams to greatness. Discover more about Leonard's career highlights in this exciting biography in the Stars of Sports series.

How many players are on a football team? Why is a baseball white with red stitches? What are triathlons? You've got questions about sports, and Kids' Questions has answers!

Discover more about Christian Laettner’s last-second shot in the 1992 NCAA men’s basketball tournament. Learn about how Kerri Strug landed a near-perfect vault performance on an injured ankle, helping the U.S. gymnastics team win gold at the 1996 Summer Olympics.

From the East Baltimore playground courts where he earned his nickname by muggin' opponents for possession of the ball to Dunbar High School where he excelled alongside future NBA players, Muggsy Bogues set the tone in his early years for the great heights he'd reach professionally. In this new autobiography, Bogues delves deep into his life and career, reflecting on legendary battles with Michael Jordan, John Stockton, and other generational stars of ’80s and ’90s hoops.

Sticky is a beat-around-the-head foster kid with nowhere to call home but the street and an outer shell so tough that no one will take him in. He started out life so far behind the pack that the finish line seems nearly unreachable. He's a white boy living and playing in a world where he doesn't seem to belong. But Sticky can ball. And basketball might just be his ticket out, if he can only realize that he doesn't have to be the person everyone else expects him to be.

Growing up, young Chris Paul dreamed of playing professional basketball. But he knew it would take more than dedication and practice, so Chris looked to his grandfather Papa Chilly as a shining example of the values he could apply both in basketball and in life. Papa taught him about respect, faith, kindness, generosity, and the determination to succeed, just as Papa had succeeded as the first Black business owner of a service station in North Carolina.

The funniest and most original collection of basketball jokes anywhere! Fun for the whole family! Great for coaches, teachers, and parents. This will make the basketball fun for everyone, especially the kids!

There are few places more exciting than the basketball court. Yet few kids realize just how exciting the whole story of the game really is. More than 210 million people follow the NBA league across its various social media platforms, making it the most popular sports league in the world. So why is it that no one really understands its history? If your kids aspire to be the next LeBron James, they’re already hungry for basketball knowledge.

In the 1940s, before March Madness, the frenzy of the NBA draft, and multi-million dollar professional contracts, college basketball players played simply because they loved the game. This is the story of a group of kids who loved to play basketball: the underdog 1943 - 44 University of Utah men’s basketball team and their unlikely path to the NCAA championship, who came out of nowhere to upset heavily favored Dartmouth for the title.

James Naismith was a man of many talents. He was a physician, an innovator, a Christian chaplain, a physical educator, and a coach. But he is best known for being the inventor of today’s most widely played sports game - the basketball. Listen about the man who invented basketball. Learn how the game changed the sports landscape, first in North America and the world.

It takes a lot of positive thinking for Traveling Bear and the Coach to turn the basketball team around - especially when they lose one of their best players! Will their hard work and positive attitude pay off? Traveling Bear certainly hopes so!