Rick Turner

If My Name Was Phil Jackson... Would You Read This?: The Anonymous Adventures of an Anonymous Coach Rick Turner

What do you want to be when you grow up? "You can be anything you want to be" "Do something that you love" "Don't take no for an answer" "Find your passion and pursue it" "You have to be happy in what you do"... These are examples of some of the advice we received growing up, while contemplating our life's pursuits. This book explores one man's journey; as he literally took that advice to heart, left a promising career in radio & television, and with no safety net, made a giant leap of faith to become a professional basketball coach. As this coaching neophyte attempts to navigate the scurrilous underbelly of professional basketball, he encounters a number of fascinating characters along the way. Some of whom shape his journey and others who impede it. He becomes a fly on the wall to the swirling world around him and reports his voyage as it takes him from the comfortable suburbs of the Pacific Northwest, across the US and back; from the shanty's of Kingston, Jamaica all the way to the heaving streets of Central China. Is Rick Turner just a gullible and naïve fool, trying to fight against the well established cliché of: it's not what you know but who you know? Or is he a romantic dreamer who, by his pursuit, can possibly inspire others that may be hesitant to chase their own passion and realize that the journey can often be more important then the destination?