Overview
An astonishing memoir of redemption--the moving story of a former top NBA player who miraculously rebounded from a monumental fall thanks to hard work and his deep, transformative faith. Sixteen years ago, Vin Baker was an NBA All-Star, an Olympic Gold medalist, and a multimillionaire. While he excelled on the court, Vin harbored a dark secret: a dependency on drugs and alcohol that began after the clean-cut preacher's son turned pro. Eventually becoming a full-blown yet functional alcoholic, Vin convinced himself he played better under the influence--until his addiction cost him his basketball career, his fortune, and his health. But Vin's story isn't a tragic fall from grace. It is a joyous tale of salvation. For Vin, hitting rock bottom was a difficult yet transformative experience that led him to renew his relationship with God and embrace life in a rich and fulfilling new way. Today the manager of a Starbucks and a youth minister, Vin has found more security and happiness in his ordinary working life than in all his years in the glamorous world of professional basketball. God and Starbucks is a wise and unflinching look at the real dangers of addiction and the importance of taking charge of your life with meaning and purpose. It's a powerful memoir about reaching the top and beginning again from the bottom--an inspiring personal tale of humility and grace that reminds us what is truly important in our lives.
Full Product Details
Author: Vin Baker ,
Joe Layden ,
Arnell Powell
Publisher: HarperAudio
Imprint: HarperAudio
Edition: Unabridged edition
Dimensions:
Width: 16.50cm
, Height: 3.00cm
, Length: 15.50cm
Weight: 0.295kg
ISBN: 9781538417195
ISBN 10: 1538417197
Publication Date: 11 July 2017
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Audio
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: Available To Order
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Reviews
I have known Vin Baker for a very long time, going back to his days as an enormously likable and talented professional basketball player whose struggles with addiction and anxiety derailed what may have been a magnificent NBA career. I have also had the pleasure of watching Vin humbly and heroically rebuild his life from the ground up. That journey of redemption-of finding salvation through family, faith, and the simple pleasure of doing an honest day's work-is at once heartbreaking and hopeful, and is captured brilliantly in Vin's memoir. God and Starbucks is a powerful and moving story written with fearless candor by a man whom I am proud to call my friend. -- Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks
Author Information
Vin Baker spent thirteen years in the NBA, including four as an all-star. A graduate of the University of Hartford, where he remains the school's career leader in points and rebounds, he won a gold medal playing for the US Olympic team in 2000 and was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks as the eighth pick in the 1993 NBA draft. He is an assistant pastor and youth minister in his hometown of Old Saybrook, Connecticut. He also works as a consultant for the Bucks and is a member of the Professional Basketball Alumni Association. Baker lives in Old Saybrook with his family. Joe Layden is an award-winning journalist and author who has written more than thirty books, including several New York Times bestsellers. Arnell Powell is an actor and audiobook narrator. Visit his website at www.ArnellPowellActor.com.
