(2) 4-6 Narrator Tony Washington's friend Dante Jones, the number-two-ranked high-school basketball player in the country, was shot and killed by the police on the kids' neighborhood court. Now Tony, who is still very much in mourning, is determined to make the under-fourteen AAU team to honor Dante and to live out his own hoop dreams. When he doesn't make the team, he feels even more lost and ready to give up: "Who even cares about a silly game throwing a stupid ball into a dumb net?" But Coach James finds a way for math-nerd Tony to be on the team: in the role of statistician. The book is divided into four quarters, and descriptions of Tony's analytics and sports action sequences are enhanced by former NBA standout Butler's deep knowledge of the game. Off the court, too, players have worldview-expanding experiences through Coach's guidance and visits to an art museum at an HBCU, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Disney World, and the ocean. Though heavy on sports metaphors for life, the story is notable for its consideration of racism, justice, inequality, and trauma along with exciting basketball action and memorable characters.

Reviewer: Dean Schneider | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2022