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Victory: The Principles of Championship Living
A star basketball player for the L.A. Lakers and Phoenix Suns relates the highlights of his career from high school to the NBA, discusses his personal committment to a spiritual life, and offers his fifty-two principles for championship living
262 pages, Hardcover
First published November 1, 1994
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 13, 2011
This book is just what the description indicates: A.C. Green, former NBA star in the 1980s and 1990s and a Christian, shares his witness for Jesus Christ. It's generally geared toward an audience of teenagers and young adults, especially those participating in sports, and frames Green's ardent and assertive witness in a sports motif--championship living, victory, being "in the game" with Christ. Nevertheless, it is definitely not too youth-oriented to be helpful to adults, and is not too sports- and game- oriented to be inaccessible to non-athletes.
This is primarily a book of Christian witnessing; A.C. Green's life story is secondary. You learn how he grew up in Oregon and how and where he received Christ as his Lord and Savior, and some details of his life in college, his life in the NBA, and his continuing walk with God up to the time of writing (1994). There are relatively few stories from actual NBA games, and in those few stories, Green often does not name names. The only particularly interesting on-court story was an eye-popping encounter with Latrell Sprewell in the Suns-Warriors 1994 first-round playoff series: Green and Sprewell jawed after Sprewell was whistled for allegedly fouling Green; Sprewell argued with Green over it; Green and Sprewell jawed, and Sprewell bluntly told him "Don't 'God' me. I follow the devil." Um, wow.
Green has more to say about the Lakers, whom he spent his first eight years with, and his relationships with the star players there--Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, James Worthy. He was/is great friends with Johnson and was distraught when Johnson announced his HIV-positive condition and retired.
Victory would be a helpful addition to any Christian bookshelf. Read it, if you can find a copy.
This is primarily a book of Christian witnessing; A.C. Green's life story is secondary. You learn how he grew up in Oregon and how and where he received Christ as his Lord and Savior, and some details of his life in college, his life in the NBA, and his continuing walk with God up to the time of writing (1994). There are relatively few stories from actual NBA games, and in those few stories, Green often does not name names. The only particularly interesting on-court story was an eye-popping encounter with Latrell Sprewell in the Suns-Warriors 1994 first-round playoff series: Green and Sprewell jawed after Sprewell was whistled for allegedly fouling Green; Sprewell argued with Green over it; Green and Sprewell jawed, and Sprewell bluntly told him "Don't 'God' me. I follow the devil." Um, wow.
Green has more to say about the Lakers, whom he spent his first eight years with, and his relationships with the star players there--Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, James Worthy. He was/is great friends with Johnson and was distraught when Johnson announced his HIV-positive condition and retired.
Victory would be a helpful addition to any Christian bookshelf. Read it, if you can find a copy.
January 8, 2017
I read this book while on road trips of our all white basketball team, playing summerleague in Los Angeles against teams who would dunk on us and score a 100 points. I remember one time going to play a team, they were missing their star basketball player because he had been shot and killed by a gang. Another time we were going to get some dinner at fastfood place, but they were in the process of getting robbed so we had to eat someplace different. This was during the LA riots after the Rodney King beating who once said, "Can't we all just get along?"
My favorite player on the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team is not Wilt Chamberlain, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant Brandon Ingram or D'Angelo Russell, but Ironman AC Green, a power forward, who won 3 championships for the Lakers, was an NBA All-Star, was apart of Laker showtime and always hustled 100%. Many athletes would get injured unable to play all 82 games in a year and miss practices. But AC Green never missed a game or practice, even though he absorbed a lot of physical punishment, was pushed and fouled. He was the guy who would dive after loose balls and gave it his all. AC Green, nicknamed the Iron man played in 1,192 straight games. He played in 1278 out of 1281 games in his career (99.8%). AC showed up to work, even when he took a Mike Tyson blow to the face, knocking out two of his teeth. AC had emergency root canal surgery and returned playing basketball the next day. AC played in his 1000th consecutive game with the L.A. Lakers and won 3 NBA Championships under coaches Pat Riley and Phil Jackson. Playing in a streak of 1192 games, most predict that this record will never be broken, much like Wilt Chamberlains record of scoring 100 points in a single game. But off the court they both had equally famous records concerning women they dated. AC Green humbly said, he was a virgin for 38 years, waiting to have sex with only his wife and that only after marriage.
AC Green told the press of retirement, “I’m at peace. That’s honestly how I feel. I thank God for the streak I had more than anything.” http://waitingtillmarriage.org/iron-m...
I Cor 9:24-25 reads, "In a race, everyone runs but only one person gets first prize.. to win the contest you must deny yourselves many things that would keep you from doing your best." On roadtrips to various basketball games I was, the quiet one reading AC Greens book Victory. Another book I read was, A View From Above by Wilt Chamberlain, scoring over 30,000 points. The NBA legend wrote that he had slept with 20,000 women. In the Bible King Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines and concluded in Ecclesiastes, much as perhaps Wilt might conclude, "...all is vanity."
AC Green was a devout Christian and virgin. He influenced me to value my own virginity and to honor God with "absolute purity" (I Tim5:2). When girls later asked me, "Do you want to have sex?" I do, but in context of marriage. I know abstinence is unpopular and not easy. But it is where I stand. In the Bible Potiphar's wife wanted Joseph badly. When he would not do what she wanted, she lied and destroyed his life. For Joseph's integrity, he was rewarded brokenness heart-ache and wrongfully sent to prison. I want to be like Joseph.
AC Green did not believe he had more self-control then the next person. I like what the virgin LA Laker said, "I don't test my control by putting myself in compromising situations... greater men than I am have fallen and made mistakes." And when great men do fall... lend them a hand.
My favorite player on the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team is not Wilt Chamberlain, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant Brandon Ingram or D'Angelo Russell, but Ironman AC Green, a power forward, who won 3 championships for the Lakers, was an NBA All-Star, was apart of Laker showtime and always hustled 100%. Many athletes would get injured unable to play all 82 games in a year and miss practices. But AC Green never missed a game or practice, even though he absorbed a lot of physical punishment, was pushed and fouled. He was the guy who would dive after loose balls and gave it his all. AC Green, nicknamed the Iron man played in 1,192 straight games. He played in 1278 out of 1281 games in his career (99.8%). AC showed up to work, even when he took a Mike Tyson blow to the face, knocking out two of his teeth. AC had emergency root canal surgery and returned playing basketball the next day. AC played in his 1000th consecutive game with the L.A. Lakers and won 3 NBA Championships under coaches Pat Riley and Phil Jackson. Playing in a streak of 1192 games, most predict that this record will never be broken, much like Wilt Chamberlains record of scoring 100 points in a single game. But off the court they both had equally famous records concerning women they dated. AC Green humbly said, he was a virgin for 38 years, waiting to have sex with only his wife and that only after marriage.
AC Green told the press of retirement, “I’m at peace. That’s honestly how I feel. I thank God for the streak I had more than anything.” http://waitingtillmarriage.org/iron-m...
I Cor 9:24-25 reads, "In a race, everyone runs but only one person gets first prize.. to win the contest you must deny yourselves many things that would keep you from doing your best." On roadtrips to various basketball games I was, the quiet one reading AC Greens book Victory. Another book I read was, A View From Above by Wilt Chamberlain, scoring over 30,000 points. The NBA legend wrote that he had slept with 20,000 women. In the Bible King Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines and concluded in Ecclesiastes, much as perhaps Wilt might conclude, "...all is vanity."
AC Green was a devout Christian and virgin. He influenced me to value my own virginity and to honor God with "absolute purity" (I Tim5:2). When girls later asked me, "Do you want to have sex?" I do, but in context of marriage. I know abstinence is unpopular and not easy. But it is where I stand. In the Bible Potiphar's wife wanted Joseph badly. When he would not do what she wanted, she lied and destroyed his life. For Joseph's integrity, he was rewarded brokenness heart-ache and wrongfully sent to prison. I want to be like Joseph.
AC Green did not believe he had more self-control then the next person. I like what the virgin LA Laker said, "I don't test my control by putting myself in compromising situations... greater men than I am have fallen and made mistakes." And when great men do fall... lend them a hand.
February 2, 2008
Autobiography of Basketball star A. C. Green. More than just a biography is also leasons from life that can be applied to all readers.
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