God and Starbucks: An NBA Superstar's Journey Through Addiction and Recovery – An Olympic Medalist's Memoir of Fall and Redemption Through Faith

by Vin Baker, Joe Layden

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 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.

Genres: Sports, Memoir, Biography, Nonfiction, Basketball, Faith, Audiobook

304 pages, Hardcover

Published July 11, 2017

Reviews

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am neither a basketball fan or religious, nor did I know who Vin Baker is. This story is an insightful journey of addiction and recovery. A professional basketball player who was in so deep that he was drinking liquor while playing big games. Losing it all and coming back to a normal life.

[Justin Dahl · Rating 4 out of 5]

For anyone with a minor vice, read this book! It shows how a small addiction can turn into a drastic life changer.

For NBA fans not coping with a minor addiction, you can see how players act on the court by watching a game, but Vin does a great job of showing “behind the curtains”, what happens from a superstar’s childhood to the day-by-day crazy routine of NBA life. His stories are incredibly engaging, although it is really apparent when he uses a thesaurus, the word choice gets much more intellectual for a sentence or two and then drops back to its baseline. Outside of that small critique this book was really well done!

[Blake Sweeney · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm conflicted about this one. What I've come to realize is I expected this book to be a memoir when it's actually, "An NBA Superstar's journey through addiction and recovery." That's is. The story glosses over family, childhood, and college and focuses on how Mr.Baker's addiction evolved and grew and how he eventually found sobriety. Drinking that was intermittent became frequent and eventually constant, even during basketball games.

Now, what about Starbucks? It turns out that Mr. Baker played for the Seattle Supersonics, a team owned by Howard Schultz of Starbucks. When Mr. Baker finally hit his bottom and sobered up for a while, he reached out to Mr. Schultz who gave him a manager role at a Starbucks store even though he had no previous experience. Mr. Baker never wanted to do retail or manage Starbucks, so the entire time he was there he seemed to keep one eye on the NBA and eventually left Starbucks for a player development role in the NBA. I'm not totally clear on the timeline, but it seems like he was at Starbucks from July 2015 - May 2016 or so. This isn't a bad thing, just somehow different from what I expected.

In summary: good book for anatomy of addiction, not a memoir, and following his recovery he was lucky to have Howard Schultz as a friend.

[Eric · Rating 5 out of 5]

I heard about this on Time Crisis with Ezra Koenig. I definitely remember Vin Baker from the 90's, but didn't know about his story: NBA all star, alcoholic, blowing a $100 million, and then finding redemption through Starbucks. Solid comeback story although the churchy stuff at the end was a bit much, but I guess that's a to each his own scenario and it worked for him. Quick, positive, inspirational read.

[Rory Toohey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easily the book with the most ridiculous title I've ever read.

[Scott Kummer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an amazing and inspirational book about recovery and redemption. A must read for anyone trying to get back. Or a NBA fan. Or anyone really. I loved it!!

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Former “Cosby Show” actor Geoffrey Owens was recently in the news when a shopper at the Trader Joe’s where he was working recognized him. She snapped his photo, and the post about his “fall” went viral. This incident led to a nation-wide reflection and discussion on the value of work, no matter WHAT the work happened to be.

Vin Baker was a 1st round draft pick of the Milwaukee Bucks. In “God and Starbucks”, Mr. Baker reviews his career, his life – and his addiction, and his redemption. He didn’t just fritter away thousands upon thousands of dollars, but he also frittered away his health, his stamina, and eventually his career.

When some people in that position hit bottom, they spend the rest of their lives there – or “bottom” actually describes the 6’ deep hole that is destined to be home to all of us eventually. Mr. Baker talks about his hitting bottom – and his call for help. He ALSO realized, once clean, that there is a deserved pride in a job well done – ANY job. Learning how a Starbucks franchise works, from the ground up, proved to be his personal redemption.

Mr. Baker freely discusses his NBA career in his book, occasionally the on-court things that you can read about in the daily sports column, but mostly the behind the scenes stuff. Not just the locker room, but the cliques and the bad habits which he at first fell into and eventually powered on his own. Even as a non-basketball fan, I found this part of the book quite interesting and well worth the read.

Mr. Owens recognized the need to pay the bills between acting gigs in a career that never brought in the riches that some outside of the industry may have assumed. Mr. Baker had the money to pay the bills, but he preferred to pay his dealers. Now, BOTH of these men are working men like the rest of us, and both of them take pride in having earned a day’s pay for a successful day’s work.

RATING: 4 stars.

[Jonathan Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book
This is a story of enormous grace
A pastors son from a simple family that chose the wrong mentors once he got into the nba
A very nice guy that did many things for others but was pressured into a life of drugs, alcohol, and compulsive lying
Throughout this entire time he was continuously given opportunities of money and forgiveness
This story also includes a great comeback
Anyone interested in the life of an athlete and the pressures that come to them should read this

[Zoey Schaefer · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a fan of Vin Baker, I already knew of his journey (success and failure) and was hoping to get more insight from his book. I didn't. The book highlighted his career and told all about his lows, but I never really felt like I was hearing from the person who experienced it. It was an outline without emotion.

[Matt Lockhart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exceptional book and story. I really appreciated his honestly and transparency. I loved hearing Vin tell stories of all of the basketball players I grew up watching, and as a youth pastor myself, I could relate to some of his stories. Very simple read with a great flow.

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is 1% about God, 1% about Starbucks and 98% about basketball which is okay but the title is a little misleading. I mean, there’s just a lot of basketball stuff. It’s mostly about basketball.

[Orsayor · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

[RICK "SHAQ" GOLDSTEIN · Rating 2 out of 5]

RICK “SHAQ” GOLDSTEIN SAYS: $...ALCOHOL…DRUGS…GAMBLING…WOMEN…HOW I STOLE $86,000,000!
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The natural… knee jerk way to start this review… would be to start off saying it’s the autobiography of former NBA All-Star Vin Baker. After all that’s what it states Ad Nauseam throughout this book. I think it’s more apt to start off saying… alcoholic… drug addict… gambling addicted… cheating on women… cheating on multiple NBA teams that in good faith paid him over one-hundred-million-dollars during his career. The deceit that Baker pulled off on his gigantic eighty-six-million-dollar contract… was nauseating and disgusting… to anyone whoever believed in fair play and worked hard for just an average living.

To say the predominate portions of this book… regarding Vin Baker’s full-blown-out-of-believable-control… addictions… and his constant lying to everyone that meant anything to him… and to anyone who was counting on him… whether as an employee… or a teammate… will make the average human being… let alone an NBA fan violently ill… is an understatement. Also… unfortunately… this is not the first… nor unfortunately last… book with (I will not describe this as a heartbreaking story… because heartbreaking is when someone like Lou Gehrig gets ALS… or Ernie Davis gets Leukemia and dies) an athlete being blessed by the Lord with unbelievable physical talents… and strictly through their own weak decisions flush it all down the drain… with absolutely no regard for the people that pay them… and depend on them!

The next time you take your hard earned money and buy an overpriced NBA ticket… let alone if you multiply that cost by 3 or 4 times… because you bring your family with you… I’m sure you’re hoping to see dedicated athletes playing at their best. (By the way… you also have to hope that Popovich or Kerr… haven’t picked that game that you just shelled out half your weekly salary for… to rest these overpaid prima donnas!) Would you have spent that money if you knew at least one of those so called All-Stars… had started that day in bed drinking an entire bottle of champagne before he even got out of bed that morning… if he smoked a couple of joints after that… then decided between a shot or two of Hennessey or some 151 Rum… and then hidden in his water bottle in his locker is more 151 Rum… which he’d drink before… AND… during games. Yes… during games… he’d literally leave the bench and go to his locker.

Before you think… this is only Vin Baker… this is not a problem in the NBA… well… the author states that each NBA team probably has five or six heavy weed users. Now… I will admit… that any human being with an ounce of empathy (like me) will immediately be touched… or should I say… sad-shocked-disgusted… in the first few pages as Baker describes hitting rock bottom… but then the next couple of hundred pages is spent telling of his drunken… drugged… whoring… gambling… escapades… and I’m sorry… but most of it comes across as bragging of how much debauchery he got away with. (And… once again I must add… that his story is just one of many I’ve read). The fact that at the end of the book (believe me this is not a spoiler… it basically says it on the inside cover… and if he isn’t currently clean and sober… how could he write the book… well… I guess based on his past… he could) he’s been clean… and after numerous extremely generous helping hands by Howard Schultz… CEO of Starbucks… and former owner of the Seattle Supersonics… one of the teams Baker “stole” millions from… Vin has worked in Starbucks… and studied in the seminary… and has gotten opportunities within and around the NBA.

As a fan… I find it humorous-ridiculous-sickening-and-amazing… that the NBA… the NFL… and baseball… keep hiring these guys that destroyed themselves and everyone around them with addiction… to come and speak to new players… and yet… the cycle keeps continuing… with only one difference… the new addicts to be are paid more money up front than the prior addicts who are now proselytizing to the new “choir”. (By the way… these reformed speaker/counselors… certainly don’t seem to be successful… they just seem to be window-dressing to fool the public that the league is really straightening things out)

Despite the absolute statements of facts listed above… this is still a good book to read… if you want to verify… the sickness that is systemic in pro sports today… and has been for quite a while. As humbled as Baker tries to be at the beginning and at the end… it sure comes across everywhere else like he’s bragging about the depravity he was able to pull over on his employees… “AND” THE FANS WHO INVEVITABLY ARE THE ONES TO PAY ALL THESE SALARIES!

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Today's post is on God and Starbucks: An NBA Star Loses Everything, Starts Over, and Achieves Success by Vin Baker. It is 256 pages long and is published by Amistad. The cover is a close-up of the author when he was still a basketball player. The intended reader is someone who is interested in memoirs. There is mild foul language, talk of sex and no violence in the memoir. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the back of the book- 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. 

Review- A decent memoir about a man who is trying to get his life back. Baker gives an overview of his life and the choices that he made that led him down the road of addiction. We travel with Baker from his childhood to where he is now and it is a hopeful story. Baker believes that he can still have a good life in spite of the poor choices he made in the pursuit of alcohol. I hope that he can keep going the way he has been for the past few years. While Baker does not spare himself, he does lift up the people in his life that tried to get through to him. As the title implies religion is a very big part of the narrative but it is not front and center. It is a background voice that is always calling to him. A hopeful memoir and a quick read.

I give this book a Four out of Five stars. I was given this book by HarperCollins in exchange for an honest review.

[Paul Mashack · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was generally a good book, but it seemed Vin basically glossed passed his Olympic experience. Reading it, I thought maybe he served an alternate, helping to prep the real team or got cut in the process. Nope. Upon a quick Google search, I discovered not only was he on the 2000 gold medal Olympic team, statistically speaking, he played well. Realiviely speaking, I think this was one of our weaker Olympic basketball team. Maybe because it was in Auatrailia and games started later in the summer than usual. In any event, he made no mention of winning the gold, his experience in Sydney, etc. That should be the highlight of his career, but he only talks about it in passing. Where is the gold medal? Did he pawn it off for drugs? Is he ashamed for some reason of this experience?

[Jay French · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story of addiction, mostly to alcohol but also to the NBA star lifestyle. Starbucks wasn't the savior here, just a small step on the path between Baker's playing (and drinking) career and his role in an NBA team's player development. Baker also had a stint as a preacher that was probably longer and more interesting than his Starbucks experience, but perhaps it wasn't novel enough to put in the title of his book. The most interesting thing about this story is that Baker had a drinking problem when most of the addiction stories you hear about now are for drugs. An old school addiction for an NBA star is different. Also, his inside view of the NBA star lifestyle was everything you'd expect.

[Mandie Brice · Rating 5 out of 5]

With full disclosure, this review is written by someone who’s had the pleasure to spend a little time with thriving Vin during the epilogue after the epilogue.

I somehow did not know any of these issues until I found out he opened an addiction recovery center. I remember him being a star on the Bucks, and then I met him as an assistant coach. All of this in-between fell under my radar despite following the NBA my whole life.

My jaw dropped so many times reading this book. I’d already loved and admired Vin, but my respect for him has grown greatly. The world is a better place because by the grace of God, he’s still in it.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received God and Starbucks as a giveaway. The book is well written. It reads like a conversation had at a kitchen table with a cup of coffee. Honestly, I had no idea who Vin Baker was or many or the other names mentioned because I stopped following basketball years ago. I was encouraged by the story of a man who works to assist others from making the same mistakes as he did. We need more positive role models. Vin Baker has proven to become a role model. Good for him.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fascinating story about one man's meteoric rise to fame and his painful descent to the pits. It was really interesting, even though I have no interest in basketball. I loved learning about his own struggle with addiction and how he is coping now. This story is a beautiful fable of how fame and money do not bring happiness and how the most wonderful things in life sometimes come from humility and gratitude.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book details the life of former NBA star Vin Baker. It chronicles his decent into alcohol and drug addiction. These addictions eventually led to his downfall. He grew up as a preacher's son, and his relationship with the Lord was restored through his downfall. I wish he would have left the swearing out of the book, and spent less time describing his basketball career and more time on how his life has changed since he turned his life over to Christ.

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to the audio book. I couldn’t put it down. I’m not into basketball at all…there really is very little detail about the sport or game in the book so to that’s good. It’s mainly about a young man who was grossly overpaid to play a sport (18 million dollars) and lost every single penny through drinking and drugs ..and finally hit rock bottom and made his way back up. It’s inspiring and unbelievable.

[Jan Tisdale · Rating 5 out of 5]

NBA superstar, his journey through addiction and recovery. He played better under the influence, until it cost him his career.

“ hard to believe how he could function during a game smoking up and alcohol, before, during and after games and how much money he spent, 1000,000 million in 1 year.
He did a super good job explaining how 1 drink led to another until it wrecked his life. Hard book to put down”.

[Shawn McCormick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Inspiring story of Vin Baker and his fall from a $100 million NBA contract due to drug and alcohol addiction. Thanks to God and Howard Shultz he got a second chance and things have never looked better. In his own words, “I didn’t fall to the level of Starbucks. I was lifted to the level of Starbucks!”

[Dick Hamilton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this is a great story of redemption. Vin Baker does a great job in telling his story, accepting the responsibility for the negatives but fully embracing the potential for things in the future. His story is a great one for anyone, highly recommend.

[Jim Blessing · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a difficult book to rate. Through the majority of the read, I hated it as it explained Baker's addiction and how he losed everything. The only rewarding part was a few chapters at the end when he ended his addiction.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vin Baker went from NBA All-star to chugging bottles of Listerine. He was a hardcore alcoholic who would leave the bench to chug Bacardi 151 during timeouts. Oh and he lost $100 million. He got sober and worked at Starbucks. Wild journey to redemption.

[Jeff Fambrough · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vin Baker opens his soula dns shows how addiction can ruin everything. Great story of redemption

[Garrett Huck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed it. Go Vin and go Bucks!

[Lucy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is quite readable but the title has very little to do with the content. 90% of it is a recap of Vin Baker’s career in the NBA.

[Mike Planthaber · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had no idea what battles Vin had when I was younger but good read overall. I was into this book from start to finish.