New Book Details Life In The G League

Tall tales, history and much more are at the heart of a new book detailing just some of the ins and outs of the NBA G League.

Author Alex Squadron recently sat down with The Weekly G presented by Kumho Tire host Jeffrey Kee to discuss all things related to writing his new book, “Life in the G: Minor League Basketball and the Relentless Pursuit of the NBA”. Its accounts of players striving to achieve their ultimate goal of reaching the NBA are things that Squadron feels are very easy for readers to identify with. 

“I think it's a story that anyone can relate to,” Squadron said. “It's really about facing adversity and chasing your dreams and continuing on in the face of so many obstacles.”

A major chunk of the book follows the time Squadron spent embedded with the Birmingham Squadron throughout the 2021-22 G League season - their inaugural campaign in Alabama after a relocation and rebrand from the previous team, the Erie BayHawks. It was a year that saw the team set a franchise record for regular season wins (18) and clinch the second playoff berth in franchise history while also maneuvering through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fully entrenching himself among the day-to-day operations of the team was something that Squadron felt was imperative for him to paint the kind of picture he wanted for the book. From film sessions to player development meetings to team dinners, he credited the openness of the entire franchise with helping him achieve that.

“The organization, the coaches, the players, everybody was just so open to me being there, which, if you've read the book, the access is really what makes this book what it is,” Squadron said. “I was allowed to essentially live life in the G League.”

While his year in Birmingham was a major focus, Squadron also dove into the stories of some of the G League’s most prominent stars from over the years. Players like all-time leading G League scorer Renaldo Major as well as the G’s all-time games played and three-point field goals leader Andre Ingram are among those prominently featured, the latter of whom wrote the foreword for the book. 

Squadron noted how eager and willing all of them were to tell their stories, as they all have the same goal of seeing the league continue to expand its reach across the basketball landscape.

“They're all these guys who've been longtime G Leaguers that are super supportive of the players now and trying to push the league forward and get it to a place where more fans are paying attention,” Squadron said.

Many of the book’s stories and anecdotes, whether from the league’s early NBDL years or the recent past, aim to capture the essence of the G League grind. In spite of the circumstances players, coaches and team personnel alike have to deal with, they’re all aspiring for the same goal at the end of the day.

“It's a story as much as it is about basketball about perseverance and hope and sacrifice and just guys chasing their dreams,” Squadron said.

Above all, Squadron wants readers to be inspired by all the players he mentions in the book to keep striving to achieve their goals and aspirations, no matter what obstacles may come about. 

“I hope that it pushes people a step or two further just to see those guys in their world chasing it like that,” Squadron said.

The book is available for purchase on Amazon.com.