Roland Lazenby

Roland Lazenby is a renowned non-fiction author known for writing sweeping and expansive books on sports, particularly basketball. Growing up in West Virginia, he always found solace in books and soon established himself as a widely respected and published author. In addition to his works on sports, he has also dabbled in topics such as American history, culture, and entertainment.

His biggest break as a sports journalist and author was his book “Michael Jordan: The Life,” which was the definitive biography of basketball legend Michael Jordan. The book was widely acclaimed, garnering major awards such as the National Book Critics Circle Award for biography and being placed in the Best Books of 2014 lists by the New York Times. The book gave Lazenby the opportunity to speak with Jordan himself and hundreds of his associated family, mentors, and teammates. It was a major career highlight for him, and he even followed up with a second book on Jordan translated into several languages.

Since then, Lazenby has taken on other sports-related topics such as skills development and coaching. His book “Mental Rules for Basketball Success” outlines the practices of some of the great coaches in the college and professional basketball world, while “The Book of Basketball” focuses on the history of the sport. He also wrote an in-depth profile of basketball coach Rick Pitino entitled “The Last Ride of Rick Pitino: Behind the Scenes of an Epic Season at Louisville”.

In addition to his works on sports, Roland Lazenby has covered a wide range of topics such as music, Americana and biography. His book “Jerry West: The Life and Legend of a Basketball Icon” was named among the “Best Books of 2017” by Booklist, and the New York Times lauded it for its “fusty, stoic brilliance.” He has also co-authored works on music, such as the book “Unfinished Music: The Life and Times of Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys,” which received the Texas Institute of Letters Book Award.

Lazenby has also released two books centering around the life and legacy of Elvis Presley—“Showdown: JFK and the Integration of the Washington Redskins” and “Elvis: Still Take No Prisoners”. Outside of books, Lazenby has appeared on documentaries, been interviewed on radio programs, and written articles featured in several magazines and newspapers. He has been recognized with a plethora of awards—including the Associated Press’ Basketball Writer of the Year Award—and continues to be a highly respected commentator and author.

Overall, Roland Lazenby is an acclaimed non-fiction author and journalist who has found success writing on a wide range of topics. He has managed to bring his own perspectives and insights to his works, making them thoroughly engaging and appreciated by the public. His books on basketball legends such as Michael Jordan and Jerry West, in particular, are acclaimed worldwide for their depth and detail.