Hard Work A Life On and Off the Court

One of the most successful basketball coaches in the nation, coach RoyWilliams has traveled an unlikely path. In Hard Work, he tells the story of his life, from his turbulent childhood through a coaching career with the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. And in a new afterword, Williams takes us past the two NCAA championship titles to the subsequent season, with its shake-up losses and the unexpected departure of key players, to a new season coaching some of the most dazzling players in the country to an ACC regular-season championship. Williams recounts how he recruits, teaches, and motivates his players; how he'¬"s shepherded teams through some of the most nail-biting games at both Kansas and UNC; and how he coached his team through one of the roughest seasons of his tenure and came out the other side to be awarded 2011 ACC coach of the year. So far, the Hall of Famer has coached in seven Final Fours, winning two NCAA championships within five seasons.

Writer TIM CROTHERS was for many years a Senior Writer at Sports Illustrated before returning home to Chapel Hill to teach in the School of Journalism at UNC, his alma mater. He is the author of The Man Watching, a biography of Anson Dorrance, the legendary coach of the UNC Womens Soccer Team.
ROY WILLIAMS head coach of the University of North Carolina mens basketball team, the Tar Heels, has the highest winning percentage in NCAA history. Over the last seven years, the 58-year-old Asheville, N.C., native—who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2007—has won 205 games, including 24 in the NCAA Tournament. Thats more Final Fours, more wins, and more NCAA Tournament victories than any basketball coach in the nation.