Seven Seconds or Less

Sports Illustrated's chief NBA writer Jack McCallum gets in the paint with the Phoenix Suns and takes a season-long look at the NBA's most exciting and controversial team.Jack McCallum—NBA writer for Sports Illustrated—only planned to spend the preseason with the Phoenix Suns as an "assistant coach" and then write a story about his experiences. Instead, he stayed on with the Suns throughout their exciting and controversial 2005 to 2006 season. McCallum describes in detail his year trying to keep up with the fast-breaking Suns on and off the court. He takes readers inside the heads of Steve Nash, the team's mercurial floor general; the maverick Mike D'Antoni; and dozens of others who make up the close-knit Suns family. On the court, there's excitement as the Suns overcome a rash of injuries to once again battle for a conference title. Off the court, controversy rages as the team endures a major front-office change in midseason. Throughout it all, the team continues to bedevil opponents and challenge the status quo with their throwback style. In the spirit of Buzz Bissinger's Three Nights in August and John Feinstein's A Season on the Brink, Seven Seconds or Less is an in-depth look at one of the greatest shows in sports.

Jack Mccallum began atSports Illustratedsince 1981 and became the chief NBA writer in 1985. His work has appeared in theBest American Sports Writing Anthology, and in 2004 he won the Basketball Hall of Fames Curt Gowdy Media Award for outstanding writing. He is the author ofUnfinished Business: On and Off the Court with the 199091 Boston Celticsand coauthor ofFoul Lines: A Pro Basketball Novel. He lives in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.