Life Is Not an Accident: A Memoir of Reinvention - Paperback

by Jay Williams (Author)

New York Times Bestseller

This big-hearted memoir by the most promising professional basketball player of his generation details his rise to NBA stardom, the terrible accident that ended his career and plunged him into a life-altering depression, and how he ultimately found his way out of the darkness.

Ten years ago, Jay Williams was at the beginning of a brilliant professional basketball career. The Chicago Bulls' top draft pick--and the second pick of the entire draft--he had the great Michael Jordan's locker. Then he ran his high-performance motorcycle head-on into a light pole, severely damaging himself and ending his career.

In this intense, hard-hitting, and deeply profound memoir, Williams talks about the accident that transformed him. Sometimes, the memories are so fresh, he feels like he'll never escape the past. Most days, he finds a quiet peace as a commentator on ESPN and as an entrepreneur who can only look back in astonishment at his younger self--a kid who had it all, thought he was invincible, and lost everything . . . only to gain new wisdom.

Williams also shares behind the scenes details of life as an All-American. He tells it straight about the scandalous recruiting process and his decision to return to Duke and Coach K--a man who taught him about accountability--to finish his education. He also speaks out about corruption--among coaches, administrators, players, and alumni--and about his time in the NBA, introducing us to a dark underworld culture in the pros: the gambling, drugs, and sex in every city, with players on every team.

Back Jacket

As a kid, Jay Williams pretended he was making the game-winning shot while playing basketball in his backyard. He kept right on making shots until he became an NCAA champion and two-time national player of the year at Duke, and the second overall NBA draft pick in 2002.

But after just one season with the Chicago Bulls, Williams's basketball playing career ended after a horrific motorcycle accident. In an instant, the man with as fast a first step as any point guard in the history of basketball could no longer do anything for himself, including walk.

In Life Is Not an Accident, Jay Williams shares his story of being a young man trying to wrest control of his life from his overinvolved parents, from the pleasures and perils of fame and money, and from the near-fatal mistake that threatened to define him. After a decade spent recovering from his injuries, Williams recounts with a rare honesty his hard-fought path to college basketball stardom and the painful lessons he's learned.

Now in his thirties, Jay Williams is convinced that the crash that almost killed him at twenty-one was no accident, but a tragedy that taught him how to live.