I want to tell you the story of a kid, born in 1937 into segregated Washington, D.C. He’s 9 when his father dies and 13 when his mother has a mental breakdown, disappears, and is institutionalized. He’s effectively orphaned. This is how George Raveling’s story begins.
Despite being dealt one of the worst cards imaginable, George, now 87, went on to become the most revered basketball coach in the world.
He played against Jerry West, the man on the NBA logo. He became only the second black basketball player for Villanova University. And he went on to become the first black coach at several American universities.
He’d go on to coach and mentor players like Michael Jordan. And chances are, you probably would’ve never worn—or even heard of—Air Jordan sneakers if it wasn’t for George.
Yet, in all his decades of coaching, the words Head Coach never appeared on his door. Instead, it always read: “George Raveling, Educator.”
George has had a bit of a Forrest Gump life, somehow showing up at the most important events in American 20th-century history. He stood next to Martin Luther King Jr. at the March on Washington. He met presidents Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and Harry S. Truman. And he traveled the world promoting basketball as an international sport.
This is a man who made his own breaks, continues to break glass ceilings, and embodies the American dream.
Today on Honestly, Bari Weiss sits down with George to discuss his extraordinary life and his new book, What You're Made For: Powerful Life Lessons from My Career in Sports, which he wrote alongside Ryan Holiday.
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