The Inside Game: Race, Power and Politics in the NBA »

Wayne Embry is a native of Springfield, Ohio, and was the first African American general manager in professional sports. He graduated from Miami University of Ohio with a B.S. in Education, and a minor in Business Administration. He is a member of the Miami University Hall of Fame and was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999. Mary Schmitt Boyer is a general assignment sports reporter and feature writer for the Cleveland Plain Dealer. An award-winning sportswriter who has specialized in covering basketball and the Olympics, she has served as president of the Association for Women in Sports Media and secretary-treasurer of the Pro Basketball Writers Association.

Wayne Embry went from being an All-Star basketball player at Miami University to an NBA Executive of the Year. In his new autobiography, The Inside Game, Embry chronicles his 40 years in The National Basketball Assocation (NBA) and discusses the problems threatening to undermine it. Embry, who was once sent home from a game in the Old Richfield Coliseum when a bullet was found on his seat, tells the inside story of his fall from grace.

Prejudice is nothing new to Embry, a pioneer who became the first African American general manager in sports when the Milwaukee Bucks named him to the post in 1972--long after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in baseball. Now--31 years after his groundbreaking appointment--Embry, no longer employed by the league, is finally free to speak his mind.

He writes about the unfortunate dealings that led to his departure from the Cavs and introduces startling information about one of the most highly regarded coaches in the league. He discusses the social and economic changes affecting the league as well as other problems.

What Embry wants most is to provide inspirtation not only to those in the sports world, but to those in the worlds of business and education, where has has demonstrated leadership time and time again. His book is part historical perspective, part inside look behind-the-scenes, part business strategy and part social commentary, all told in a straight-forward style sprinkled with humorous anecdotes.