The Turnover is a compelling book about youth basketball and familial bonds from renowned author Mike Lupica.
Recently, I had a chance to check out a book from my local library in Lodi, Ohio called The Turnover by a well-known sports author named Mike Lupica. Being the sports fan that I am, I immediately thought that this book would not disappoint my reading pleasure. It certainly did not. So, here is the basis of it. At the beginning of the book, the reader meets Lucas Winston, a seventh-grade student in rural Maine. Lucas, who actively follows basketball, plays some travel b-ball under his grandfather, Sam Winston. Now, Lucas looks to his grandpa, or Gramps, as he’s known in the book, as a father figure, because Lucas’s father passed away at a young age to a rare form of bone cancer.
For more on BSP Book Reviews, check out Jared Montalto’s take on a piece by Malcolm Jenkins.
More Details on This Book
Original publish date – May 12, 2020
Characters – Lucas Winston (7th grader at Claremont Middle School, main character), Sam “Gramps” Winston (coach of Lucas’s travel basketball team), Julia Winston (mother, professor at St. Luke’s College), Ryan Moretti (Lucas’ best friend and teammate), Mr. Collins (Lucas’s seventh-grade English teacher), Billy Goldman (Lucas’ center teammate), Sharif Mustafa (Lucas’s teammate), Richard Dichard (Lucas’s teammate), Bobby Clapper (teammate), Matt Sample (teammate), Maria Chen (best friend and classmate), Neil Chen (teammate), Charlie Patten (rival), Darrell Zimmer (opponent), Liam O’Rourke (teammate), Cissy Sullivan (classmate), Robbie Marino (opponent), Lucy McQuade (Lucas’s babysitter), Michael Winston (Lucas’s dad), Jen Moretti (Ryan’s mom), Tommy Angelo (Sam’s teammate and best friend), Ed Dolph (Sam’s college teammate), Jake Farr (opponent), Gary Cullen (opponent), Len Shenfeld (opponent), Juanell Robinson (opponent), Corey Tanner (opponent), Max Barrett (opponent), Jamie Alderman (opponent), Alex Faried (opponent), Ed Dichard (Richard’s dad, president of the Claremont School District Board)
Setting – the fictional town of Claremont, Maine
Other places – Claremont Middle School, Claremont Gym, Sheridan YMCA, Claremont Country Club, Gus’s (Pizza Parlor), Oakdale YMCA
Action – practice for a travel basketball season, a couple of games, watching college and pro basketball games
Publisher of the Book – Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, a part of the Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division
Publisher’s Address – 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York, 10020, or online at simonandschuster.com.
Short Plot Description of The Turnover
Lucas ends up with an English project where he decides that he wants to write about his grandfather. But what he doesn’t know, he becomes curious about and later upset with his grandfather. See, Lucas ends up going through some old photos in his attic one day, and discovers a picture from 1961, where his grandfather and a friend are the central figures.
His grandfather, who at the time went under the alias Joe Samuels, played a guard position at Ocean State University in California. He became involved in a point shaving scandal in the early 1960s. Gramps’ teammate and friend, Tommy Angelo, essentially took a bribe to make the final score of a basketball game seem a bit closer than the numbers show. Fitting, because Tommy was originally from the Las Vegas area. He also had uncles who worked in the casino business. Gramps and Tommy and two other players ended up getting arrested right before a practice. The Turnover is, of course, a basketball term, but the title refers to much more than a simple statistic.
Deeper Review
And Lucas’s friend and teammate Ryan, who also have a bond that’s tough as nails, struggles to find a source to write his own English project on. At first, Ryan ends up asking Lucas to do his paper for him. But he ends up raising questions of plagiarism. That’s not the end of it, though. Their teacher, Mr. Collins, gives Ryan a reprieve and a second chance to type his paper all over again. Ryan does take the chance and changes the subject from writing about his tennis coach to writing about Lucas. In the end, Ryan’s decision to change topics pays off handsomely, as both he and Lucas score A’s on their English projects.
As for basketball, Lucas’s squad is able to win their regional championship just before the Christmas holiday break. There were some close moments in their games, but a clutch block by Ryan in the championship final secured a victory for the Claremont Wolves.
Final Thoughts
If you’re a fan of sports books, especially of Mike Lupica, The Turnover is a must read. It has plenty of drama, fun, connections, lightheartedness, and value that ties into the real world today.
And the key message to take away from this book: “Sometimes not giving up has consequences.”
*****
Nate Powalie is a contributor for Back Sports Page. A 2022 graduate of Ashland University, Nate has five years of sports writing experience and has gotten the chance to call sporting events for radio and live stream. Nate also works as a cashier and can be found on Twitter (@PNate22) and Facebook (Nate Powalie).
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