Red And Me My Coach My Life Lifelong Friend Book Report

The memoir, Red and Me: My Coach, My Lifelong Friend, is written by Bill Russell with Alan Steinberg. The story focuses on Bill Russell, one of the greatest basketball players in the game, and his coach Red Auerbach who helped him through his NBA career with the never ending “affection” between them. Bill’s story begins down in the south where his family was poor and ends with Bill playing for the Boston Celtics making a lot of money. As a young kid, Bill’s parents taught him values such as respect, integrity, trust, honesty, loyalty, fairness, independence, and empathy which he carried with him when he played for the Celtics. As Bill grew as a player, he and Red became closer, it was not just a player and coach relationship but it was more of two men being friends. Red would always go to Russell for anything about the team or personal issues, “we talked about ordinary things that everyone else discussed: what was going on in our lives, our health, our observations on current events; and, of course, sports.”(177) It did not matter what the problem or situation was, Red always told Bill anything; they were always there for each other. Red and Bill together won eleven championships and

It is a story about friendship and about how two different people can come together, work together, and become friends. This book wasn't about basketball or coaching but about how two different people can become lifelong friends and stay that way until they die. As Bill said they were two completely different people. They didn’t care what they looked like; all they cared about is what one could give the other. “A true friend accepts you, no questions asked”(158) meaning they did not have to ask them about themselves they just accepted who they were. When Bill says in the beginning “to me friendship is simple” it’s not about knowing everything, it’s just being friends, simple