The John Amaechi book, Man in the Middle was supposed to be a huge leap forward for homosexuals. It was supposed to be a big coming out for a former NBA player. In my eyes, it was just your average biography. Yes it was well written, and yes it had moments where it was very interesting but when it comes down to it, John Amaechi wasn’t a star player, and this detracts from his story.

This was a pretty good underdog story, which kept me turning pages. Amaechi was basically the fat, out of place kid who no one really cared about. He never played basketball until he was a teenager. Even then, Amaechi barely had any talent, and growing up in Britain, he wasn’t exactly aware of the sport and certainly wasn’t up against much talent. He basically got through for being the tall kid.

Amaechi then moves to the United States to finish up high school and go to college. It is at college where he has his first gay moment, and describes it to the reader in no uncertain terms. It really is impressive that Amaechi managed to improve his game quickly enough to play at a Division I level. Throughout this story, Amaechi constantly refers to his “plan” which was supposed to guide him to a career in the NBA as well as shaping him into a good person. This plan guides his life, but for all the importance it appears to have, he never lays out the plan for the reader. I guess you have to hire him as a speaker to get that part of the story.

From here Amaechi details his life in the NBA as well as in professional European leagues. While he talks about his exploits on the court, he does also focus on his personal life. He openly admits to never having many friends, and being uncomfortable about his life as a gay man. He did live in certain cities which would have restricted his lifestyle and he addresses the macho society of professional basketball, and how he would feel out of place.

The thing that really gets me about this whole book is that most people knew, or just assumed he was gay. This wasn’t a huge coming out party. He feels that his time in Utah was cut short due to what he says is Jerry Sloan’s hatred for gay people, as well as owner Larry Miller’s public homophobia. Despite this, many of his teammates knew he was gay, inviting him to their parties with his “partner” and making a point of telling him they were okay with it if he were gay.

Contrary to what this was hyped as, it wasn’t Amaechi coming out to the entire world in his book. He had already confided in his family, friends, and many of his teammates knew as well. Regardless of this, the book is still a good insight into the world of the NBA and a very light and easy read, an entertaining book overall.

Overall Rating for Man in the Middle:

3 out of 5