5 Books All Athletes Should Read
Cool Athletes Read Books
👋 Welcome Back to Recruit to the Real World, your go-to source for reliable information on D3 athletics recruiting & admissions.
Today we’ve curated a list of book recommendations specifically for prospective college student-athletes aka High School recruits. [Read this on our website]
Bonus gift for our paid subscribers 🎁
Last week we joined a recruiting webinar hosted by ProSkills Basketball to give their 16u and 17u advice about college recruiting & answer questions.
They’ve generously allowed us to share this with our paid subscribers and we’ve included the link + a list of topics covered at the bottom of this newsletter.
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D3Direct’s Book Recommendations
Not all of these books have something to do with sports, but they all will help you to better understand yourself and the world around you.
If you decide to read one (or all of them), let us know which one you liked best.
Enjoy!
1. Atomic Habits
![[By James Clear] Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones-[Hardcover] Best selling book for |Popular Social Psychology & Interactions|](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F17d0a798-7c16-441d-b52f-7aece157581c_309x466.jpeg "[By James Clear] Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones-[Hardcover] Best selling book for |Popular Social Psychology & Interactions|")
Atomic Habits by James Clear is a powerful blueprint for personal transformation, showing how small, consistent changes compound into remarkable results over time. With clear frameworks and actionable advice, it’s a must-read for anyone looking to build better habits and break bad ones.
Plus, James Clear is a former NCAA Division Athlete. He played D3 college baseball at Denison University in Ohio.
Buy the book here or at your local bookstore.
2. The Affluent Investor
A few weeks back we went to cover the D3 Men’s Basketball Final 4 and the D3 All-Star game featuring graduating seniors. During and after the game we spoke with a number of the seniors and the most common question we got was this:
“Any personal investing tips?”
While we are not a financial advisor, this is not financial advice, and you should 100% do your own research before investing in anything…we often suggest recent grads start with this book. Why?
The Affluent Investor by Phil DeMuth is easy to read and offers actionable advice on how to keep cost low and keep your investment focus simple (but effective).
It offers a no-nonsense, data-driven guide to managing wealth with clarity and discipline, tailored for high earners (or future high-earners) who want to make smart, long-term financial decisions.
Buy the book here or at your local bookstore.
3. The Underdog Mentality
Another book written by a former D3 Baseball player, this time Tyler O’Shea from McDaniel College. Learn more about Tyler’s journey from underdog to All-Conference Standout:
Listen to our full podcast interview with Tyler O’Shea
Tyler wrote this book while working a full-time job and then self-published on Amazon! D3 Athletes are just different 💪
Buy the book here.
The last time we did a book recommendations list was 2022, but all 5 of these are still must reads for college athletes:
4. Chop Wood, Carry Water
Chop Wood, Carry Water by Joshua Medcalf is a motivational parable that reminds readers of the power of consistency, humility, and grit on the journey to mastery. Through simple storytelling, it delivers profound life lessons that resonate well beyond the world of sports or business.
Every year when we ask our followers on Twitter (X) for book recommendations, this one is guaranteed to show up. We have not read it yet, but it is on our Summer reading list!
Buy the book here or at your local bookstore.
5. Pipeline to the Pros
‘Pipeline to the Pros’ by Ben Kaplan, is a great read for all #D3Hoops fans.
It’s co-authored by a former D3 athlete & details how D3, small-college nobodies rose to rule the NBA. You will likely recognize the teams that a number of these former D3 athletes are currently running - many are competing in this year’s NBA playoffs:
Sam Presti - OKC Thunder
Brad Stevens - Boston Celtics
Rafael Stone - Houston Rockets
Among others
Listen to our full podcast interview with Ben Kaplan
Buy the book here or at your local bookstore
Bonus Recommendations
Thanks for Reading!
*Note that if you buy via one of our links, we may earn a small commission which helps us create more D3 recruiting info and admissions content.
See you Sunday for more Scholarships!
All the best,
-D3Direct
Recruiting Webinar for 16u/17u HS Hoopers
On this webinar we were joined by two D3 basketball coaches and we covered:
The state of college athletics recruiting
What HS recruits can do now to get recruited
Things college coaches are watching for (& non-negotiable’s)
🎁 Here’s the link to access: