There's Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension

Hanif Abdurraqib uses the physical countdown of a basketball clock to structure a series of reflections on his hometown of Columbus, Ohio. He examines the trajectory of LeBron James alongside his own life and the lives of his peers, questioning what it means to succeed or fail within a landscape that often overlooks the Midwest. The text tracks the history of local high school legends and the cultural weight of the 1990s, analyzing how flight—both as an athletic feat on the court and a metaphor for leaving home—shapes a person's identity.

This book serves readers interested in the intersection of sports history and social observation. It appeals to those who view athletics as a lens for understanding grief, neighborhood displacement, and the passage of time. Readers walk away with a specific framework for valuing the people and places that stay behind when others achieve fame. It provides a technical appreciation for basketball while offering a grounded perspective on how individuals measure their own worth against the expectations of their community.