Coachable: How the Greatest Performers Reach Their Highest Potential

What separates the greatest athletes from the rest? Coachability.

"This book is for athletes, parents, coaches, and leaders who understand that growth doesn't happen alone."--Mike Krzyzewski

"A unique, impactful, and long-overdue book that draws on decades of reporting to explain what really distinguishes the great ones."--Sam Walker, author of The Captain Class

"Coachable is rooted in the belief that improvement is a shared journey. I've seen firsthand that the best players--and the best leaders--are the ones who remain teachable."--Kevin Love

Sports analyst Ric Bucher has spent the last three decades surrounded by some of the greatest athletes of our time. Over the years, he became obsessed with the ultimate question in sports and life: Which traits separate the best from the rest? He began asking that question, and the same answer kept coming back again and again from greats like Michael Jordan, Tom Brady, Diana Taurasi, Brandi Chastain, and Stephen Curry: I was coachable.

Coachable? Yes, coachable. Of all the possible markers that contributed to their greatness, coachability emerged as the surprising X factor. So Bucher set out to explore this often overlooked aspect of the careers of every major athlete he could access and found stories that these stars have never revealed.

Coachable is organized around the 10 Truths of Coachability that every athlete, team leader, manager, coach, and parent needs to know. Each truth is dissected and illuminated through exclusive interviews and stories from legendary coaches like Gregg Popovich, Steve Kerr, and Coach K; all-time greats like Stephen Curry and Landon Donovan; the rising stars of tomorrow, like Rose Zhang and Paolo Banchero; and some of the athletes most known for maximizing their talent, like Fred VanVleet and Richard Jefferson. Taken together, the stories and insights in Coachable are a fascinating window into how we can improve at whatever we do.

Author: Ric Bucher
Publisher: Avery Publishing Group
Published: 05/12/2026
Pages: 288
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.94lbs
Size: 9.25h x 6.27w x 1.02d
ISBN: 9780593853030

About the Author
Ric Bucher is an NBA analyst for Fox Sports and FS1, appearing primarily on The Herd with Colin Cowherd. Ric's writing has been recognized by the Pro Basketball Writers Association and he has built an international podcast network, United We Cast, that includes his personal show, On The Ball with Ric Bucher, that has nearly one million downloads. He has previously covered the NBA for The Washington Post, ESPN and TNT. Ric raised two extremely coachable collegiate athletes and currently lives in Northern California with his wife, Corrine, and two frisbee-catching dogs, Frank and Beans.