ADVISORY/Isiah Thomas will be at Barnes and Noble in Philadelphia To Sign Copies of His New Book The Fundamentals: 8 Plays for Winning the Games of Business and Life.

Business Editors

ADVISORY...for Tues. (Nov. 6)

--(BUSINESS WIRE)

  Isiah will be available for print and radio interviews before the
                                event

                           Barnes and Noble
                          1805 Walnut Street
                             November 6th
                              1:00-2:00PM

On the basketball court, at six feet Isiah Thomas was the small guy, the little engine that could. In his 12-year career as a Detroit Piston this ghetto child turned Hall of Famer proved that heart matters more than height--racking up 12 NBA All-Star Game appearances, two NBA Championships and the 1990 Finals MVP award. After retiring in 1994, Thomas applied the fundamentals that against the odds made him a winner in sports, and became an even bigger winner in the business world. His holdings include a commodity brokerage, a national chain of over 400 printing centers with annual sales of nearly $200 million, an online gift certificate company and previously, the nine teams that comprise the Continental Basketball Association. Thomas, now the head coach of the Indiana Pacers, shares his wisdom in THE FUNDAMENTALS: 8 Plays for Winning the Games of Business and Life. Thomas explains, "I realized early on that there were certain things that were fundamentally important to achieving success. They are the themes that appear again and again in my life. Without my realizing it, they became the guidelines by which I lived as a young man and even now, at the ripe old age of 39."

Reading this warm, wise and inspirational book is like getting together with Thomas for a one-on-one. Each of the eight chapters (one per fundamental) are chatty, personal, and filled with frank and fun anecdotes about basketball legends like Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and infamous coach Bobby Knight.

"Fundamentals", of course, is a sports term, but Thomas's fundamentals are about much more than that. They can serve as a blueprint for changing your life. They are:

Dreams Are Doorways.

Measure At the Root.

Go Deep.

Learn From the Best.

Leadership From the Inside Out.

Living With Values.

Opportunities Are Golden.

The Best Present.

This book is part memoir part how-to guide. Thomas shares the circumstances surrounding his discovery and mastery of each Fundamental. In addition to discussing the personal history behind each Fundamental, Thomas offers great advice on how the reader can incorporate it into his/her life. How can a take-charge dynamo learn to value the contributions of others? Thomas offers this, "It involves asking How can I be better."

Those are inspirational and helpful words indeed. Just like all the others in the book. No matter how out of reach your dreams and goals appear, THE FUNDAMENTALS succeeds at giving you all you need to shoot for the hoop, and score.