Dakw K Da Warriors

"The Golden State Warriors are the envy of the modern NBA. Chasing their third consecutive championship, they have assembled an incredible wealth of athletic talent, lead the league in merchandise sales, and are planning to move into a glitzy new stadium next season. Their owner, Joe Lacob, regularly hosts the top CEOs and influencers of Silicon Valley in his box, fashioning himself into one of the most powerful men in the world. Yet inside the organization, there is considerably more strife. In this breakthrough work of reportage, star NBA reporter Ethan Sherwood Strauss investigates the team's culture, its financial ambitions and struggles, and the toll that being a super-team can take. In so doing, he not only rewrites the story of the Warriors, but reveals how the Darwinian business of NBA basketball really works. Reconstructing the deals that lured Steph Curry away from Nike and Kevin Durant away from Oklahoma City, Strauss shows how the smallest mistakes can define success or failure for years. And, as he looks ahead to the 2020 season, Strauss ponders whether this organization can survive its own ambitions"--

Creating robust artificial intelligence is one of the greatest challenges for game developers, yet the commercial success of a game is often dependent upon the quality of the AI. In this book, Ian Millington brings extensive professional experience to the problem of improving the quality of AI in games. He describes numerous examples from real games and explores the underlying ideas through detailed case studies. He goes further to introduce many techniques little used by developers today. The book's associated web site contains a library of C++ source code and demonstration programs, and a complete commercial source code library of AI algorithms and techniques. "Artificial Intelligence for Games - 2nd edition" will be highly useful to academics teaching courses on game AI, in that it includes exercises with each chapter. It will also include new and expanded coverage of the following: AI-oriented gameplay; Behavior driven AI; Casual games (puzzle games). Key Features * The first comprehensive, professional tutorial and reference to implement true AI in games written by an engineer with extensive industry experience. * Walks through the entire development process from beginning to end. * Includes examples from over 100 real games, 10 in-depth case studies, and web site with sample code.

Golden State Warriors insider and bestselling author Marcus Thompson “paints a complex portrait and captures all the multitudes of a dynamic athlete trying to carve his legacy” (Jonathan Abrams, New York Times bestselling author) with this definitive biography of one of the most extraordinary basketball players in NBA history—Kevin Durant. The NBA has never seen a player quite like Kevin Durant. Larry Bird wasn’t as quick, Magic Johnson didn’t have such a range, and Michael Jordan wasn’t seven feet tall. Durant handles the ball like Allen Iverson, shoots like Dirk Nowitzki, and has the scoring instincts of Kobe Bryant. He does it in a body that’s about as big as Hakeem Olajuwon. But ultimately, Kevin Durant is like no one but himself. After an incredible first season with Golden State, Kevin Durant earned the coveted NBA Finals MVP award: he was the Warriors’ top scorer in every game of the 2017 Finals, helping the team snatch the title from LeBron James and the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers. As a sports columnist for The Athletic Bay Area, and longtime beat reporter covering the Golden State Warriors, Marcus Thompson is perfectly positioned to trace Durant’s inspirational journey. KD follows Durant’s underdog story from his childhood spent in poverty outside DC; to his rise playing on AAU teams with future NBA players; to becoming a star and hometown hero for the Oklahoma Thunder; to his controversial decision to play for the NBA rival Golden State Warriors; to his growth from prodigy into a man, in the first true inside account of this superstar player. With his “gift for insight into people, in a way that might be sui generis among writers” (Ethan Strauss, The Athletic), Thompson has written a powerful, moving biography of a modern-day legend that is also an essential read for all sports fans—or anyone who wants to know: what’s it like to shoot for greatness?

Golden State Warriors insider and bestselling author Marcus Thompson “paints a complex portrait and captures all the multitudes of a dynamic athlete trying to carve his legacy” (Jonathan Abrams, New York Times bestselling author) with this definitive biography of one of the most extraordinary basketball players in NBA history—Kevin Durant. The NBA has never seen a player quite like Kevin Durant. Larry Bird wasn’t as quick, Magic Johnson didn’t have such a range, and Michael Jordan wasn’t seven feet tall. Durant handles the ball like Allen Iverson, shoots like Dirk Nowitzki, and has the scoring instincts of Kobe Bryant. He does it in a body that’s about as big as Hakeem Olajuwon. But ultimately, Kevin Durant is like no one but himself. After an incredible first season with Golden State, Kevin Durant earned the coveted NBA Finals MVP award: he was the Warriors’ top scorer in every game of the 2017 Finals, helping the team snatch the title from LeBron James and the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers. As a sports columnist for The Athletic Bay Area, and longtime beat reporter covering the Golden State Warriors, Marcus Thompson is perfectly positioned to trace Durant’s inspirational journey. KD follows Durant’s underdog story from his childhood spent in poverty outside DC; to his rise playing on AAU teams with future NBA players; to becoming a star and hometown hero for the Oklahoma Thunder; to his controversial decision to play for the NBA rival Golden State Warriors; to his growth from prodigy into a man, in the first true inside account of this superstar player. With his “gift for insight into people, in a way that might be sui generis among writers” (Ethan Strauss, The Athletic), Thompson has written a powerful, moving biography of a modern-day legend that is also an essential read for all sports fans—or anyone who wants to know: what’s it like to shoot for greatness?

Tap Into the Power of Human Connection Creating a thriving organization where employees feel valued, the environment is energized, and high productivity and innovation are the norm requires a new kind of leader who fosters a culture of connection within the organization. Connection Culture, 2nd Edition, is your game-changing opportunity to become that leader and to begin fostering a connection culture in your organization. Stop undermining performance and take the first step toward change that will give your organization, your team, and everyone you lead a true competitive advantage. Inspiring and practical, this book challenges you to set the performance bar high and keep reaching. Learn how to: Foster a connection culture Emulate best practices of connected teams—from Mayo Clinic physicians and scientists to the creators of the award-winning Broadway musical Hamilton. Boost vision, value, and voice within your organization. Published in the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic, the book messages the authors’ hope for post-traumatic growth; provides updated, research-supported theories about the relationship of stress and loneliness; and includes new examples and profiles of great leaders communicating during crisis.

For 28 years the triple breed, Dragoune Malan searched for the meaning of his very existence. Together with a Halfling named Andi and his two human brothers, Taron and Zice, his previousjourney took this Dragon/Demon/Human from the darkest nightmare of his own conception to the mystical, ever-changing labyrinth of Nathan Malan'sresting place. Nathan answered all of Dragoune's questions with a new challenge. Rebuild the Malan. Will Dragoune and his family succeed in rebuilding what once was the balance between good and evil, or will evil have its way in destroying the Malanname forever?

**The Instant National Bestseller** The standout memoir from NBA powerhouse Andre Iguodala, the indomitable sixth man of the Golden State Warriors. Andre Iguodala is one of the most admired players in the NBA. And fresh off the Warriors’ fifth Finals appearance in five years, his game has never been stronger. Off the court, Iguodala has earned respect, too—for his successful tech investments, his philanthropy, and increasingly for his contributions to the conversation about race in America. It is no surprise, then, that in his first book, Andre, with his cowriter Carvell Wallace, has pushed himself to go further than he ever has before about his life, not only as an athlete but about what makes him who he is at his core. The Sixth Man traces Andre’s journey from childhood in his Illinois hometown to his Bay Area home court today. Basketball has always been there. But this is the story, too, of his experience of the conflict and racial tension always at hand in a professional league made up largely of African American men; of whether and why the athlete owes the total sacrifice of his body; of the relationship between competition and brotherhood among the players of one of history’s most glorious championship teams. And of what motivates an athlete to keep striving for more once they’ve already achieved the highest level of play they could have dreamed. On drive, on leadership, on pain, on accomplishment, on the shame of being given a role, and the glory of taking a role on: This is a powerful memoir of life and basketball that reveals new depths to the superstar athlete, and offers tremendous insight into most urgent stories being told in American society today.