Hoop DreamsHoop Dreams is the story of two young men who want to become basketball players in the NBA. Author Ben Joravsky wrote the book. The idea for the book came from the documentary film Hoop Dreams, which is a true story. Arthur Agee and William Gates are the names of the two boys who were followed from eighth to twelfth grade to make the film. Arthur Agee was a 5'6, 125 pound guard from Chicago's playgrounds when St. Joseph's recruiters saw him. Arthur was playing against a guy three years older than him and he was still the best in the neighborhood. Arthur's parents, Bo and Sheila Agee, were very poor people who used cocaine and could not provide for their family. Big Earl, the guy who recruited Arthur told his family that St. Joe's would be able to pay Arthur's tuition if he played basketball for them. Arthur went to St. Joe's and met William Gates. They had become friends in elementary school but never really did anything together. Ultimately, William turned out to be the better player and all the attention and money was focused on him. As a result, Arthur was kicked out of St. Joe's in the middle of the school year. He was forced to enroll at Marshall, the area's public school. As a result, Arthur could see his NBA dreams slipping away. Along with that, he couldn't keep his grades high enough to attend a Division I school. He and the Marshall Commandos ended up spending Arthur's senior year downstate. They finished third overall in the state. Arthur ended up attending a college called Mineral Area in Flat River, Mississippi. After his two years at Mississippi, Arthur received a scholarship to Arkansas State. He completed his studies in communications and graduated. Arthur never fulfilled his dream of going to the NBA, at least for now. As you can see, it takes a lot for a boy from an inner city to try to achieve his dream, but most of the time it never happens. William Gates was also 14 when he was recruited to attend St. Joseph. He and Arthur both had to wake up around 5:30 every morning so they could catch the subway and get to school on time..