jpg. Grisham's new book, “Sooley,” centers on Samuel Sooleymon, a player for the North Carolina Central University basketball team, who perseveres through hardships in hopes of earning an NBA contract so that he can rescue family members from civil war in his native Sudan.

Is Sooley a true story?

John Grisham's latest tells a fictional basketball story set at NC Central University. ... But in the absence of buzzer-beaters, the novelist best-known for legal thrillers turned his imagination to the basketball court, turning out “Sooley,” his pandemic novel set on the hardwoods.

Who was Samuel Sooleymon?

Samuel Sooleymon, nicknamed Sooley, is a 17-year-old playing on dirt courts in his native South Sudan when we first meet him. Growing like a weed and with an infectious passion for the game, soon he's in Orlando playing on a team of traveling Sudanese all-stars, showcasing his skills for college coaches.