In the tradition of Blood in the Garden and Three-Ring Circus comes a bold history of the iconic UCLA Bruins championship teams led by legendary coach John Wooden Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton--set against the turmoil of American culture in the 1960s and 70s. Few basketball dynasties have reigned supreme like the UCLA Bruins did over college basketball from 1965-1975 (seven consecutive titles three perfect records an eighty-eight-game winning streak that remains unmatched). At the center of this legendary franchise were the now-iconic players Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton naturally reserved personalities who became outspoken giants when it came to race and the Vietnam War. These generational talents were led by John Wooden a conservative counterweight to his star players whose leadership skills would transcend the game after his retirement. But before the three of them became history they would have to make it--together. Los Angeles native and longtime sportswriter for the Los Angeles Times Scott Howard-Cooper draws on more than a hundred interviews and extensive access to many of the principal figures including Wooden s family to deliver a rich narrative that reveals the turmoil at the heart of this storied college basketball program. Making the eye-opening connections between UCLA and the Nixon administration Ronald Reagan Muhammad Ali and others Kingdom on Fire puts the UCLA basketball team s political involvement and influence in full relief for the first time. Perceptive and exciting this is a slam dunk for college hoops fans (Publishers Weekly).