Miles “Deuce” McBride became a father and an author, in short order.
The combination made the experiences more fulfilling.
“It was a crazy thing to put out a children’s book and then have my daughter be born really at the same time, lining up,” the Knicks guard said in an interview with The Post. “But it means so much more, just the fact that she’s going to grow up with a dad who was able to do something like this.
“And hopefully have more books coming after this.”
Indeed, summer 2025 was a highlight-reel offseason for McBride. He and girlfriend, former West Virginia University swimmer Ana Zortea, welcomed their daughter, Ace McBride.
The name works as a nice companion to her father’s moniker — Ace and Deuce.
Within days of Ace’s birth, McBride announced the release of his children’s book on Amazon, “Deuce: The Champion of Friendship,” a story of basketball and empathy as a uniting force.
It was part of a mission inspired by Kobe Bryant, whose life after retirement followed an altruistic path geared toward teaching youth basketball through his Mamba Academy.
“It’s kind of interesting because I really wasn’t a Kobe fan growing up,” McBride said. “And then after he retired and started leaving a legacy off the court of giving back to the game, that’s when I really became more of a fan of his.
“Since I was younger, I always wanted to grow up and be a role model for younger kids. And I felt like doing a children’s book would be a good start in leaving a good legacy.”
Deuce: The Champion of Friendship.’
Still just 25 years old and entering his fifth season with the Knicks, McBride has toured classrooms for public readings. The next stop is at a school in his hometown of Cincinnati, where McBride evolved from a star high school quarterback to an NBA point guard.
Then, McBride returns to NYC for appearances at a Bronx school and Manhattan hospital.
“We’ve had some people order pretty large amounts of the book, people at the public readings for their classrooms and for their schools,” McBride said. “So it’s been pretty well received.”
With Knicks training camp around the corner, McBride’s book tour will soon take a break.
But he’s already plotting the next project.
And maybe Ace, still just 3 months old, will be old enough to understand it.
“I’ve started thinking about the next book and excited to see where the journey takes me,” McBride said.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
