John Feinstein, a sportswriter and bestselling author of dozens of sports-themed books including A Season on the Brink and A Good Walk Spoiled, died Thursday. He was 69.
His brother, Robert Feinstein, confirmed to the Washington Post, where Feinstein had worked for much of his career, that he died suddenly but said the cause was not immediately clear. The writer’s final piece for the Post, which appeared just a day before his passing, was a profile of Michigan State men’s basketball coach Tom Izzo.
Feinstein joined the Post in 1977 as a night police reporter but soon found his groove in the sports department. His enterprise reporting and personality-focused work led to book deals, and in all he wrote more than 40 books. A Season on the Brink, about Indiana’s volatile but successful men’s basketball coach, Bobby Knight, put Feinstein on the media map when it was published in 1986. He also explored golf, tennis, the NFL, NBA, Major League Baseball and the Olympics.
After establishing himself as a writer, Feinstein became a recognizable TV and radio personality, sharing his sports analysis over many decades on ESPN, NPR, Golf Channel and SiriusXM.
Tributes quickly started circulating on social media. “We have lost one of the greatest basketball (and tennis) writers ever,” NBA writer Marc Stein posted on X. “John Feinstein was a multisport legend in this industry. And will be sadly, sorely missed.”
Dick Weiss, a longtime college basketball writer, posted, “I’m still in shock. just spoke with him. he was supposed to stay with us Sunday night” before appearing at a charity breakfast in Philadelphia.
Pat Forde of Sports Illustrated called it “tremendously sad news,” and said Feinstein “meant so much for the coverage of March Madness.”
The Atlantic 10 Conference said it would leave Feinstein’s seat on press row vacant for Thursday night’s college basketball tournament games. “The Atlantic 10 joins the college basketball world in mourning the unexpected passing of John Feinstein,” Commissioner Bernadette V. McGlade said in a statement. “John was a legendary storyteller who built lasting relationships with our coaches, players and administrators. College basketball lost a hall of fame writer, and we will miss his presence on our sideline at our championship each March.”
