Whale Talk by Crutcher

The Tao Jones, or T.J., is a smattering of racial backgrounds and a dynamite athlete. But he hates being told to what to do, so he never tries out for competitive sports. In his jockaholic high school, it's about the same as burning the flag, so T.J. gets a lot of guff about it. When his favorite teacher approaches T.J. to start a swim team, T.J. sees it as his opportunity to mess with the system. He starts recruiting every outcast and malcontent he can, wanting to make it clear that everyone has a place. Unfortunately, this is realistic fiction, which means nothing ever has a clear-cut happy ending. Someone ends up a winner, someone ends up a loser, and someone ends up dead.