UCLA's Pauley Pavilion, recently renamed the NELL & JOHN WOODEN COURT, played host to a memorial service for the legendary coach for whom the facility was renamed, who died June 4th at the age of 99. Legends of sports, many of whom WOODEN coached or mentored in some way, took their turns honoring the man.
The event was moderated by AL MICHEALS, with other Hall of Fame announcers DICK ENBERG and VIN SCULLY taking submitting video messages for the event. SCULLY appeared with JOHN WOODEN in a very special appearance at the Nokia Theater back in 2008, where both legends answered questions onstage before an enraptured audience.
Even at 97, JOHN WOODEN had plenty to say, and an audience willing to listen.
On Saturday, the likes of KAREEN ABDHUL JABBAR, BILL WALTON and JAMAAL WILKES relayed stories of how WOODEN, through his basketball, and overall, life lessons, shaped these young men into the champions, and upright citizens that they are today. Others in attendance paying tribute to WOODEN included MARQUES JOHNSON, DAVE MEYERS, WALT HAZZARD, GAIL GOODRICH, HENRY BIBBY, SIDNEY WICKS, KEITH ERICKSON, LYNN SHAKELFORD, WILLIE NAULLS, JERRY WEST, Dodger manager JOE TORRE, and even New York Yankee DEREK JETER, who was in town beating up on the Dodgers over the weekend.
Records JOHN WOODEN'S team achieved will never be broken. He won 10 NCAA Basketball Championships. The next nearest tallies include Kentucky's ADOLPH RUPP and Duke's MIKE KRZYZEWSKI, who won last year. They each have 4. UCLA, under WOODEN, won 7 consecutive championships, starting in 1967. Between 1970 and 1974 WOODEN coached the Bruins to 88 consecutive wins. The streak included 3 National Championship wins, and an average winning margin of nearly 24 points a game. It bested by 28 games, the previous record held by the San Francisco Dons, led by BILL RUSSELL and K.C.JONES.
WOODEN, a national champion as a player with Purdue, is most known for his Pyramid of Success formula which is the blueprint for his students to achieve their lofty goals. So many of WOODEN'S proteges did just that. The cornerstones of the pyramid are "industriousness" and "enthusiasm", with the peak of the structure being "competitive greatness." Into his 90's, WOODEN was still preaching the formula, sharing his "curriculum" with high school and college coaches and educators, for use in their classrooms and gymnasiums. "Young people need role models, not critics," WOODEN would say.
JOHN WOODEN worked with the Los Angeles Athletic Club, and RICHARD LLEWELLYN, it's longtime executive, to establish "The Wooden Award", which was presented to the best male, and female college basketball player each year. The award was LLEWELLYN'S idea, and he sold it to the club, and then got JOHN onboard. The first award was presented in 1977, to MARQUES JOHNSON, a former WOODEN player. JOHN remained involved until 2005, most times presenting the award in person. LLEWELYN died this year as well, just hours before JOHN.
In 40 years of coaching, JOHN WOODEN had only 1 losing season, but he was humble to a fault. "Mother Theresa was famous. Nobel Prize winners are famous. Basketball coaches aren't famous...I was a person who was a teacher who happened to be in the public eye...I don't want to be remembered as a basketball coach who won a lot of games. The players did that."
Perhaps you are familiar with some WOODENISMS:
"Be quick, but don't hurry."
"Failing to prepare is preparing to fail."
"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are; your reputation is merely what others think you are."
"Ability may get you to the top, but it takes character to keep you there."
JOHN WOODEN, what a character!
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