Wizard With a Cue, Too

They called him the Wizard of Westwood, but John Wooden’s wizardry wasn’t confined to the gymnasium.

Ray Didinger of the Philadelphia Daily News, borrowing from Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s autobiography, “Giant Steps,” tells how Wooden walked into a Westwood pool hall one day and watched as several of his players showed off their skills.

Lucius Allen, the team hustler, sank a few balls and handed the stick to Wooden as a joke.

Didinger: “Wooden surveyed the table and calmly sank seven balls in a row, including several long angles and combinations. He handed the stick back to Allen and left with a simple, ‘That’s enough.’ ”

Wrote Abdul-Jabbar: “There were a lot of raised eyebrows on the squad.”

Add Wooden: Gail Goodrich recalled Wooden routinely sinking 20 consecutive foul shots one day before practice.

“He had better form than anyone on the team,” Goodrich said, “and we were the national champions.”

Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post made a list of 40 changes he’d make if he were appointed Supreme Being of Baseball. A couple:

--”No major league umpire shall be allowed to consist of more than 49% body fat.”

--”Any manager who is fired three times shall be forced to go to manager school for a year.”

Trivia Time: What NBA team has a starting lineup that includes players from Longwood, Albany State, Eastern Illinois and Wisconsin Stevens Point? (Answer below.)

NBC’s Charlie Jones and Chicago Bears Coach Mike Ditka hadn’t spoken since a couple of seasons ago when Jones ripped Bear linebacker Otis Wilson for a vicious hit on Pittsburgh receiver Louis Lipps.

According to USA Today, Jones approached Ditka at a roast of Dick Butkus the other night and asked if they were on speaking terms.

“Of course we are, Charlie,” Ditka said. “It’s Otis Wilson who’s not speaking to you. Of course, he’s not speaking to me, either.”

21 Years Ago Today: On April 21, 1967, the scheduled game between the Dodgers and the St. Louis Cardinals at Dodger Stadium was rained out. The Dodgers had played 737 consecutive games without a rainout since moving here in 1958.

For What It’s Worth: Chili Davis of the Angels is one of only two players with double figures in home runs and stolen bases in each of the last six years. The other is Andre Dawson.

Trivia Answer: The Portland Trail Blazers. The players are Jerome Kersey (Longwood, Va.), Caldwell Jones (Albany State, Ga.), Kevin Duckworth (Eastern Illinois) and Terry Porter (Wisconsin Stevens Point). The other starter is Clyde Drexler (Houston).

Quotebook

Milwaukee Bucks Coach Del Harris, who holds a college degree in religion, on his days as a minister: “I married ‘em, buried ‘em and baptized ‘em, but it was hard to tell about the wins and losses.”