Wizard of Westwood Revisited

He thinks the slam dunk has hurt basketball and should be banned. He believes that star players have overwhelmed the team spirit of the game. The purest basketball, he says, is being played by women.

Strong opinions, no doubt. But when they are expressed by John Wooden, they are worth listening to.

The Wizard of Westwood hasn’t coached for 25 years, yet his 10 national championships at UCLA--seven of them in a row--remain an unprecedented achievement in any sport.

He turns 90 on Oct. 14, and with customary modesty, has declined any public celebration.

“UCLA wanted to do something special; the chancellor called me, and then he sent a couple of assistants to try to talk me into it,” Wooden said. “Some members of my teams want to do something. I said no.

“I don’t want anything made of it. There’s no difference--89 or 79 or whatever. I remember Maurice Chevalier saying at 80, ‘It’s nice, considering the alternative.”’

Wooden will spend the birthday with his family: his two children, son James and daughter Nan and their families, which include seven grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

Wooden shows signs of his age. He has been forced to abandon his morning walks since a hip replacement. He walks with care and needs several tries to rise from a deep chair. He faces two knee replacements some time in the future.

His mind is a sharp as ever. He can remember the details of games played several decades ago. He is perfectly candid in expressing his opinions. Only once during an interview did he dodge a question. He had no comment on Bob Knight, fired as Indiana’s coach last month.

“I don’t see any point in my getting involved in that,” Wooden said firmly.

Wooden lives near the Ventura Freeway in an Encino condominium jammed with photographs, books, trophies, awards, and enough memorabilia to fill a museum. There are also pictures of Abraham Lincoln, his favorite American, and Sister Teresa, his favorite person.

Hidden among the awards is one he treasures the most.

“When I graduated from Purdue, I received the Big Ten medal as the senior athlete with the highest grade-point average,” he said proudly. “I did that. The other awards my teams won.”

John Robert Wooden is a Hoosier. He was born in Martinsville, Ind., on Oct. 14, 1910. He won all-state honors for three years at his local high school and was All-America guard at Purdue in 1930-32. He coached high school for 11 years (218 wins, 11 losses), then at Indiana State before coming to UCLA in 1948. His teams won 10 NCAA championships in 12 years and enjoyed a streak of 38 straight victories in the tournaments.

His lifetime record in 40 years of coaching: 885 wins, 203 losses. Average: .813.

Wooden remembers all 180 of his Bruin players, and he still hears from many of them. Bill Walton called six times from Australia during the Sydney Games.

Throughout his career, Wooden had the unceasing help and support from his wife, Nell. Before every game, he would turn and nod to her in the stands, and she would reply with an OK sign. They were high school sweethearts, and he seems never to have recovered from her death in 1985. On the 21st of every month, the day that she died, he writes a love letter to her, ties it with a yellow ribbon along with the others he has written, and places the stack on her bedroom pillow.

On a recent autumn day, Wooden sat in an upright chair and answered questions on a variety of matters, speaking without hesitation.

Question: Do you remember when you first had a basketball in your hands?

Wooden: Yes. It was in grade school, back in Indiana. My first basketball was one my mother made. She took an old sock, made it as round as possible, and covered it with rags. Then in grade school, we had real basketballs, quite different from today’s balls. They were made of leather.

Q. How do today’s athletes differ from those you coached?

Wooden: I think the athleticism today is remarkable. There are better training facilities. The individuals are much better. I don’t think team play is much better. I think as the individual players have become so good, coaches tend to let them go on their own too much, just because they are so good. I think television has taken away from team play. Many players are actors, even many coaches are actors. And officials, to some degree.

Q. Do you have any regrets about retiring when you did, after winning the 1975 national title?

Wooden: Not at all. It was a rather sudden decision; I expected to teach two more years. The only part I miss is the practices. I enjoyed the practices, and I enjoyed planning and conducting the practices. That’s where you get to know your players and establish rapport with them. I miss that, but nothing else. I don’t miss the games and the folderol that goes along with them.

Q. Do you watch the NBA on television?

Wooden: I’m not too thrilled with the professional games. I do watch some, particularly when they get into the playoffs. I think (the NBA) has turned into too much showmanship. I also feel that it’s more like wrestling than basketball. They don’t call traveling; they take three or four steps. They all carry the ball. It’s just a different game, and I have trouble accepting it. I think the purest basketball is played by the collegiate women’s teams. They don’t play above the rim; they play below the rim. The way they handle the ball is purer than even the men’s (college basketball).

Q. Then you’re not a fan of the dunk?

Wooden: I’ve never liked the dunk. I thought it was the best thing for basketball when they outlawed it, and I didn’t like when they put it back in. I think it brings on selfishness, showmanship, too much individual play. You go to a game now, and the crowd just roars and stamps their feet at a fancy dunk. You see a good play--a spin-and-roll, a give-and-go and a basket--and you get a smattering of applause. But for a fancy dunk they just raise the roof. I don’t like it. But I think it will stay because the fans love it.

Q. Are there any basketball rules you’d like to see changed?

Wooden: I’d like to see them outlaw the dunk. I’d like to see the officials call a game. I’d like to see them call traveling, carrying the ball, moving screens. That doesn’t necessarily mean rule changes. I’d also like to see them widen the lanes to the international rules; that would help a little bit.

I talked to an NBA official once and I asked him what traveling was. He said, “What do you think it is?” I said, “I think that for superstars, there’s no limit. I think rookies can only take twice the number of steps they’re allowed.” He laughed and said, “You know, we call one of the superstars for traveling, we wouldn’t be refereeing very long.”

Q. Do you ever get bored with basketball?

Wooden: I think it’s the greatest spectator game in the world. I think there are definite reasons for it. First of all, it’s played with the largest object; the basketball is much larger than the football, baseball, hockey puck. You’re closer to the action than you are in football and baseball. It’s a game of action, and from a fan point of view, you’re closer to the action. I think more spectators think they know more about basketball than spectators do of any other sport.

Q. What do you think of the trend for college players to leave early for the NBA?

Wooden: I think in most cases--not all--it’s a mistake for them personally. They get a lot of money, but they’re not ready for it, not mature enough, for the most part. They’re thrown into a life of people older than they are, and an entirely different type of life. They’re missing years of associating with people their own age, their own interests. I wouldn’t say every one, but the vast majority would be better off finishing their education.

Q. Is there a single game that stands out in your memory?

Wooden: Yes, the 1974 semifinal in the NCAA tournament when we lost in a double overtime to North Carolina State. Why pick a game we lost? A lot of reasons. I don’t want to take credit away from them, but I think we lost the game. We had an 11-point lead in the second half and lost it. We normally didn’t do that. We had a seven-point lead in overtime and lost it. Things that we did we just didn’t normally do.

We were just outplayed. That’s usually the case. When you lose a game, you were just outplayed. They may not be a better team, but they can outplay you in that particular game.

Q. Do you consider yourself a coach who teaches, or a teacher who coaches?

Wooden: I’m a teacher. Just a teacher.