Wooden: A Coach's Life (93 page)

Wicks and Rowe apologized to Wooden: Wooden interview with Akers.

“
You
don’t have to come to practice”: Hill with Wooden,
Be Quick—but Don’t Hurry!
, p. 26.

“We had to refrain from being too active after that”: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 155.

“Everybody is doing something now”: “Lew, Who? Bruins Sharp in Debut,”
Los Angeles Times
, Dec. 2, 1969.

“I’m like any fan, I guess”: “It’s More Fun Without Lew,”
Sports Illustrated
, Feb. 2, 1970.

“The esprit de corps was, frankly, not good last year”: Ibid.

“might get a little fat-headed”: Chapin and Prugh,
Wizard of Westwood
, p. 186.

“It’s more of an achievement to beat Coach Wooden”:
Sports Illustrated
, Nov. 30, 1970.

“He has no superior”: “Champion Bruins Face Upstart 49ers,”
Los Angeles Times
, Mar. 12, 1970.

“If anybody has a mystique, it’s Coach Wooden”: “Victory by Mystique,”
Sports Illustrated
, Mar. 30, 1970.

“discipline against devil-may-care”: “Bruins Turn Aggie Dream into Nightmare,”
Los Angeles Times
, Mar. 20, 1970.

“That’s beautiful”:
Sports Illustrated
, Mar. 30, 1970.

“It’s better that we’re not fawned over”:
Sports Illustrated
, Nov. 30, 1970.

“unequal treatment … double rules standard … lack of communication”: “‘Farewell’ Address by Bruin Sub Upsets Basketball Fete,”
Los Angeles Times
, May 11, 1970.

“He seemed hurt, for reasons you can imagine”: Ibid.

“crisis of authority”: “Calm Returns to UCLA After Violent Eruption,”
Los Angeles Times
, May 7, 1970.

“We, the undersigned”: Chapin and Prugh,
Wizard of Westwood
, p. 191.

“some of the players they seemed to be real pleased”: Medley,
UCLA Basketball
, p. 179.

he had written the players’ names in alphabetical order: Ibid., p. 178.

“I still think I was right in doing it”: Ibid., p. 179.

“He had been trying to divide and harass us”:
Sports Illustrated
, Nov. 30, 1970.

“A player gets the treatment he earns and deserves”: Ibid.

“have I been fair?”: Ibid.

26. THE REDHEAD

Interviews: Henry Bibby, Bob Boyd, Denny Crum, Gary Cunningham, Tommy Curtis, Larry Farmer, Ken Heitz, Terry Schofield, Jerry Tarkanian, Bill Walton, Sidney Wicks, Jamaal Wilkes, Charles Young

“as good a prospect”: Libby,
Walton Gang
, p. 101.

“Let your imagination run wild”: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 137.

“the ectomorph”: Bill Walton with Gene Wojciechowski,
Bill Walton: Nothing but Net
(New York: Hyperion, 1994), p. 66.

“I sort of enjoyed standing back there watching”: “Court Trial for UCLA’s New Gang,”
Sports Illustrated
, Jan. 10, 1972.

attended a concert with his girlfriend: Libby,
Walton Gang
, p. 100.

“It was a prank, but also a form of rebellion”: Reporter’s file for
Time
, Feb. 4, 1974.

“The older I get”: “Bruin Cagers ‘Tuning’ Up: ‘Happy Birthday’ to Coach,”
Los Angeles Times
, Oct. 15, 1970.

“That includes the Bruin team with Gail Goodrich and Walt Hazzard”: “Bruins Breeze Past Baylor in Opening Game, 108–77,”
Los Angeles Times
, Dec. 5, 1970.

“You guys were late, so you’re not starting”: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, pp. 115–16.

“Are you kidding?”: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 76.

“J. D. was never modest about telling Coach whether he was right or wrong”: J. D. Morgan Oral History, UCLA Library.

“He’d write reports on them”: Ibid.

Morgan invited the two of them to his office: Ibid.

“I could not argue”: Ibid.

“I could tell him like he told me about the scheduling”: Ibid.

“J. D. was a remarkable guy”: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 75.

“I think that was true at UCLA, to be honest with you”: J. D. Morgan Oral History, UCLA Library.

“I told you, Coach!”: “An Irish Carr Moves into High Gear,”
Sports Illustrated
, Feb 1, 1971.

“I don’t like stall basketball, but it is legal”: Medley,
UCLA Basketball
, p. 197.

Wooden chided Ridgle from the bench: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 41.

Patterson decided he wanted to quit: Hill with Wooden,
Be Quick—but Don’t Hurry!
, p. 106.

J. D. Morgan started yelling at referee Art White: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 218.

“Sidney certainly wasn’t one of my better free throw shooters”: Wooden interview with ESPN, Apr. 19, 2000.

“He told me to go sit down”: “A Close One at Last,”
Sports Illustrated
, Apr. 5, 1971.

“You guys sick?”: “UCLA Stalls Way to 5th Cage Crown,”
Sporting News
, Apr. 10, 1971.

“I personally would not have done it”: Medley,
UCLA Basketball
, p. 205.

“I’m sure you writers will put pressure on us”: Libby,
Walton Gang
, p. 107.

27. SAM

Interviews: Lucius Allen, Henry Bibby, Bob Boyd, Denny Crum, Gary Cunningham, John Ecker, Larry Farmer, Michael Gilbert, Rose Gilbert, Gail Goodrich, Fred Goss, Ken Heitz, Andy Hill, Doug Krikorian, Bob Marcucci, Tom Newell, Jim Nielsen, Don Saffer, Terry Schofield, Jerry Tarkanian, Bill Walton, Bruce Walton, Bob Webb, Sidney Wicks, Jamaal Wilkes, John Wooden, Charles Young

he had filled nearly thirty notebooks: “Court Trial for UCLA’s New Gang,”
Sports Illustrated
, Jan. 10, 1972.

“He’s so young”: Libby,
Walton Gang
, p. 112.

assembled a game-by-game prediction: Wooden with Tobin,
They Call Me Coach
, p. 171.

“It’s belittling and demeaning”: Libby,
Walton Gang
, p. 250; Medley,
UCLA Basketball
, p. 212.

“No,” Walton replied: “Walton Stirs Another Bruin Avalanche,”
Los Angeles Times
, Dec. 31, 1971.

“He may be the most dominant center ever to play basketball”:
Sports Illustrated
, Jan. 10, 1972.

“Lewis was more phlegmatic”:
Los Angeles Times
, Dec. 31, 1971.

Wooden accorded him the unprecedented privilege of calling his own time-out: Wooden with Tobin,
They Call Me Coach
, p. 183.

“I honestly thought of quitting”: Libby,
Walton Gang
, p. 37.

“That’s against the law”: Wooden interview with Akers;
Sports Illustrated
, Apr. 3, 1989.

“I’m really having fun with this team”:
Sports Illustrated
, Jan. 10, 1972.

Hill conducted a scientific sample of the student body: Hill with Wooden,
Be Quick—but Don’t Hurry!
, p. 39.

Wooden regaled Swen Nater with plans of going “snipe hunting”: Ibid., p. 44.

“We have this great UCLA image”: “Who Are These Guys?,”
Sports Illustrated
, Feb. 5, 1973.

“He told me it was disgraceful and unethical”: “Battered Ratleff Accuses Refs of Protecting UCLA,”
Los Angeles Times
, Mar. 19, 1972.

Walton “cries a lot”: “Oh, Johnny, Oh, Johnny Oh!”
Sports Illustrated
, Apr. 3, 1972.

“We didn’t play well. There’s no reason for elation”: “Fla. State Loses,”
New York Times
, Mar. 26, 1972.

“The same thing was said about the Yankees”: “Wooden Defends UCLA’s Domination,”
Los Angeles Times
, Mar. 28, 1972.

“Sam is the conscience of Sidney Wicks”: “Who Needs an Agent? Bruins Call on Sam,”
Los Angeles Times
, June 9, 1971.

“No one is worth ten percent of a man’s earnings”: Ibid.

“If a ballplayer impregnated someone, there was always a hospital available. I never paid for it, and it was my case”: “NCAA Missed the Iceberg in Westwood,”
Los Angeles Times
, Jan. 31, 1982.

“He was a referral service”: Ibid.

“I’m helping put a couple of Chicano and black kids through law school”: Reporter’s file for
Time
, Feb. 11, 1974.

“Sam Gilbert wasn’t doing it for chemistry majors”:
Los Angeles Times
, Feb. 1, 1982.

“almost as important to the program as Pauley Pavilion”: “Saga of Papa Sam and the One That Got Away,”
Los Angeles Times
, Jan. 22, 1975.

“He’s just a great dude”: Reporter’s file for
Time
, Feb. 11, 1974.

“He’s living in the guest house of a $150,000 home in Brentwood for $150 a month”: “Is Walton Parroting Gilbert?,”
Los Angeles Times
, Mar. 12, 1974.

“Bill Walton has yet to sleep inside”: Reporter’s file for
Time
, Feb. 11, 1974.

“I’ve told my family to refer them to Sam Gilbert”: “College Player of the Year,”
Sporting News
, Mar. 18, 1972.

“Sam’s friendship has meant a lot to my son”: Reporter’s file for
Time
, Feb. 11, 1974.

“Maybe it’s corny, but I love you”: Ibid.

“I just as politely, as courteously as I could, cut it off”: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 93.

“I personally hardly know Sam Gilbert”: Chapin and Prugh,
Wizard of Westwood
, p. 282.

“You didn’t get the same price everybody else got if Sam sent you”: Wooden interview with Akers.

“I can’t tell Sam Gilbert or anyone else to stay away from my players”: “Wooden: UCLA’s Violations Minor,”
Los Angeles Times
, Dec. 27, 1981.

“he turned a blind eye to that”: J. D. Morgan Oral History, UCLA Library.

“J. D. was constantly in trouble with Gilbert”: Ibid.

“If this is now allowed would you please let me know”: J. D. Morgan papers, UCLA Archives.

“A Sam Gilbert gets going because it’s tolerated at the player level and at the coach’s level”: J. D. Morgan Oral History, UCLA Library.

“These kids are lucky to have Sam because nobody else will help them”:
Los Angeles Times
, Jan. 31, 1982.

“It’s not like Coach was an ostrich about Sam, but he wouldn’t confront the problem”:
Sports Illustrated
, Apr. 3, 1989.

28. STREAKING

Interviews: Gene Bartow, Henry Bibby, Tommy Curtis, Larry Farmer, Bill Walton, Bruce Walton, Jamaal Wilkes, John Wooden

“He’s the type who is either totally committed or totally disinterested”: Reporter’s file for
Time
, Feb. 4, 1974.

“Boy, could he get excited”: “Bill Walton Won’t You Please Play Ball?”
Sports Illustrated
, Jan. 27, 1975.

“On the floor, Bill was a leader”: “Winning or Waiting, John Wooden Knows Meaning of Pressure,”
Los Angeles Times
, Mar. 4, 1984.

“I’m going back to the campus” and other details on Walton’s arrest: “Walton Arrested in Sitdown,”
Los Angeles Times
, May 12, 1972; “Walton Fined, Gets Probation for Protesting,”
Los Angeles Times
, June 9, 1972; Reporter’s file for
Time
, May 14, 1972; Reporter’s file for
Time
, Feb. 4, 1974; “Tall Stories,”
Sports Illustrated
, May 22, 1972; Chapin and Prugh,
Wizard of Westwood
, p. 277; Walton with Wojciechowski,
Bill Walton
, p. 22.

“That is not in my bailiwick”:
Sports Illustrated
, May 22, 1972.

“I’m sorry it happened”: “‘Sorry It Happened,’ Says UCLA’s Nater,”
Los Angeles Times
, July 22, 1972.

“I’m not a very strong, pro-Olympic person”: Wooden interview with ESPN, Aug. 13, 2002.

“I really can’t answer that”: Ibid.

“Johnny Wooden … has another side that most people don’t know about”: Phil Jackson and Charley Rosen,
More Than a Game
(New York: Simon & Schuster, 2002), p. 128.

“I was disappointed that our players did not accept the silver medals”: Wooden interview with ESPN, Aug. 13, 2002.

“Thanking you in advance for your consideration in this matter”: “Walton: Basketball’s Vegetarian Tiger,”
Time
, Feb. 25, 1974.

“I don’t have blind reverence for authority”: Ibid.

“I’ve always told my players to be quick but don’t hurry”: “Deliberate, Wan Wooden Returns to Coaching Duties,”
Los Angeles Times
, Dec. 22, 1972.

“He lives a lonely, at times tormenting existence”: “Wooden’s Job Tougher Than People Think”:
Los Angeles Times
, Dec. 25, 1972.

“I don’t know whether winning is always good”: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 88.

“These last few years haven’t been the happiest in our lives”: Chapin and Prugh,
Wizard of Westwood
, p. 316.

“Daddy’s job wasn’t fun for us”:
Sports Illustrated
, Apr. 3, 1989.

he earned only $35,000 per year: “Morgan: Bruin Power,”
Los Angeles Times
, July 23, 1972.

“All I can tell you is that Mom especially was really angry about that”: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 102.

“There was a time if my dad had endorsed a shoe”: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 262.

“There’s no sense trying to soft-pedal it”: “Streak Can’t Last Forever—Wooden,”
Los Angeles Times
, Jan. 25, 1973.

“I wouldn’t turn him on, but he doesn’t bug me”:
Sports Illustrated
, Feb. 5, 1973.

“It’s a two-way street”: “Wooden Apologizes to Phelps, Shumate,”
Los Angeles Times
, Feb. 25, 1973.

“He asked me if I had read his book”: “It’s 61 and All-Time No. 1 for UCLA,”
Los Angeles Times
, Jan. 28, 1973.