Wooden has Died

[Mr. Sun]

RIP Mr. Legend.

Wooden led the Bruins to 10 NCAA championships -- at one time winning seven in a row -- during a 27-year run that ended with his team cutting down the nets one last time in 1975.

The Bruins won 88 consecutive games from 1971-74 and 38 consecutive NCAA tournament games from 1964-74, both records.

[MaryvalesFinest]

From coaching KAJ to former Sun Matt Barnes, now that is a long coaching career...

[Mr. Sun]

The life lessons taught by John Wooden have become legend. Here's a collection of some of the greatest "Woodenisms."

"Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out."

"Never mistake activity for achievement."

"Adversity is the state in which man mostly easily becomes acquainted with himself, being especially free of admirers then."

"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are."

"Be prepared and be honest."

"You can't let praise or criticism get to you. It's a weakness to get caught up in either one."

"You can't live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you."

"What you are as a person is far more important that what you are as a basketball player."

"Winning takes talent, to repeat takes character."

"A coach is someone who can give correction without causing resentment."

"I'd rather have a lot of talent and a little experience than a lot of experience and a little talent."

"If you don't have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?"

"If you're not making mistakes, then you're not doing anything. I'm positive that a doer makes mistakes."

"It isn't what you do, but how you do it."

"Ability is a poor man's wealth."

"Failure is not fatal, but failure to change might be."

"Consider the rights of others before your own feelings, and the feelings of others before your own rights."

"Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do."

"Don't measure yourself by what you have accomplished, but by what you should have accomplished with your ability."

"It's not so important who starts the game but who finishes it."

"It's what you learn after you know it all that counts."

"It's the little details that are vital. Little things make big things happen."

"Talent is God given. Be humble. Fame is man-given. Be grateful. Conceit is self-given. Be careful."

"The main ingredient of stardom is the rest of the team."

"Success comes from knowing that you did your best to become the best that you are capable of becoming."

"Success is never final, failure is never fatal. It's courage that counts."

[Mr. Sun]

It was then that UCLA called, though Wooden didn't take the job to get rich. He never made more than $35,000 in a season, and early in his career he worked two jobs to make ends meet.

"My first four years at UCLA, I worked in the mornings at a dairy from six to noon then I'd come into UCLA," he told The Associated Press in 1995. "Why did I do it? Because I needed the money. I was a dispatcher of trucks in the San Fernando Valley and was a troubleshooter. After all the trucks made their deliveries and came back, I would call in the next day's orders, sweep out the place and head over the hill to UCLA."

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/sports/college ... z0pwktGEmZ

Wonder what UCLA pays their coach now??

[LV-Suns]

From coaching KAJ to former Sun Matt Barnes, now that is a long coaching career...

He retired in 1975.

[MaryvalesFinest]

From coaching KAJ to former Sun Matt Barnes, now that is a long coaching career...

He retired in 1975.

Thought he coached for 30 years, must have been thinking of someone else.

[Stix]

From coaching KAJ to former Sun Matt Barnes, now that is a long coaching career...

He retired in 1975.

[Mr. Sun]

Loved this article:

I worry about him, though. Earlier this year, his walker caught on the rug and he fell. He was on the floor—with a broken wrist and a broken collarbone—from 9 p.m. until someone found him at 7 the next morning. "What'd you do that whole time?" I asked.

"Froze!" he said.

Now he has someone with him 24/7, which is one reason he's selling "the best car [he] ever owned." So what about buying it, Tyler? You know how chicks love a pimped-out great-grandfather's 1989 Ford Taurus, right?

When I said goodbye last week, I mentioned that the next time we visit, he'd be 100. "How will you celebrate?" I asked.

"Probably from a stretcher," he said.

And he'll still be the most upright guy in town.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?id=3669154

[MrVince]

RIP. Very sad loss, I will remember him as the Greatest Coach ever.

[JMac1]

The UCLA family will miss you. We were proud to have you represent our school so well.

[JMac1]

I thought I'd share with you guys......

To the Bruin Family:

With the passing of John Wooden, we have lost a true giant and a gentleman, an individual who was perhaps more closely identified with UCLA than any other person in our university’s history. Coach Wooden was an unparalleled motivator and an inspiration to people throughout the world. Those of us who were fortunate enough to meet him will forever be touched by his unfailing wisdom and generous spirit.

Coach Wooden’s record of hundreds of victories and 10 national titles established a gold standard of achievement in college athletics. Both on the court and off, he was a teacher, role model and mentor who guided his players and generations of UCLA coaches and student-athletes to become champions in life. His lasting influence has extended far beyond the campus to include leaders in academia, business and government.

The renowned Wooden Pyramid of Success–a copy of which hangs in my office–encourages us all to value cooperation, loyalty and team spirit. The Pyramid remains one of the most recognized blueprints for competitive excellence, in any pursuit.

Coach Wooden and his beloved wife, Nell, were treasured members of the UCLA family, and the Nell and John Wooden Court at Pauley Pavilion is a lasting testament to their place in our hearts.

John Wooden’s remarkable legacy will stand forever at UCLA. Today, as we mourn his loss, we also extend our deepest sympathy to his daughter, Nan, his son, James, and his entire family.

The university flag in front of Pauley Pavilion will be lowered to half-staff, and a public memorial is being planned. Please visit the UCLA homepage for further information, as well as links to news articles and remembrances of Coach Wooden.

Sincerely,

Gene D. Block
Chancellor

UCLA Alumni Association, James West Alumni Center, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1397
Copyright 2010 - All material copyright of the UCLA Alumni Association

[Miklo]

RIP, what a legend.