Brantley Watson: Wooden’s guidance, humility made him a masterpiece
Jamal Wilkes spoke at Pauley Pavilion Saturday afternoon, less than 24 hours after the passing of John Wooden.
By Brantley Watson
June 6, 2010 7:59 p.m.
After the passing of John Wooden, the consensus greatest coach of all-time, it is my opinion that the Wizard of Westwood’s legacy will be defined in two parts.
The lesser half of that legacy is John Wooden, the coach; the greater half of that legacy is John Wooden the mentor, John Wooden the teacher, John Wooden the man.
In the eyes of many, Wooden is famous for his on-court success. But to those who knew him, Wooden was so much more, and then some.
Jamaal Wilkes played three seasons under the late coach from 1972 to 1974, and helped bring home back-to-back titles in 1972 and 1973. Wilkes then went on to win four NBA championships, three with the Los Angeles Lakers and one with the Golden State Warriors.
But despite his success on the collegiate and professional levels, Wilkes is most thankful for another title that he earned: a friend of John Wooden.
“There was just so much depth to this man that he really, without preaching or condemning, but through examples, he challenged you to better yourself,” Wilkes explained. “The impact comes years later when you really go through the ups and downs of life. … That’s the greatest thing, having a mentor and a friend.”
Saturday morning, sitting on a fold-out chair on Nell and John Wooden Court in Pauley Pavilion, a bright-eyed Wilkes spoke with reporters, looking back on several moments that he shared with Coach Wooden.
And standing less than a foot away from the former champion, I got the feeling that even if Wooden had never led Wilkes to a single championship during his career at UCLA, the lessons Wooden taught him would be reason enough for Wilkes to admire the coach for a lifetime.
“I remember my sophomore year, he called me to the side after practice, and I was terrified,” Wilkes recalled. “He said, “˜I want to see how you shoot that ball.'”
Wilkes was notorious for having an odd shooting motion throughout his entire career.
“I’m shooting the ball, and I’m drilling it,” Wilkes said. “Then he comes to me and says, “˜Okay, how does that ball leave your hands?’ And then we went through the whole motion, and he said, “˜OK, fine, go home.'”
“Years later we would laugh about it,” Wilkes continued. “(Wooden) said he thought about changing my shot but he decided not to. But that was huge. It allowed me to be different and I thrived.”
Wilkes explained that Wooden never stood atop a soapbox. He never preached. He allowed you to be who you were, while carefully guiding you along the way.
“We always have choices and we didn’t always make the right choices,” Wilkes said. “But we always had a resource to go to make better choices. He was a man of few words and I think that’s why people admired him so much. Because when he said something, he said something that you needed to hear.”
Another aspect of Wooden that will live on is his modesty. On several occasions, I can recall Wooden during interviews, cringing at the idea of being referred to as the greatest coach to ever live. Wooden believed it was impossible to judge who was the greatest coach. He was simply grateful to God for his success.
“I remember seeing him pick up trash in the locker room,” Wilkes said. “We were all sitting there kind of looking at each other in disbelief because that’s John Wooden picking up trash. That said so much more than he could have ever said.”
It was also widely known that Wooden did not fear death and believed in living every day like it was his last. With that said, Wilkes recalled the brighter side of the coach, who still enjoyed a little fun even in his later days.
“I’d meet him occasionally for breakfast at his favorite place. (I) can’t describe it. He’s really a funny man, great sense of humor. He loved to flirt with the young ladies … but all in good taste.”
And with Coach Wooden, we know that any flirting he did meant nothing, because never has a man shown more devotion to his wife.
When visiting the late coach in the hospital Tuesday, Wilkes recalled that Wooden was adamant that he be clean-shaven upon his departure.
Why?
“So he can look good for Nelly,” Wilkes said.
In the end, Wilkes expressed his peace with Coach Wooden’s life and death.
“He led a great life, and when you live good, you die good.”
So when asked what one word he would use to describe the late coach, Wilkes knows, as do I, that only one word can define what coach Wooden is, was and will always be …
“Masterpiece.”
You will be missed, Coach Wooden.
E-mail Watson at [email protected].
