1910 - 2010
When I opened my MSN front page browser this morning, I was very sad to see that the legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden passed away this past Friday at the age of 99.
If you don't know who this man was and what he stood for, you absolutely need to find out. He didn't invent the game of basketball, but he certainly perfected the way it should be coached.
There is not one fan of basketball in the U.S. regardless of the team they pledge their allegiance to that doesn't have the highest regard and respect for John Wooden's accomplishments as a coach, mentor, and as a man of dignity.
When I opened my MSN front page browser this morning, I was very sad to see that the legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden passed away this past Friday at the age of 99.
If you don't know who this man was and what he stood for, you absolutely need to find out. He didn't invent the game of basketball, but he certainly perfected the way it should be coached.
There is not one fan of basketball in the U.S. regardless of the team they pledge their allegiance to that doesn't have the highest regard and respect for John Wooden's accomplishments as a coach, mentor, and as a man of dignity.
"You can make mistakes, but you are not a failure until you blame others for those mistakes. When you blame others you are trying to excuse yourself. When you make excuses you cannot properly evaluate yourself. Without proper evaluation, failure is inevitable.”
His famous words of wisdom (Woodenisms) and model behavior extended well beyond the hardwood floor, and without a doubt his attributes will continue to inspire generations of persons to come.
Wooden was as humble as the day is long, which is difficult to do when you are the coach of a UCLA basketball program that has won 10 championships in 12 years. It pretty much gives you the right to tell all other Division 1 NCAA basketball squads to kiss where the sun doesn't shine. But a class act like Wooden never gloats in victory. Instead, I imagine he would have focused on the 2 years during his tenor UCLA didn't cut the nets and raise the trophy.
One of the many great basketball players that Wooden coached at UCLA was Lew Alcindor, later known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
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