View source for John Wooden

{{Short description|American basketball coach (1910–2010)}}
{{pp-move}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Infobox college coach
| name = John Wooden
| image = John Wooden.JPG
| alt = 
| caption = Wooden, {{Circa|1972}}
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1910|10|14|mf=y}}
| birth_place = [[Hall, Indiana]], U.S.
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2010|6|4|1910|10|14|mf=y}}
| death_place = [[Los Angeles]], California, U.S.
| player_sport1 = Basketball
| player_years2 = 1929–1932
| player_team2 = [[Purdue Boilermakers men's basketball|Purdue]]
| player_years3 = 1932–1937
| player_team3 = [[Indianapolis Kautskys]]
| player_years4 = 1937–1938
| player_team4 = [[Hammond Ciesar All-Americans|Whiting / Hammond Ciesar All-Americans]]
| player_years5 = 1938–1939
| player_team5 = Indianapolis Kautskys
| player_positions = [[Guard (basketball)|Guard]]
| coach_sport1 = Basketball
| coach_years2 = 1933–1935
| coach_team2 = [[Dayton, Kentucky|Dayton HS]]
| coach_years3 = 1935–1944
| coach_team3 = [[Central High School & Boys Vocational School|South Bend Central HS]]
| coach_years4 = 1946–1948
| coach_team4 = [[Indiana State Sycamores men's basketball|Indiana State]]
| coach_years5 = 1948–1975
| coach_team5 = [[UCLA Bruins men's basketball|UCLA]]
| coach_sport6 = Baseball
| coach_years7 = 1948
| coach_team7 = [[Indiana State Sycamores baseball|Indiana State]]
| admin_years1 = 1946–1948
| admin_team1 = [[Indiana State Sycamores|Indiana State]]
| overall_record = 664–162 (college basketball)<br />7–7 (college baseball)
| bowl_record = 
| tournament_record = 
| championships = {{Plainlist|
'''As player:'''
* [[Helms Athletic Foundation|Helms]] and [[Premo-Porretta Power Poll|Premo-Porretta]] National championships (1932)
'''As head coach:'''
* 10 [[NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|NCAA tournament]] ([[1964 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|1964]], [[1965 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|1965]], [[1967 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|1967]]–[[1973 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|1973]], [[1975 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|1975]])
* 12 [[List of NCAA Division I Men's Final Four appearances by coach|NCAA regional—Final Four]] (1962, 1964, 1965, 1967–1975)
* 3 [[Pacific Coast Conference|PCC tournament]] (1953–1955)
* 15 [[Pac-12 Conference|Pac-12]] regular season (1950, 1952, 1956, 1962–1965, 1967–1975)
}}
| awards = {{Plainlist|
* '''As player:'''
* [[All-National Basketball League (United States) Team|All-NBL First Team]] (1938)
* [[National Basketball League (United States)|NBL]] scoring leader (1933)
* 3× Consensus [[NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|All-American]] ([[1930 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|1930]]–[[1932 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|1932]])
* [[Helms Foundation College Basketball Player of the Year|Helms Player of the Year]] (1932)
* [[Big Ten Medal of Honor]] (1932)
* '''As coach:'''
* [[The Sporting News#Sportsman of the Year|''The Sporting News'' Sportsman of the Year]] (1970)
* [[Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year|''Sports Illustrated'' Sportsman of the Year]] (1972)
* 5x [[Associated Press College Basketball Coach of the Year|AP College Coach of the Year]] (1967, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973)<br />7x [[Henry Iba Award]] (1964, 1967, 1969–1973)<br />5x [[NABC Coach of the Year]] (1964, 1967, 1969, 1970, 1972)<br />6x [[UPI College Basketball Coach of the Year|UPI College Coach of the Year]] (1964, 1967, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973)<br />4x [[The Sporting News Men's College Basketball Coach of the Year Award|''Sporting News'' College Coach of the Year]] (1964, 1969, 1972, 1973)
* [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] ([[List of Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients#Sports|2003]])
* [[Theodore Roosevelt Award]] (1996)
* [[Indiana Sports Hall of Fame]] (2020) 
}}
| coaching_records = 
| BASKHOF_year = 1960 (as a player) 1973 (as a coach)
| CBBASKHOF_year = 2006
| module = {{Infobox military person
| embed = yes
| allegiance = [[United States]]
| branch = [[US Navy]]
| serviceyears = 1942–1946
| rank = [[Lieutenant (navy)|Lieutenant]]
| battles = [[World War II]]
}}
}}

'''John Robert Wooden''' (October 14, 1910 – June 4, 2010) was an American [[basketball]] coach and player. Nicknamed "'''the Wizard of Westwood'''", he won ten [[National Collegiate Athletic Association]] (NCAA) [[NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|national championships]] in a 12-year period as head coach for the [[UCLA Bruins men's basketball|UCLA Bruins]], including a record seven in a row. No other team has won more than four in a row in [[NCAA Division I|Division I]] college men's or women's basketball.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Jenkins|first1=Pat Summitt; with Sally|title=Sum it up : 1,098 victories, a couple of irrelevant losses, and a life in perspective|date=2013|publisher=Crown Publishing Group|isbn=9780385347051|page=383|edition=Paperback}}</ref><ref name="AP obit"/><ref name=UCLABruins>{{cite web|url=http://uclabruins.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/ucla-wooden-page.html |title=John Wooden: A Coaching Legend |publisher=UCLABruins.com (official athletic site of the UCLA Bruins) |access-date=January 24, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090417061928/http://uclabruins.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/ucla-wooden-page.html |archive-date=April 17, 2009 }}</ref><ref name="Puma">{{cite web |url = https://www.espn.com/classic/biography/s/Wooden_John.html |title = Sportscentury Biography: Wizard of Westwood |author = Mike Puma |work = ESPN |year = 2007 |access-date = January 25, 2010 |archive-date = May 30, 2016 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160530193946/http://espn.go.com/classic/biography/s/Wooden_John.html |url-status = live }}</ref> Within this period, his teams won an NCAA men's basketball record 88 consecutive games. Wooden won the prestigious [[Henry Iba Award]] as national coach of the year a record seven times and won [[Associated Press College Basketball Coach of the Year|the Associated Press award]] five times.

As a {{convert|5|ft|10|in|adj=on}} [[Guard (basketball)|guard]]<ref>{{cite web | url=https://probasketballencyclopedia.com/player/john-wooden/ | title=John Wooden }}</ref> with the [[Purdue Boilermakers men's basketball|Purdue Boilermakers]], Wooden was the first college basketball player to be named  an [[NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans|All-American]] three times, and the [[1931–32 Purdue Boilermakers men's basketball team|1932 Purdue team]] on which he played as a senior was retroactively recognized as the pre-[[NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship|NCAA tournament]] national champion by the [[Helms Athletic Foundation]] and the [[Premo-Porretta Power Poll]].<ref>{{cite web| title =NCAA Division I Men's Basketball – NCAA Division I Champions| publisher =Rauzulu's Street| year =2004| url =http://www.rauzulusstreet.com/basketball/college/helmscollegechampionship.htm| access-date =June 17, 2014| archive-date =October 1, 2018| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20181001213129/http://www.rauzulusstreet.com/basketball/college/helmscollegechampionship.htm| url-status =live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game|editor-last=ESPN|publisher=ESPN Books|location=New York, NY|year=2009|page=542|isbn=978-0-345-51392-2}}</ref> He played professionally in the [[National Basketball League (United States)|National Basketball League]] (NBL). Wooden was inducted into the [[Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame]] as a player (1960) and as a coach (1973), the first person to be enshrined in both categories.{{efn|[[Lenny Wilkens]], [[Bill Sharman]], [[Tommy Heinsohn]], and [[Bill Russell]] are the only other basketball players who have since achieved the same honors.<ref name="NBA">{{cite web |url = http://www.nba.com/coachfile/lenny_wilkens/ |title = Lenny Wilkens Coach Bio |publisher = [[NBA]] |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150404083322/http://www.nba.com/coachfile/lenny_wilkens/ |archive-date = April 4, 2015 |url-status = dead }}</ref>}}

One of the most revered coaches in the history of sports,<ref name="AP obit">{{cite news |url = http://msn.foxsports.com/collegebasketball/story/John-Wooden-dies-UCLA-coach-99-060410 |title = John Wooden, former UCLA coach, dies |agency = Associated Press |date = June 5, 2010 |access-date = November 23, 2010 |archive-date = October 17, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121017032058/http://msn.foxsports.com/collegebasketball/story/John-Wooden-dies-UCLA-coach-99-060410 |url-status = live }}</ref> Wooden was beloved by his former players, among them Lew Alcindor (later [[Kareem Abdul-Jabbar]]) and [[Bill Walton]]. Wooden was renowned for his short, simple inspirational messages to his players (including his "Pyramid of Success"), many of which were directed at how to be a success in life as well as in basketball. Wooden's 29-year coaching career and overwhelming critical acclaim for his leadership have created a legacy not only in sports but also extending to business, personal success, and organizational leadership.<ref name="AP obit"/>

==Early life and playing career==
John Robert Wooden was born on October 14, 1910, in [[Hall, Indiana]],<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.coachwooden.com/ |title = The Journey – A Brief Professional and Personal History Timeline – 1910 |publisher = CoachWooden.com – The Official Site of Coach John Wooden |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = February 9, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100209202101/http://www.coachwooden.com/ |url-status = live }}</ref> the son of Roxie (1887–1959) and Joshua Wooden (1882–1950),<ref name="My Personal Best">{{cite book |url = https://archive.org/details/mypersonalbestli0000wood |author1 = John Wooden |author2 = Steve Jamison |title = My Personal Best: Life Lessons from an All-American Journey |publisher = McGraw-Hill |isbn = 0-07-143792-4 |date = April 2004 |access-date = January 29, 2010 |url-access = registration }}</ref> and moved with his family to a small farm in [[Centerton, Indiana|Centerton]] in 1918.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.coachwooden.com/ |title = The Journey – A Brief Professional and Personal History Timeline – 1918 |publisher = CoachWooden.com – The Official Site of Coach John Wooden |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = February 9, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100209202101/http://www.coachwooden.com/ |url-status = live }}</ref> He had three brothers:<ref name="Puma"/> Maurice, Daniel, and William,<ref name="My Personal Best"/> and two sisters, one (unnamed) who died in infancy,<ref name="My Personal Best"/> and another, Harriet Cordelia, who died from [[diphtheria]] at the age of two.<ref name="My Personal Best"/>

When he was a boy, Wooden's role model was [[Fuzzy Vandivier]] of the [[Franklin Wonder Five]], a legendary team that dominated Indiana high school basketball from 1919 to 1922. After his family moved to the town of [[Martinsville, Indiana|Martinsville]] when he was 14,<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.coachwooden.com/ |title = The Journey – A Brief Professional and Personal History Timeline – 1924 |publisher = CoachWooden.com – The Official Site of Coach John Wooden |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = February 9, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100209202101/http://www.coachwooden.com/ |url-status = live }}</ref> Wooden led his high school team to a state tournament title in 1927.<ref name = "CW1927">{{cite web |url = http://www.coachwooden.com/ |title = The Journey – A Brief Professional and Personal History Timeline – 1927 |publisher = CoachWooden.com – The Official Site of Coach John Wooden |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = February 9, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100209202101/http://www.coachwooden.com/ |url-status = live }}</ref> He was a three-time All-State selection.<ref name =UCLABruins/>
[[File:John_Wooden_Purdue.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Wooden at Purdue]]
After graduating from high school in 1928, he attended [[Purdue University]] and was coached by [[Ward Lambert|Ward "Piggy" Lambert]]. The [[1931–32 Purdue Boilermakers men's basketball team|1932 Purdue team]] on which he played as a senior was retroactively recognized as the pre-[[NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship|NCAA tournament]] national champion by the [[Helms Athletic Foundation]] and the [[Premo-Porretta Power Poll|Premo-Poretta Power Poll]].<ref>{{cite web |url = http://web1.ncaa.org/web_files/stats/m_basketball_RB/2009/D1.pdf |title = Division&nbsp;I Records |publisher = [[NCAA]] |page = 82 |year = 2009 |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = July 27, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110727114202/http://web1.ncaa.org/web_files/stats/m_basketball_RB/2009/D1.pdf |url-status = live }}</ref> John Wooden was named All-Big Ten and All-Midwestern (1930–32) while at Purdue, and he was the first player ever to be named a three-time consensus All-American.<ref name="CW1930-32">{{cite web |url = http://www.coachwooden.com/ |title = The Journey – A Brief Professional and Personal History Timeline – 1930–1932 |publisher = CoachWooden.com – The Official Site of Coach John Wooden |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = February 9, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100209202101/http://www.coachwooden.com/ |url-status = live }}</ref> In 1932, he was awarded the [[Big Ten Medal of Honor]], recognizing one student athlete from the graduating class of each Big Ten member school, for demonstrating joint athletic and academic excellence throughout their college career.<ref>{{Cite web|date=March 11, 2014|title=Big Ten Conference Celebrates 100th Anniversary of Big Ten Medal of Honor|url=https://bigten.org/news/2014/3/11/big_ten_conference_celebrates_100th_anniversary_of_big_ten_medal_of_honor.aspx|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210205151921/https://bigten.org/news/2014/3/11/big_ten_conference_celebrates_100th_anniversary_of_big_ten_medal_of_honor.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 5, 2021}}</ref> He was also selected for membership in the [[Beta Theta Pi]] fraternity.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.purduebetas.com/history.htm |title = Chapter History |author = Purdue Beta Theta Pi |access-date = January 30, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20091121165438/http://www.purduebetas.com/history.htm |archive-date = November 21, 2009 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> Wooden is also an honorary member of [[Alpha Phi Omega]] National Service Fraternity.<ref>{{cite news |url = https://apoarchive.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/FALL_1998.pdf |title = President's Message: It's a "New" Fall |author = Wilfred M. Krenek |publisher = Alpha Phi Omega |date =Fall 1998 |access-date = January 30, 2010 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> Wooden was nicknamed "The Indiana Rubber Man" for his suicidal dives on the hardcourt.<ref name="CW1930-32"/> He graduated from Purdue in 1932 with a degree in [[English studies|English]].<ref name="Puma"/>

After college, Wooden spent several years playing professional basketball in the [[National Basketball League (United States)|NBL]] with the [[Indianapolis Jets|Indianapolis Kautskys]], [[Whiting Ciesar All-Americans]], and [[Hammond Ciesar All-Americans]],<ref name="McCormick">{{cite news |url = http://www.tribstar.com/history/local_story_040200524.html |title = Historical Perspective: George Chestnut and pioneer pro basketball in Indiana |author = Mick McCormick |newspaper = Tribune-Star |date = February 9, 2008 |access-date = January 29, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://archive.today/20130204235050/http://www.tribstar.com/history/local_story_040200524.html |archive-date = February 4, 2013 |df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref name="Nelson">{{cite book |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=8HYQQYEtQ4gC&q=wooden&pg=PA24|title = The National Basketball League: A History, 1935–1949|author-link=Murry R. Nelson |author = Murry R. Nelson |publisher = McFarland |year = 2009 |isbn = 978-0-7864-4006-1 |access-date = February 7, 2010}}</ref><ref name=bbr/> while he taught and coached in the [[high school]] ranks.<ref name="Nelson"/> During one 46-game stretch, he made 134 consecutive free throws, which is still a professional record to this day (the NBA record is 97 made by [[Micheal Williams]] in 1993).<ref name="McCormick"/> One notable instance made after hitting his 100th consecutive free throw had Kautskys owner [[Frank Kautsky]] pay $100 to Wooden directly during a game.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.nba.com/pacers/news/wooden-was-citys-first-professional-star |title=Wooden Was City's First Professional Star |website=[[NBA.com]] |access-date=August 1, 2024 |archive-date=December 20, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241220225940/https://www.nba.com/pacers/news/wooden-was-citys-first-professional-star |url-status=live }}</ref> He was named to the [[All-National Basketball League (United States) Team|All-NBL First Team]] for the 1937–38 season.<ref name=bbr>{{cite web|title=John Wooden NBL Stats|work=Basketball Reference|url=https://www.basketball-reference.com/nbl/players/w/woodejo01n.html|access-date=May 19, 2022}}</ref>

During [[World War&nbsp;II]] in 1942, he joined the [[United States Navy]]. He served until 1946 and left the service as a [[lieutenant (navy)|lieutenant]].<ref name="Puma"/>

==Coaching career==

===High school===
[[File:WoodenDaytonPlaque.jpg|260px|thumbnail|left|The plaque in the gymnasium Dayton (KY) High School]]
Wooden coached two years at Dayton High School in [[Dayton, Kentucky]]. His first year at Dayton, the 1932–33 season,<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.kentucky.com/2010/06/08/1296758/mark-story-wooden-started-coaching.html| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100610231055/http://www.kentucky.com/2010/06/08/1296758/mark-story-wooden-started-coaching.html| archive-date = June 10, 2010| title = Mark Story: Wooden started coaching in Kentucky, and lost - High School Sports - Kentucky.com}}</ref> marked the only time he had a losing record (6–11) as a coach.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.coachwooden.com/ |title = The Journey – A Brief Professional and Personal History Timeline – 1932 |publisher = CoachWooden.com – The Official Site of Coach John Wooden |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = February 9, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100209202101/http://www.coachwooden.com/ |url-status = live }}</ref> After Dayton, he returned to Indiana, where he taught English, coached basketball and served as the athletic director at [[Central High School & Boys Vocational School|South Bend Central High School]]<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.coachwooden.com/ |title = The Journey – A Brief Professional and Personal History Timeline – August, 1934 |publisher = CoachWooden.com – The Official Site of Coach John Wooden |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = February 9, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100209202101/http://www.coachwooden.com/ |url-status = live }}</ref> until entering the [[United States Armed Forces|Armed Forces]].<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.coachwooden.com/ |title = The Journey – A Brief Professional and Personal History Timeline – 1934 |publisher = CoachWooden.com – The Official Site of Coach John Wooden |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = February 9, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100209202101/http://www.coachwooden.com/ |url-status = live }}</ref> Wooden spent two years at Dayton and nine years at Central. His high school coaching record over 11 years was 218–42.<ref name =UCLABruins/>

===Indiana State University===
After World War II, Wooden coached at [[Indiana State University|Indiana State Teachers College]], later renamed [[Indiana State University]], in [[Terre Haute, Indiana]], from 1946 to 1948,<ref name="Puma"/> succeeding his high school coach, [[Glenn M. Curtis]].<ref name="Meyer">{{cite news |url = http://www.indstate.edu/news/news.php?newsid=346 |title = March Madness Flashback: John Wooden |author = Paula Meyer |date = March 30, 2006 |access-date = January 29, 2010 |publisher = Indiana State University |archive-date = October 6, 2022 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20221006232728/https://www2.indstate.edu/news/news.php?newsid=346 |url-status = live }}</ref> In addition to his duties as basketball coach, Wooden also coached baseball (1948 season, 7–7 record) and served as athletic director,<ref name =UCLABruins/><ref name="Puma"/> all while teaching and completing his master's degree in education.<ref name="Meyer"/><ref name="Benson">{{cite news |url = http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/article_4870b765-a6d1-56fe-a7c2-d58009b6df78.html |title = Longtime ISU coach Coughlan to join Wooden in Valley Hall of Fame |author = Jim Benson |publisher = Bloomington Pantagraph |date = October 23, 2008 |access-date = January 28, 2010 |archive-date = January 15, 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180115184533/http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/article_4870b765-a6d1-56fe-a7c2-d58009b6df78.html |url-status = live }}</ref> In 1947, Wooden's [[Indiana State Sycamores men's basketball|basketball team]] won the [[Indiana Intercollegiate Conference]] title and received an invitation to the [[National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball]] (NAIB) National Tournament in Kansas City. Wooden refused the invitation, citing the NAIB's policy banning [[Black people|black]] players.<ref name="Meyer"/><ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.coachwooden.com/ |title = The Journey – A Brief Professional and Personal History Timeline – 1946 |publisher = CoachWooden.com – The Official Site of Coach John Wooden |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = February 9, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100209202101/http://www.coachwooden.com/ |url-status = live }}</ref> One of Wooden's players, [[Clarence J. Walker|Clarence Walker]], was a black man from [[East Chicago, Indiana]].<ref name="Meyer"/>

That same year, Wooden's alma mater Purdue University asked him to return to campus and serve as an assistant to then-head coach Mel Taube until Taube's contract expired, when Wooden would take over the program. Citing his loyalty to Taube, Wooden declined the offer, because this would have effectively made Taube a lame-duck coach.

In 1948, Wooden again led Indiana State to the conference title. The NAIB had reversed its policy banning black players that year,<ref name="CW1947">{{cite web |url = http://www.coachwooden.com/ |title = The Journey – A Brief Professional and Personal History Timeline – 1947 |publisher = CoachWooden.com – The Official Site of Coach John Wooden |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = February 9, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100209202101/http://www.coachwooden.com/ |url-status = live }}</ref> and Wooden coached his team to the NAIB National Tournament final, losing to [[Louisville Cardinals men's basketball|Louisville]]. This was the only championship game a Wooden-coached team ever lost. That year, Walker became the first black player to play in any post-season intercollegiate basketball tournament.<ref name="CW1947"/>

===UCLA===
{{more citations needed section|date=October 2017}}<!--many paragraphs have no citations-->
[[File:John Wooden with Bill Putnam and Ducky Drake.jpeg|thumb|left|200px|Wooden with assistant coach Bill Putnam and trainer [[Ducky Drake]], c. 1958]]
In the 1948–1949 season, Wooden was hired by the [[University of California, Los Angeles]], to be  the fourth basketball coach in the school's history. He succeeded [[Fred Cozens]], [[Caddy Works]], and [[Wilbur Johns]]; Johns became the school's athletic director. Wooden signed a three-year contract for $6,000 in the first year. Prior to being hired at UCLA, he had been pursued for the head coaching position at the [[Minnesota Golden Gophers men's basketball|University of Minnesota]], and it was his and his wife's desire to remain in the [[Midwestern United States|Midwest]], but inclement weather in Minnesota prevented Wooden from receiving the scheduled phone offer from the Golden Gophers. Thinking that they had lost interest, Wooden instead accepted the head coaching job with the [[UCLA Bruins men's basketball|Bruins]]. Officials from the University of Minnesota contacted Wooden immediately after he accepted the position at UCLA, but he declined their offer because he had already given his word to UCLA.<ref name="Puma"/><ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.coachwooden.com/ |title = The Journey – A Brief Professional and Personal History Timeline – 1948 |publisher = CoachWooden.com – The Official Site of Coach John Wooden |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = February 9, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100209202101/http://www.coachwooden.com/ |url-status = live }}</ref>

Wooden had immediate success, fashioning the mark of the rarest of coaches, an "instant turnaround" for an undistinguished, faltering program. Part of this success was due to his unique offensive system, the same system that countless coaches use today. John Wooden stated, "I believe my system is perfectly suited to counter all the modern defenses I have seen, and that includes run-and-jump, 1–3–1 trapping, box-and-one, triangle-and-two, and switching man-to-man."<ref>{{Cite book|title = John Wooden's UCLA Offense|last = Nater|first = Swen|publisher = Human Kinetics|year = 2006|isbn = 978-0-7360-6180-3|location = Canada|pages = xvi}}</ref>

Prior to Wooden's arrival at UCLA, the basketball program had only had two conference championship seasons in the previous 18 years. In his first season, he took a Bruins team that had posted a 12–13 record the previous year and transformed it into a [[Pacific Coast Conference]] (PCC) Southern Division champion with a 22–7 record,<ref name="Puma" /> the most wins in a season for UCLA since the school started playing basketball in 1919.<ref name="UCLA History">{{cite web |url = http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/ucla/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/MBB_History_99-128.pdf |title = UCLA History |publisher = UCLA |pages = 118–126 |year = 2007 |access-date = January 29, 2010 |archive-date = October 29, 2008 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20081029023742/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/ucla/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/MBB_History_99-128.pdf |url-status = dead }}</ref> He surpassed that number the next season with 24–7 and a second division title and overall conference title in 1950, and would add two more in his first four years. Up to that time, UCLA had collected a total of two division titles since the PCC began divisional play, and had not won a conference title of any sort since winning the [[Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference]] in 1927.

[[File:John Wooden - Southern Campus 1960.jpg|thumb|upright|Wooden in 1960]]
In spite of these achievements, Wooden reportedly did not initially enjoy his position, and his wife did not favor living in Los Angeles. When [[Mel Taube]] left Purdue in 1950, Wooden's inclination was to return to West Lafayette and finally accept the head coaching job there. He was ultimately dissuaded when UCLA officials reminded him that it was he who had insisted upon a three-year commitment during negotiations in 1948. Wooden felt that leaving UCLA prior to the expiration of his contract would be tantamount to breaking his word, even though Purdue offered more money, a car and housing.<ref name="Reilly2009">{{cite magazine |author = Rick Reilly |author-link = Rick Reilly |date= October 19, 2009 |url=https://www.espn.com/espnmag/story?id=4557758 |title = Too Short For A Column |magazine = [[ESPN The Magazine]] |access-date = January 24, 2010}}</ref>

By the 1955–56 season, Wooden had established a record of sustained success at UCLA. That year, he guided the team to its first undefeated PCC conference title and a 17-game winning streak that came to an end only at the hands of [[Phil Woolpert]]'s [[San Francisco Dons men's basketball|University of San Francisco]] team (who had [[Bill Russell]] and [[K.C. Jones]]) that eventually won the [[1956 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|1956 NCAA tournament]]. However, UCLA was unable to advance from this level over the immediately ensuing seasons, finding itself unable to return to the NCAA Tournament, as the [[Pete Newell]]-coached teams of the [[California Golden Bears men's basketball|California Golden Bears]] took control of the conference and won the [[1959 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|1959 NCAA tournament]]. Also hampering the fortunes of Wooden's team during that time period was a probation that was imposed on all UCLA sports teams in the aftermath of a [[Pacific Coast Conference#The crisis|scandal]] that involved illegal payments made to players on the school's football team. The probation was also extended to three additional schools: the University of Southern California, California and Stanford. The scandal resulted in the dismantling of the PCC conference.<ref name="Wolff">{{cite news | author = Alex Wolff | date=June 4, 2010 | url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/alexander_wolff/06/03/wooden.1964/index.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100608060709/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/alexander_wolff/06/03/wooden.1964/index.html | url-status=dead | archive-date=June 8, 2010 | title=How '64 Bruins made John Wooden | publisher = [[SI.com]] |access-date = July 21, 2010}}</ref>

By the 1961–1962 season, the probation was no longer in place and Wooden returned his team to the top of the conference. This time, however, they would take the next step, and in so doing, unleash a run of dominance unparalleled in the history of college basketball. UCLA reached the Final Four of the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history. A narrow loss, due largely to a controversial foul call in a [[1962 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|1962]] semi-final game against [[Ed Jucker]]'s eventual national champion [[Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball|Cincinnati]] team, convinced Wooden that his Bruins were ready to contend for national championships.<ref name="Wolff"/> Two seasons later in 1964, the final piece of the puzzle fell into place when assistant coach [[Jerry Norman (basketball)|Jerry Norman]] persuaded Wooden that the team's small-sized players and fast-paced offense would be complemented by the adoption of a [[zone press]] defense, which increased the probability of turnovers by the opposing team.<ref name="Wolff"/> The result was a dramatic increase in scoring, giving UCLA a powerhouse team that went 30–0 on its way to the school's first basketball national championship and first undefeated season as the Bruins beat [[Vic Bubas]]' taller and slower racially segregated Duke team 98–83 in the final. Walt Hazzard fouled out of the game late in the second half on a player control foul, but this proved to be insignificant when he cut down the net in celebration and was named tournament most valuable player. [[Gail Goodrich]] (27 points), [[Keith Erickson]], [[Fred Slaughter]], [[Jack Hirsch]], and reserve [[Kenny Washington (basketball)|Kenny Washington]] (26 points, 12 rebounds) contributed to the UCLA win. With no player taller than 6 feet, 5 inches, the Bruins' speed and zone press forced 29 turnovers and nullified the height advantage of Duke's Hack Tison and Jay Buckley, two 6-foot, 10-inch players.

In the 1964–1965 campaign, the defending NCAA champions got off to an ominous start when UCLA lost to Illinois by 27 points in its opening game.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/ucla/1965-schedule.html|title=1964–65 UCLA Bruins Schedule and Results|website=College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com|access-date=November 27, 2017|archive-date=December 1, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201031843/https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/ucla/1965-schedule.html|url-status=live}}</ref> It was all uphill after that as the squad repeated as national champions with Gail Goodrich, [[Kenny Washington (basketball)|Kenny Washington]], and [[Doug McIntosh]]. The Bruins upended [[Dave Strack]]'s Michigan team 91–80 in the finals of the NCAA tournament. Goodrich shared Player of the Year honors with [[1964–65 Princeton Tigers men's basketball team|Princeton]]'s [[Bill Bradley]]. The 1966 squad was denied a chance at a triple crown when it finished second to [[Oregon State Beavers men's basketball|Oregon State]] in the Athletic Association of Western Universities (now the [[Pac-12 Conference|Pac-12]]). UCLA was ineligible to play in the NCAA tournament that year because in those days only conference champions received a bid to the tournament. The Bruins' 1967 incarnation returned with a vengeance with sophomore star Alcindor, reclaiming not only the conference title, but the national crown with another 30–0 season, and then retaining it every season but one until Wooden's retirement immediately following the 1975 NCAA championship.

The resurgence of the Bruins under Wooden made it obvious that they needed a new home. Since 1932, the Bruins had played at the [[Student Activities Center (UCLA)|Men's Gym]]. It normally seated 2,400, but had been limited to 1,500 since 1955 by order of the city fire marshal. This forced the Bruins to move games to [[Pan Pacific Auditorium]], the [[Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena]] and other venues around Los Angeles when they were expected to attract larger crowds—something that happened fairly often after the Bruins' first national title. At Wooden's urging, a much larger on-campus facility, [[Pauley Pavilion]], was built in time for the 1965–66 season. The building in [[Westwood, Los Angeles|Westwood]] was christened on November 27, 1965, in a special game that pitted the UCLA varsity against the UCLA freshmen. It was [[Lew Alcindor]]'s (later Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) freshman season (freshmen were ineligible to play on the varsity in those days). UCLA was the defending national champion and ranked number 1 in the pre-season poll. The freshmen easily won the game by a score of 75–60. It was a powerful indication of things to come.

A rule change was instituted for the 1967–1968 season, primarily because of Alcindor's towering play near the basket. The [[dunk shot]] was outlawed and would not be reinstated until the 1976–1977 season, which was shortly after Wooden's retirement. This was at least the second time that the rules committee had initiated change in response to the domination of a superstar player; in 1944, the [[goaltending]] rule was instituted to counter [[George Mikan]]'s dominant defensive play near the basket. In January, UCLA took its 47-game winning streak to the [[Astrodome]] in [[Houston]], where the Bruins met [[Guy Lewis]]' [[Houston Cougars men's basketball|Houston]] squad, who had [[Elvin Hayes]], [[Don Chaney]], and [[Ken Spain]], in the [[Game of the Century (college basketball)|Game of the Century]] in the nation's first nationally televised regular season college basketball game. Houston upset UCLA 71–69, as Hayes scored 39 points. In a post-game interview, Wooden said, "We have to start over." UCLA went undefeated the rest of the year and thrashed Houston 101–69 in the semi-final rematch of the NCAA tournament en route to the national championship. ''Sports Illustrated'' ran the front cover headline ''Lew's Revenge. The rout of Houston''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sicovers.com/lew-alcindor-of-the-bruins-1968-april-01/|title=Ucla Lew Alcindor, 1968 Ncaa Semifinals Sports Illustrated Cover by Sports Illustrated}}</ref> UCLA limited Hayes to only 10 points; he had been averaging 37.7 points per game. Wooden credited Norman for devising the diamond-and-one defense that contained Hayes.<ref>{{cite news|last=Esper|first=Dwain|title=Bruins Hope Norman Stays|date=March 25, 1968|newspaper=The Independent|location=Pasadena, California|page=15|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2860094/|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 22, 2015|archive-date=July 26, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230726041026/https://www.newspapers.com/article/2860094/|url-status=live}}{{open access}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Gasaway |first=John |title=John Wooden's Century |date=June 7, 2010 |work=Basketball Prospectus |url=http://basketballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=798 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150723062332/http://basketballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=798 |archive-date=July 23, 2015 |url-status=dead |access-date=July 23, 2015  }}</ref> The Game of the Century is also remembered for an incident involving Wooden and [[Edgar Lacy]]. Lacy was ineffective on defense against Elvin Hayes, and Wooden benched him after 11 minutes. Lacy never re-entered the game. Furious with Wooden, Lacy quit the team three days later, telling the ''Los Angeles Times'' "I've never enjoyed playing for that man."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=d&d=MT19680129.2.73|title=Madera Tribune 29 January 1968 — California Digital Newspaper Collection|website=cdnc.ucr.edu|access-date=November 27, 2017|archive-date=December 1, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201033610/https://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=d&d=MT19680129.2.73|url-status=live}}</ref> UCLA's talent during the 1968 NCAA tournament was so overwhelming that they placed four players on the All-Tournament team. In addition to Alcindor, [[Lucius Allen]], [[Michael Warren (actor)|Mike Warren]], and [[Lynn Shackelford|"Lefty" Lynn Shackelford]] were given accolades. [[Kenny Heitz]] was also a member of UCLA's 1968 team.

Lew Alcindor finished his career at UCLA in 1969 with a third consecutive national championship when the Bruins beat [[George King (basketball, born 1928)|George King]]'s Purdue team 92–72 in the title game. The three straight titles were matched by three consecutive MVP awards in the tournament as Alcindor established himself as college basketball's superstar during the three-peat performance. Alcindor and Wooden would continue their communication even after he left UCLA. In 2017, Jabbar wrote a book, "Coach Wooden and Me", which details their long-standing friendship.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.si.com/nba/video/2017/05/16/kareem-abdul-jabbar-john-wooden-relationship|title=Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on John Wooden and their history|magazine=Sports Illustrated|date=May 16, 2017 }}</ref>

A sportswriter commented that everybody outside of UCLA would be happy that glorious day in June when Alcindor finally graduated and college basketball could go back to the routine method of determining a national champion. This prophecy would prove to be ludicrous over the next six years. The 1970 squad proved that nobody was indispensable to the success of the UCLA program, not even Alcindor, as [[Sidney Wicks]], [[Henry Bibby]], [[Curtis Rowe]], [[John Vallely]], and [[Kenny Booker]] carried the Bruins to their fourth consecutive NCAA title with an 80–69 win over upstart [[Jacksonville Dolphins men's basketball|Jacksonville]], coached by [[Joe Williams (basketball)|Joe Williams]]. Wicks and Rowe double teamed 7-foot [[Artis Gilmore]] on defense and shut down the high-powered Jacksonville offense, which had been averaging 100 points per game. Gilmore and 5'10" Rex Morgan had been dubbed "Batman and Robin" by the press.

In the 1971 NCAA championship game, [[Steve Patterson (basketball)|Steve Patterson]] outscored [[Howard Porter (basketball)|Howard Porter]] of [[Jack Kraft]]'s scandal-plagued Villanova squad as UCLA won 68–62. The following year, UCLA had its closest game in all of Wooden's 10 championships, beating [[Hugh Durham]]'s Florida State team 81–76 to take the 1972 title. After the game, Bill Walton said, "We didn't play well."

[[File:Wooden with game ball from Phelps.png|thumb|upright|left|200px|Wooden with [[Digger Phelps]] in 1973, after UCLA beat Notre Dame for their NCAA-record 61st straight win]]
The 1972–1973 season was one of the most memorable campaigns in the history of UCLA basketball. Freshmen became eligible to play varsity ball again, and the Bruins went 30–0 and stretched their winning streak to a record 75 straight in breezing through the NCAA tournament by blowing out [[Gene Bartow]]'s Memphis State team 87–66 in the final, as Bill Walton hit an incredible 21 of 22 field goal attempts. Walton and Wooden were everybody's Player and Coach of the Year again. [[Keith Wilkes]], [[Greg Lee (basketball)|Greg Lee]], and [[Larry Hollyfield]] were members of that team, and Wilkes would go on to win four NBA championships as well.

UCLA's two big streaks came to an end during the 1973–1974 season. In January, the winning streak stopped at 88 games when [[Digger Phelps]]'s Notre Dame squad upended the Bruins 71–70 in South Bend. Two months later, [[Norm Sloan]]'s [[NC State Wolfpack men's basketball|North Carolina State]] team defeated UCLA 80–77 in double overtime in the semifinals of the NCAA tournament. [[David Thompson (basketball)|David Thompson]] was NC State's All-American, and [[Tom Burleson]] did an excellent job on defense against Bill Walton. UCLA had beaten the Wolfpack by 18 points early in the season, but things were different when they met in March.

Wooden coached what would prove to be his final game in Pauley Pavilion on March 1, 1975, a 93–59 victory over [[Stanford Cardinal men's basketball|Stanford]]. Four weeks later, following a 75–74 overtime victory over former player and former assistant coach [[Denny Crum]] and [[Louisville Cardinals men's basketball|Louisville]] in the 1975 NCAA Tournament semifinal game, Wooden announced that he would retire at age 64 immediately after the championship game.<ref name="autogenerated1">{{cite news | agency=Associated Press | date=March 30, 1975 | url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=YLITAAAAIBAJ&pg=4232,7431027&hl=en | title=Wooden hangs 'em up | newspaper=[[Eugene Register-Guard]] | access-date=July 23, 2010 }}{{Dead link|date=March 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> His legendary coaching career concluded triumphantly when [[Richard Washington]] and [[Dave Meyers (basketball)|David Meyers]] combined for 52 points as UCLA responded with a 92–85 win over [[Joe B. Hall]] and [[Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball|Kentucky]] to claim Wooden's first career coaching victory over the Wildcats and his unprecedented 10th national championship. [[Marques Johnson]] and [[Andre McCarter]] were also key contributors on Wooden's final championship team. The success of Wooden's last team was particularly impressive because it had no marquee stars such as Alcindor, Walton, Hazzard, and Goodrich; the team was a group of rugged opportunists.

[[Andy Hill (basketball)|Andy Hill]], who was on three Bruin teams under Wooden that won NCAA championships from 1970 to 1972, decades later co-wrote with Wooden the 2001 book ''Be Quick—But Don't Hurry! Finding Success in the Teachings of a Lifetime''.<ref name=jelenko>{{cite book|last1=Jelenko|first1=Jane|last2=Marshall|first2=Susan|title=Changing Lanes: Road Maps to Midlife Renewal|pages=37–9|year=2007|publisher=Random Press|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u78YFd6D0cAC&q=%22andy%20hill%22%20%22Caroline%20in%20the%20City%22&pg=PA37|isbn=9780979599002|access-date=May 31, 2015}}</ref><ref name=hill_08232009>{{cite news|last=Hill |first=Andy |title=The greatest coach ever leads by example |date=August 23, 2009 |work=Sporting News |url=http://www.sportingnews.com/ncaa-basketball/story/2009-08-23/greatest-coach-ever-leads-example |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160315165912/http://www.sportingnews.com/ncaa-basketball/story/2009-08-23/greatest-coach-ever-leads-example |archive-date=March 15, 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[bestseller]] details how Hill applied his experience as a player under Wooden to achieve success in his career as a television executive.<ref name=jelenko/><ref name=shelburne_03312007>{{cite news|last=Shelburne |first=Ramona |title=Catching up with UCLA stars from the epic years |date=March 31, 2007 |newspaper=Los Angeles Daily News |url=http://www.dailynews.com/general-news/20070331/catching-up-with-ucla-stars-from-the-epic-years |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303205527/http://www.dailynews.com/general-news/20070331/catching-up-with-ucla-stars-from-the-epic-years |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=pace_03302003>{{cite news|last=Pace |first=Frank |title=Commentary: Dinner reunites, sparks memories |date=March 30, 2003 |newspaper=The Florida Times-Union |url=http://jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/033003/dss_12134845.shtml#.VX4cPev4_S8 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150621042913/http://jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/033003/dss_12134845.shtml |archive-date=June 21, 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref> His goal was to demonstrate the relevance of Wooden's coaching style to the business world. The book also delves into his personal relationship with Wooden as his coach and mentor.<ref name=jelenko/>

In 2004, a 93-year-old Wooden stated that he would not mind coming back as an assistant who could help players with practices and other light duties.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1031125/2/index.htm | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121104113702/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1031125/2/index.htm | url-status=dead | archive-date=November 4, 2012 | work=CNN | title=Galleries | date=January 19, 2004}}</ref>

During his tenure with the Bruins, Wooden became known as "the Wizard of [[Westwood, Los Angeles|Westwood]]", though he personally disdained the nickname.<ref name="Reilly2009"/> He gained lasting fame with UCLA by winning 620 games in 27 seasons and 10 NCAA titles during his last 12 seasons, including seven in a row from 1967 to 1973.<ref name =UCLABruins/> His UCLA teams also established an NCAA men's basketball record winning streak of 88 games<ref>{{cite news |url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/31/AR2006033101991.html |title = A Tradition Lacking Swagger: Storied UCLA Fails to Worry Frisky LSU |author = Mark Schlabach |newspaper = Washington Post |date = April 1, 2006 |access-date = February 7, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.espn.com/espn/print?id=2932885&type=story |title = Trinity squash nears decade with nation's longest winning streak |author = Brendan Murphy |work = ESPN |date = July 11, 2007 |access-date = February 7, 2010 |archive-date = November 17, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171117002531/http://www.espn.com/espn/print?id=2932885&type=story |url-status = live }}</ref> and four perfect 30–0 seasons.<ref name =UCLABruins/> They also won 38 straight games in NCAA tournaments<ref name =UCLABruins/> and 98 straight home wins at Pauley Pavilion, where Wooden compiled a 150–3 record over 10 seasons.

"He never made more than $35,000 a year salary (not including camps and speaking engagements), including 1975, the year he won his 10th national championship, and never asked for a raise", wrote [[Rick Reilly]] of [[ESPN]]. He was given a Bruin powder blue [[Mercedes-Benz|Mercedes]] that season as a retirement gift.<ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.espn.com/espnmag/story?section=magazine&id=3669154 |title = One coach still knows more than all the others combined. And he's been retired for three decades. |author = Rick Reilly |year = 2009 |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = August 25, 2016 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160825192303/http://www.espn.com/espnmag/story?id=3669154&section=magazine |url-status = live }}</ref> According to his own writings, Wooden turned down an offer to coach the [[Los Angeles Lakers]] from owner [[Jack Kent Cooke]] that may have been ten times what UCLA was paying him.

===Association with Sam Gilbert===
During Wooden's time at UCLA, and after his retirement in 1975, he faced criticism for the program's relationship with local businessman and booster [[Sam Gilbert (businessman)|Sam Gilbert]], known by many of Wooden's players as "Papa Sam."<ref name=sethdavis>{{cite web |title=Excerpt from Wooden: The Sam Gilbert Years - College Basketball - Seth Davis - SI.com |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/college-basketball/news/20140121/john-wooden-book-excerpt-sam-gilbert#all |publisher=Sports Illustrated |access-date=18 January 2025 |date=25 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140125044135/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/college-basketball/news/20140121/john-wooden-book-excerpt-sam-gilbert#all |archive-date=January 25, 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |title=A Patron Called Papa Sam |url=https://archive.org/details/sim_time_time_1974-02-25_103_8/page/77/mode/1up?q=gilbert |access-date=18 January 2025 |magazine=Time |publisher=Time Incorporated |date=25 February 1974 |language=English}}</ref> Gilbert, a multi-millionaire contractor, was known for forging close financial relationships with UCLA players, supplying them with cars, clothes, stereos, travel, and apartments, as well as allegedly arranging abortions for players' girlfriends. He represented several UCLA stars, including [[Lew Alcindor]] and [[Bill Walton]], as an agent after they turned pro.<ref name="Los Angeles Times">{{cite news |title=The dark side of the UCLA basketball dynasty |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2010-jun-08-la-sp-0609-wooden-gilbert-20100609-story.html |access-date=18 January 2025 |work=Los Angeles Times |date=8 June 2010 |archive-date=January 18, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250118011212/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2010-jun-08-la-sp-0609-wooden-gilbert-20100609-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

A 1981 ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' investigation, interviewing 45 people affiliated with the basketball program, revealed the extent of Gilbert's involvement, describing him as "a one-man clearinghouse who has enabled players and their families to receive goods and services usually at big discounts and sometimes free."<ref name=cj>{{cite news |title=Ex-Bruins reveal the grime beneath UCLA's glitter |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-courier-journal/163342423/ |access-date=18 January 2025 |work=The Courier-Journal |date=1 January 1982 |pages=21}}</ref> The ''Times'' investigation found that Gilbert's involvement in the program began in 1967, when UCLA stars Alcindor and [[Lucius Allen]] were considering transferring to Michigan State. They approached former UCLA star [[Willie Naulls]], who introduced them to Gilbert.<ref name=sethdavis /> Gilbert met with the two players, and both remained at UCLA. Alcindor, later [[Kareem Abdul-Jabbar]], said later that he would have stayed regardless but called Gilbert "like my surrogate father." Allen credited Gilbert with dissuading him from transferring: "There were two people I listened to. Coach Wooden as long as we were between the lines. Outside the court — Sam Gilbert." Allen said Gilbert paid for multiple abortions for players' girlfriends, including one of his own.<ref name=cj /> "Everybody knew what was going on," UCLA player [[David Greenwood]] said. "Nobody was so naive. It was common knowledge in the whole town."<ref name=cj />

UCLA assistant [[Jerry Norman (basketball)|Jerry Norman]], who coached under Wooden from 1957 to 1968, recalled that Gilbert began "to come around our program right when I was ready to leave. What normally happens is, alumni come to you and say, 'Coach, is there any way I can help?' Well, maybe. A lot of kids want summer jobs. But Gilbert started going behind the coaches. Alcindor calls me one day in the spring. I ask him, 'Where are you?' and he says, 'I'm in Mr. Gilbert's office.'"<ref>{{cite book |last1=MacMullan |first1=Jackie |title=Basketball : a love story |date=2018 |publisher=New York : Crown Archetype |isbn=978-1-5247-6178-3 |page=102 |url=https://archive.org/details/basketballlovest0000macm/page/102/mode/2up?q=norman |access-date=18 January 2025}}</ref> In his autobiography ''Giant Steps'', Abdul-Jabbar called Gilbert "that odd combination, a cagey humanitarian with a lot of muscle. Guys would go to him when they were in trouble, and he would find a way to fix it...Sam steered clear of John Wooden, and Mr. Wooden gave him the same wide berth. Both helped the school greatly...once the money thing got worked out, I never gave another thought to leaving UCLA."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Abdul-Jabbar |first1=Kareem |title=Giant steps |date=1983 |publisher=New York : Bantam Books |isbn=978-0-553-05044-8 |page=156 |url=https://archive.org/details/giantsteps0000abdu/page/156/mode/1up?q=steered |access-date=18 January 2025}}</ref>

"The way Sam explained it to me, it was within the rules," Allen said in a 2007 documentary. "But it wasn't."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Fulks |first1=Matt |title=Coach John Wooden : 100 years of greatness |date=2010 |publisher=Chicago, IL : Triumph Books |isbn=978-1-57243-937-5 |page=116 |url=https://archive.org/details/coachjohnwooden10000fulk/page/116/mode/1up?q=gilbert |access-date=18 January 2025}}</ref> In 1973, freshman center [[Richard Washington]] told ''[[The New York Times]]'' the reason he'd chosen UCLA: "I took a dip in Sam Gilbert's pool and it cooled me off and that was the convincer."<ref>{{cite news |last1=Goldaper |first1=Sam |title=After Kareem and Walton: Washington |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1973/05/27/archives/after-kareem-and-walton-washington-no-double-talk-sense-of-humor.html |access-date=18 January 2025 |work=The New York Times |date=27 May 1973 |archive-date=January 25, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250125105640/https://www.nytimes.com/1973/05/27/archives/after-kareem-and-walton-washington-no-double-talk-sense-of-humor.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1978, [[NCAA]] field investigator J. Brent Clark testified before a Congressional subcommittee that he had begun investigating Gilbert's activities the year before but was told to back off by a superior at the NCAA, Bill Hunt. "If I had spent a month in Los Angeles, I could have put them [UCLA] on indefinite suspension," Clark said later, but "as long as Wooden was there, the NCAA would never have taken any action." Clark told Congress: "The conclusion I draw is that it is an example of a school that is too big, too powerful, and too well respected by the public, that the timing was not right to proceed against them.<ref>{{cite news |title=Former NCAA Investigator Tells of a Coverup |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times/163346837/ |access-date=18 January 2025 |work=The Los Angeles Times |date=31 January 1982 |pages=36 |archive-date=January 25, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250125105623/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times/163346837/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Wooden was aware of Gilbert's closeness with his players.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Amdur |first1=Neil |title=Wooden Remembers Booster |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/02/04/sports/wooden-remembers-booster.html |access-date=18 January 2025 |work=The New York Times |date=4 February 1982 |archive-date=March 22, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170322020113/http://www.nytimes.com/1982/02/04/sports/wooden-remembers-booster.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1972, Wooden said "I personally hardly know Sam Gilbert...I think he's a person who's trying to be helpful in every way that he can. I sometimes feel that in his interest to be helpful it's in direct contrast with what I would like to have him do to be helpful. I think he means very well and, for the most part, he has attached himself to the minority-race players. I really don't want to get involved in saying much about that, to be honest with you."<ref name="Boston, Houghton Mifflin">{{cite book |last1=Chapin |first1=Dwight |last2=Prugh |first2=Jeff |title=The wizard of Westwood; Coach John Wooden and his UCLA Bruins |date=1973 |publisher=Boston, Houghton Mifflin |isbn=978-0-395-15477-9 |page=282 |url=https://archive.org/details/wizardofwestwood00chap/page/282/mode/1up?q=%22personally+hardly+know+Sam+Gilbert%22 |access-date=18 January 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Davis |first1=Seth |title=Wooden : a coach's life |date=2014 |publisher=New York : Times Books/Henry Holt and Company |isbn=978-0-8050-9280-6 |page=372 |url=https://archive.org/details/woodencoachslife0000davi/page/372/mode/1up?q=%22personally+hardly+know+Sam+Gilbert%22 |access-date=18 January 2025}}</ref>

Despite concerns about Gilbert, Wooden said he chose not to ask players to cut off contact, telling the ''Times'' in 1981: "There's as much crookedness as you want to find. There was something [[Abraham Lincoln]] said — he'd rather trust and be disappointed than distrust and be miserable all the time. Maybe I trusted too much."<ref name="Los Angeles Times"/><ref name="Boston, Houghton Mifflin"/> The ''Times'' reporters, Mike Littwin and Alan Greenberg, concluded: "Wooden knew about Gilbert. He knew the players were close to Gilbert. He knew they looked to Gilbert for advice. Maybe he knew more. He should have known much more. If he didn't, it was only because he apparently chose not to look."<ref>{{cite news |title=Wooden Heard No Evil, Saw No Evil |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-sam-gilbert-part-o/116896947/ |access-date=18 January 2025 |work=The Los Angeles Times |date=2 February 1982 |pages=42}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Bonesteel |first1=Matt |title=Bob Knight decides that now would be the perfect time to bad-mouth John Wooden |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/early-lead/wp/2017/11/08/bob-knight-decides-that-now-would-be-the-perfect-time-to-bad-mouth-john-wooden/ |access-date=18 January 2025 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=November 8, 2017 |archive-date=December 6, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221206002907/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/early-lead/wp/2017/11/08/bob-knight-decides-that-now-would-be-the-perfect-time-to-bad-mouth-john-wooden/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Wooden did pass along his concerns to UCLA athletic director [[J. D. Morgan]], but Morgan did not pursue the matter aggressively, in part because he believed Gilbert was connected to the Mafia. Former UCLA chancellor [[Charles E. Young]] recalled Morgan "saying to me in that deep voice of his, 'Chuck, you don't know about Sam Gilbert. Do you want to end up on a block of concrete at the bottom of the ocean?' J. D.'s view of him was that if you cross Sam, you're likely to be killed, literally."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Davis |first1=Seth |title=Wooden : a coach's life |date=2014 |publisher=New York : Times Books/Henry Holt and Company |isbn=978-0-8050-9280-6 |page=374 |url=https://archive.org/details/woodencoachslife0000davi/page/374/mode/1up?q=gilbert |access-date=18 January 2025}}</ref>

[[Gene Bartow]], who succeeded Wooden as UCLA coach, felt similarly. In 1991, he wrote a letter to an NCAA official thanking him for suppressing Brent Clark's investigation into Gilbert. "I want to say 'thank you' for possibly saving my life...I believe Sam Gilbert was Mafia-related and was capable of hurting people. I think, had the NCAA come in hard while I was at UCLA, Gilbert and others associated with the program would have felt I had reported them, and I would have been in possible danger...Without question, he put out some front-end money to recruits in a few cases, and I think that could have been proven."<ref>{{cite news |title=Bartow: Ending NCAA probe saved my life |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-park-city-daily-news/163348138/ |access-date=18 January 2025 |work=The Park City Daily News |date=4 August 1993 |pages=13 |archive-date=January 25, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250125105949/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-park-city-daily-news/163348138/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1981, after Wooden's retirement, an NCAA investigation sanctioned UCLA for its relationship with Gilbert, putting the program on probation for two seasons and ordering the school to disassociate itself from him. Three players at other universities told NCAA investigators that Gilbert had offered them cars to commit to UCLA.<ref name=cj />

In 1987, Gilbert was indicted in Florida for conspiracy, racketeering, and money laundering as part of a drug smuggling scheme, but he died of heart failure before he could be prosecuted. His son, Michael Gilbert, was convicted on four counts in the case. Trial testimony revealed that Sam Gilbert had used Miami drug money to build [[The Bicycle Hotel & Casino]] in [[Bell Gardens, California]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bunting |first1=Glenn F. |last2=Griego |first2=Tina |title=Miami Trial Gives Startling New Portrait of Sam Gilbert |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-04-23-mn-107-story.html |access-date=18 January 2025 |work=Los Angeles Times |date=23 April 1990}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=U.S. v. Kramer |url=https://case-law.vlex.com/vid/u-s-v-kramer-888285116 |website=vLex |access-date=18 January 2025 |language=en |archive-date=January 25, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250125105230/https://case-law.vlex.com/vid/u-s-v-kramer-888285116 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Career playing statistics==

===NBL===
{{NBL (United States) player statistics legend}}

Source<ref name=NBL>{{Cite web|url=https://www.basketball-reference.com/nbl/players/w/woodejo01n.html|title=John Wooden NBL stats|website=[[Basketball Reference]]|publisher=Sports Reference LLC|accessdate=2 January 2025}}</ref>

====Regular season====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:right;"
|-
! Year
! Team
! GP
! FGM
! FTM
! PTS
! PPG
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| [[1937–38 National Basketball League (United States) season|1937–38]]
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Whiting Ciesar All-Americans|Whiting]]
| '''13''' || '''52''' || '''39''' || '''143''' || '''11.0'''
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| [[National Basketball League (United States)|1938–39]]
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Indianapolis Kautskys|Indianapolis]]
| 5 || 14 || 11 || 39 || 7.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 1938–39
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Hammond Ciesar All-Americans|Hammond]]
| 5 || 10 || 12 || 32 || 6.4
|-
|style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career
| 23 || 76 || 62 || 214 || 9.3
|}

====Playoffs====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:right;"
|-
! Year
! Team
! GP
! FGM
! FTM
! PTS
! PPG
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| [[National Basketball League (United States)|1938]]
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Whiting Ciesar All-Americans|Whiting]]
| 2 || 8 || 17 || 33 || 16.5
|}

==Head coaching record==

===College basketball===
{{CBB Yearly Record Start | type = | conference = | postseason= | poll = }}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead
 | name       = [[Indiana State Sycamores men's basketball|Indiana State Sycamores]]
 | conference = [[Indiana Intercollegiate Conference]]
 | startyear  = 1946
 | endyear    = 1948
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = conference
 | season       = 1946–47
 | name         = Indiana State
 | overall      = 17–8
 | conference   = 5–2
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1947 NAIA basketball tournament|NAIA invitation declined]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = conference
 | season       = 1947–48
 | name         = [[1947–48 Indiana State Sycamores men's basketball team|Indiana State]]
 | overall      = 27–7
 | conference   = 7–0
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1948 NAIA men's basketball tournament|NAIA Runner-up]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subtotal
 | name       = Indiana State
 | overall    = 44–15 ({{winning percentage|44|15}})
 | confrecord = 12–2 ({{winning percentage|12|2}})
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead
 | name       = [[UCLA Bruins men's basketball|UCLA Bruins]]<ref name="UCLA History"/>
 | conference = [[Pacific Coast Conference]]
 | startyear  = 1948
 | endyear    = 1959
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = conference
 | season       = [[1948–49 NCAA men's basketball season|1948–49]]
 | name         = [[1948–49 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 22–7
 | conference   = 10–2
 | confstanding = 1st  {{small|(South)}}
 | postseason   = 
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = conference
 | season       = [[1949–50 NCAA men's basketball season|1949–50]]
 | name         = [[1949–50 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 24–7
 | conference   = 10–2
 | confstanding = 1st 
 | postseason   = [[1950 NCAA basketball tournament|NCAA Regional Fourth Place]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = conference
 | season       = [[1950–51 NCAA men's basketball season|1950–51]]
 | name         = [[1950–51 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 19–10
 | conference   = 9–4
 | confstanding = T–1st {{small|(South)}}
 | postseason   = 
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = conference
 | season       = [[1951–52 NCAA men's basketball season|1951–52]]
 | name         = [[1951–52 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 19–12
 | conference   = 8–4
 | confstanding = 1st {{small|(South)}}
 | postseason   = [[1952 NCAA basketball tournament|NCAA Regional Fourth Place]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | season       = [[1952–53 NCAA men's basketball season|1952–53]]
 | name         = [[1952–53 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 16–8
 | conference   = 6–6
 | confstanding = 3rd {{small|(South)}}
 | postseason   = 
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | season       = [[1953–54 NCAA men's basketball season|1953–54]]
 | name         = [[1953–54 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 18–7
 | conference   = 7–5
 | confstanding = 2nd {{small|(South)}}
 | postseason   = 
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = conference
 | season       = [[1954–55 NCAA men's basketball season|1954–55]]
 | name         = [[1954–55 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 21–5
 | conference   = 11–1
 | confstanding = 1st {{small|(South)}}
 | postseason   = 
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = conference
 | season       = [[1955–56 NCAA men's basketball season|1955–56]]
 | name         = [[1955–56 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 22–6
 | conference   = 16–0
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1956 NCAA basketball tournament|NCAA Regional Third Place]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | season       = [[1956–57 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1956–57]]
 | name         = [[1956–57 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 22–4
 | conference   = 13–3
 | confstanding = T–2nd
 | postseason   = 
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | season       = [[1957–58 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1957–58]]
 | name         = [[1957–58 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 16–10
 | conference   = 10–6
 | confstanding = 3rd
 | postseason   = 
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | season       = [[1958–59 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1958–59]]
 | name         = [[1958–59 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 16–9
 | conference   = 10–6
 | confstanding = T–3rd
 | postseason   = 
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead
 | name       = [[UCLA Bruins men's basketball|UCLA Bruins]]<ref name="UCLA History"/>
 | conference = [[Pac-12 Conference|Pacific-8 Conference]]
 | startyear  = 1959
 | endyear    = 1975
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | season       = [[1959–60 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1959–60]]
 | name         = [[1959–60 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 14–12
 | conference   = 7–5
 | confstanding = 2nd
 | postseason   = 
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | season       = [[1960–61 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1960–61]]
 | name         = [[1960–61 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 18–8
 | conference   = 7–5
 | confstanding = 2nd
 | postseason   =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = conference
 | season       = [[1961–62 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1961–62]]
 | name         = [[1961–62 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 18–11
 | conference   = 10–2
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1962 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|NCAA University Division Fourth Place]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = conference
 | season       = [[1962–63 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1962–63]]
 | name         = [[1962–63 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 20–9
 | conference   = 8–5
 | confstanding = T–1st
 | postseason   = [[1963 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|NCAA University Division Regional Fourth Place]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = national
 | season       = [[1963–64 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1963–64]]
 | name         = [[1963–64 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 30–0
 | conference   = 15–0
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1964 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|NCAA University Division Champion]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = national
 | season       = [[1964–65 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1964–65]]
 | name         = [[1964–65 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 28–2
 | conference   = 14–0
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1965 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|NCAA University Division Champion]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | season       = [[1965–66 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1965–66]]
 | name         = [[1965–66 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 18–8
 | conference   = 10–4
 | confstanding = 2nd
 | postseason   = 
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = national
 | season       = [[1966–67 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1966–67]]
 | name         = [[1966–67 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 30–0
 | conference   = 14–0
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1967 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|NCAA University Division Champion]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = national
 | season       = [[1967–68 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1967–68]]
 | name         = [[1967–68 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 29–1
 | conference   = 14–0
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1968 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|NCAA University Division Champion]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = national
 | season       = [[1968–69 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1968–69]]
 | name         = [[1968–69 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 29–1
 | conference   = 13–1
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1969 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|NCAA University Division Champion]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = national
 | season       = [[1969–70 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1969–70]]
 | name         = [[1969–70 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 28–2
 | conference   = 12–2
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1970 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|NCAA University Division Champion]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = national
 | season       = [[1970–71 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1970–71]]
 | name         = [[1970–71 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 29–1
 | conference   = 14–0
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1971 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|NCAA University Division Champion]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = national
 | season       = [[1971–72 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1971–72]]
 | name         = [[1971–72 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 30–0
 | conference   = 14–0
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1972 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|NCAA University Division Champion]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = national
 | season       = [[1972–73 NCAA University Division men's basketball season|1972–73]]
 | name         = [[1972–73 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 30–0
 | conference   = 14–0
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1973 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|NCAA University Division Champion]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = conference
 | season       = [[1973–74 NCAA Division I men's basketball season|1973–74]]
 | name         = [[1973–74 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 26–4
 | conference   = 12–2
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1974 NCAA Division I basketball tournament|NCAA Division I Third Place]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
 | championship = national
 | season       = [[1974–75 NCAA Division I men's basketball season|1974–75]]
 | name         = [[1974–75 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA]]
 | overall      = 28–3
 | conference   = 12–2
 | confstanding = 1st
 | postseason   = [[1975 NCAA Division I basketball tournament|NCAA Division I Champion]]
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subtotal
 | name       = UCLA
 | overall    = 620–147<ref name =UCLABruins/> ({{winning percentage|620|147}})
 | confrecord = 300–67 ({{winning percentage|300|67}})
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record End
 | overall  = 664–162 ({{winning percentage|664|162}})
}}

==List of NCAA championships==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! '''Year'''
! '''Record'''
! '''Final Opponent'''
! '''Final score'''
! '''Notes'''
|-
| [[1964 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|1964]]
| align=center|30–0
| [[1963–64 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team|Duke]]
| 98–83
| John Wooden won his first national title in his sixteenth season at UCLA. Senior [[Walt Hazzard]] starred for UCLA as the Bruins made a 16–0 run late in the first half to beat Duke and its All-American [[Jeff Mullins (basketball)|Jeff Mullins]].<ref name="UCLA Tradition">{{cite web |url = http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/ucla/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/MBBGuide57-78.pdf |title = UCLA's Championship Tradition |publisher = UCLA |pages = 68–72, 76–77 |year = 2006 |access-date = January 29, 2010 |archive-date = July 25, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120725071106/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/ucla/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/MBBGuide57-78.pdf |url-status = dead }}</ref>
|-
| [[1965 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|1965]]
| align=center|28–2
| [[1964–65 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team|Michigan]]
| 91–80
| The Bruins were led by senior All-American guard [[Gail Goodrich]] and used an effective [[zone press]]. Goodrich scored 42 points in the final against Michigan and [[Cazzie Russell]].<ref name="UCLA Tradition"/>
|-
| [[1967 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|1967]]
| align=center|30–0
| [[1966–67 Dayton Flyers men's basketball team|Dayton]]
| 79–64
| The Bruins started a junior and four sophomores, which included Lew Alcindor (later [[Kareem Abdul-Jabbar]]). UCLA defeated unranked Dayton and [[Don May (basketball)|Don May]] in the title game.<ref name="UCLA Tradition"/>
|-
| [[1968 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|1968]]
| align=center|29–1
| [[1967–68 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team|North Carolina]]
| 78–55
| UCLA's 47-game winning streak ended on January 20 when the Bruins were defeated by [[1967–68 Houston Cougars men's basketball team|Houston]] and All-American [[Elvin Hayes]] in the Astrodome 71–69 in front of the largest college basketball crowd in NCAA history (52,693). The showdown was the nation's first nationally televised regular season college basketball game. The game was known as the [[Game of the Century (college basketball)|Game of the Century]]. Lew Alcindor was limited from having been hospitalized the week before with a scratched cornea. The Bruins, at full strength, avenged the loss in a rematch with Houston in the [[1968 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|NCAA semi-finals]], as they beat the Cougars 101–69. UCLA then defeated North Carolina in the title game to become the only team to win consecutive NCAA championships twice.<ref name="UCLA Tradition"/>
|-
| [[1969 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|1969]]
| align=center|29–1
| [[1968–69 Purdue Boilermakers men's basketball team|Purdue]]
| 92–72
| UCLA defeated Wooden's alma mater Purdue and its All-American [[Rick Mount]] in the championship game. UCLA became the only school to this day to win three consecutive NCAA basketball championships and Wooden became the first coach to win five NCAA championships. Lew Alcindor is the first player to win three national championships, as well as garner three consecutive MVP awards in the tournament. He finished his career at UCLA with an 88–2 record.<ref name="UCLA Tradition"/>
|-
| [[1970 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|1970]]
| align=center|28–2
| [[1969–70 Jacksonville Dolphins men's basketball team|Jacksonville]]
| 80–69
| Despite the graduation of Alcindor, UCLA won its fourth championship in a row. The Bruins came back from a nine-point first half deficit as [[Sidney Wicks]], [[Curtis Rowe]], [[Henry Bibby]], and the rest of the Bruins outlasted [[Artis Gilmore]], [[Rex Morgan (basketball)|Rex Morgan]], Chip Dublin, and Pembrook Burrows of Jacksonville in the title game.<ref name="UCLA Tradition"/>
|-
| [[1971 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|1971]]
| align=center|29–1
| [[1970–71 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team|Villanova]]
| 68–62
| Senior [[Steve Patterson (basketball)|Steve Patterson]] scored 29 points in the championship game against Villanova and [[Howard Porter (basketball)|Howard Porter]] as UCLA won its fifth in a row. In its regional final, UCLA overcame an 11-point deficit to defeat [[Long Beach State 49ers men's basketball|Long Beach State]] 57–55.<ref name="UCLA Tradition"/> Patterson's portrait was featured on the cover of ''Sports Illustrated'' with the headline "Unexpected Hero".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.google.com/search?q=steve+patterson+unexpected+hero&tbm=isch#imgrc=_KXGJW3-XxsJZM:|title=steve patterson unexpected hero – Google Search|website=www.google.com}}</ref>
|-
| [[1972 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|1972]]
| align=center|30–0
| [[1971–72 Florida State Seminoles men's basketball team|Florida State]]
| 81–76
| Sophomore [[Bill Walton]] led the Bruins to their sixth championship in a row. The Bruins had a rough time with Florida State and its great ball handler, Otto Petty, in the closest game of all their title wins, but their margin of victory in the NCAA tournament was a record 30.3 points. They became the first team to post three 30–0 seasons.<ref name="UCLA Tradition"/> John Wooden was selected by ''Sports Illustrated'' as its "Sportsman of the Year" for his contributions to college basketball.
|-
| [[1973 NCAA University Division basketball tournament|1973]]
| align=center|30–0
| [[1972–73 Memphis State Tigers men's basketball team|Memphis State]]
| 87–66
| The Bruins became the only team in history with back-to-back undefeated seasons as they won their seventh straight championship. In the title game, junior Bill Walton hit 21 of 22 field goal attempts and scored 44 points in one of the greatest offensive performances in the history of the NCAA tournament.<ref name="UCLA Tradition"/> Memphis State coach Gene Bartow would replace Wooden at UCLA three years later.
|-
| [[1975 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|1975]]
| align=center|28–3
| [[1974–75 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team|Kentucky]]
| 92–85
| Coach Wooden ended his 27-year UCLA coaching career by winning his tenth national championship in 12 years. He announced his retirement at age 64 during the post-game press conference of the semi-final win against [[University of Louisville|Louisville]], and the UCLA players promptly responded by giving him a going away present with a win over Kentucky and its captain, Jimmy Dan Conner. For the Bruins, [[Richard Washington]] and [[David Meyers (basketball)|Dave Meyers]] scored 28 and 24 points respectively to offset [[Kevin Grevey]]'s game-high 34.<ref name="UCLA Tradition"/>
|}

==Legacy==
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Wooden players.jpg|left|thumb|John Wooden (center) with former Bruins [[Kareem Abdul-Jabbar]] and [[Bill Walton]]]] -->
When Wooden arrived at UCLA for the 1948–1949 season, he inherited a little-known program that played in a cramped gym. He left it as a national powerhouse with 10 national championships— the most successful rebuilding project in college basketball history. John Wooden ended his UCLA coaching career with a 620–147 overall record and a winning percentage of .808. These figures do not include his two-year record at Indiana State prior to taking over the duties at UCLA.

In 2009, Wooden was named ''The Sporting News'' "Greatest Coach of All Time".<ref>{{cite web|title=Sporting News honors Wooden|url=https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/news/story?id=4365068|publisher=ESPN. Associated Press|access-date=June 7, 2010|date=July 30, 2009|archive-date=September 8, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220908131424/https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/news/story?id=4365068|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Honors==
He received numerous national coaching honors throughout his career, earning seven [[Henry Iba Award|USBWA Coach of the Year]] awards (1964, 1967, 1969–1973),<ref>{{Cite web |title=USBWA Coach of the Year Winner |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/awards/men/usbwa-coy.html |access-date=December 7, 2025 |website=College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> six from [[UPI College Basketball Coach of the Year|UPI]] (1964, 1967, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973),<ref>{{Cite web |title=United Press International Coach of the Year Winner |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/awards/men/upi-coy.html |access-date=December 7, 2025 |website=College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> five from the [[AP College Basketball Coach of the Year|AP]] (1967, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973),<ref>{{Cite web |title=AP Coach of the Year Winner |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/awards/men/ap-coy.html |access-date=December 7, 2025 |website=College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> five from the [[NABC Coach of the Year|NABC]] (1964, 1967, 1969, 1970, 1972),<ref>{{Cite web |title=NABC Division I Coach of the Year Winner |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/awards/men/nabc-coy.html |access-date=December 7, 2025 |website=College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> and four from ''[[The Sporting News Men's College Basketball Coach of the Year Award|The Sporting News]]'' (1964, 1969, 1972, 1973). In 1970, he was named [[The Sporting News#Athlete of the Year|''The Sporting News'' Sportsman of the Year]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=History of The Sporting News' Athlete of the Year awards: Full list of past winners, 1968-2023 {{!}} Sporting News|url=https://www.sportingnews.com/us/archives/news/sporting-news-athlete-year-awards-full-list-past-winners/b5057b347246de26b7015930|website=www.sportingnews.com|date=December 19, 2023|access-date=November 29, 2025|language=en-us}}</ref> In 1972, he shared ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'' magazine's "[[Sportsman of the Year]]" award with [[Billie Jean King]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=November 30, 2023 |title=Every Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year |url=https://www.si.com/sports-illustrated/sports-illustrated-sportsperson-year-covers |access-date=December 5, 2025 |website=SI |language=en-US}}</ref> In 1960, he was enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame for his achievements as a player<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.hoophall.com/hall-of-famers/tag/john-r-wooden-player |publisher = Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame |title = John R. Wooden (player) |access-date = January 24, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090909154403/http://www.hoophall.com/hall-of-famers/tag/john-r-wooden-player |archive-date = September 9, 2009 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> and as a coach in 1973,<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.hoophall.com/hall-of-famers/tag/john-r-wooden-coach |publisher = Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame |title = John R. Wooden (coach) |access-date = January 24, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090831071100/http://www.hoophall.com/hall-of-famers/tag/john-r-wooden-coach |archive-date = August 31, 2009 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> becoming the first to be honored as both a player and a coach.<ref name="Puma"/><ref name="NBA"/>

After his coaching career ended, UCLA continued to honor Wooden with the title of Head Men's Basketball Coach [[Emeritus]].<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.directory.ucla.edu/search.php |title = UCLA Directory – Wooden, John R. |publisher = UCLA |access-date = January 30, 2010 |archive-date = March 1, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100301135406/http://www.directory.ucla.edu/search.php |url-status = live }}</ref> On November 17, 2006, Wooden was recognised for his impact on college basketball as a member of the founding class of the [[National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame]]. He was one of five people—along with [[Oscar Robertson]], [[Bill Russell]], [[Dean Smith]] and [[Dr. James Naismith]]—who were selected to represent the inaugural class.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://nabc.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/111806aaa.html |title = Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame to induct founding class |publisher = National Association of Basketball Coaches |date = November 17, 2006 |access-date = January 25, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071117133552/http://nabc.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/111806aaa.html |archive-date = November 17, 2007 |url-status = dead }}</ref> In 2009, he was inducted into the [[Missouri Valley Conference]] Athletics Hall of Fame in St. Louis. Coach Wooden was the ninth honouree in the Missouri Valley Conference's Lifetime Achievement category.<ref name="Benson"/> Wooden said the honour he was most proud of was "Outstanding Basketball Coach of the U.S". by his denomination, the Christian Church.<ref name="UCLA Tradition"/>

Since 1977, the [[John R. Wooden Award]] has been the most coveted of the four college basketball player-of-the-year awards. This award has attained the status of being the equivalent of football's Heisman Trophy for college basketball, with the winner announced during a ceremony held at the Los Angeles Athletic Club.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.woodenaward.com/?page_id=80 |title = John R. Wooden Award |publisher = John R. Wooden Award |year = 2009 |access-date = January 30, 2010 |archive-date = March 7, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120307165349/http://www.woodenaward.com/?page_id=80 |url-status = dead }}</ref> The MVP award for the [[McDonald's All-American Game]] in high-school basketball is named the "John R. Wooden Most Valuable Player Award". The [[Wooden Legacy]] is held in his honour.

In 1998 the Coach Wooden "Keys to Life" Award was created to be given to a former player or coach who exemplifies character, leadership and faith. This Award is presented at the Legends of the Hardwood Breakfast, which is held each year at the Final Four and is hosted by Athletes in Action.

On February 3, 1984, Wooden was inducted into the Indiana State University Athletic Hall of Fame.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.gosycamores.com/ViewArticle.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=15200&ATCLID=3714314&SPID=7263&SPSID=65182 |title = Hall of Fame |publisher = GoSycamores.com (official site of Indiana State Athletics) |access-date = January 28, 2010 |archive-date = July 11, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110711114225/http://www.gosycamores.com/ViewArticle.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=15200&ATCLID=3714314&SPID=7263&SPSID=65182 |url-status = live }}</ref>

[[File:John Wooden Center.jpg|thumb|alt=A photograph of a grey, three-story building on campus. The second story is offset back from the first and the third is offset form the second. The building has plants hanging over the second story onto the front of it. It is decorated with three unreadable banners. There are eight steps that lead to its covered entrance.|John Wooden Recreation Centre on the campus of UCLA]]
In 2000, Wooden was honored with the "Lombardi Award of Excellence" from the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation. The award was created to honor Coach [[Vince Lombardi|Lombardi]]'s legacy, and is awarded annually to an individual who exemplifies the spirit of the Coach.

Wooden has schools and athletic facilities named after him. The gym at his alma mater Martinsville High School bears his name,<ref name="UCLA Tradition" /> and in 2005 a high school in the [[Los Angeles Unified School District]] was renamed to [[John R. Wooden High School]].<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.lausd.k12.ca.us/lausd/board/secretary/html/agendas/min/mn01-11-05.html |author = Board of Education of the City of Los Angeles |title = Regular Meeting Minutes: January 11, 2005 |publisher = Los Angeles Unified School District |date = January 11, 2005 |access-date = January 30, 2010 |archive-date = June 14, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110614051633/http://www.lausd.k12.ca.us/lausd/board/secretary/html/agendas/min/mn01-11-05.html |url-status = live }}</ref> In 2003, UCLA dedicated the basketball court in [[Pauley Pavilion]] in honor of John and Nell Wooden.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.today.ucla.edu/portal/ut/031209campus_woodens.aspx |title = Courtly tribute to the Woodens |author = Karen Mack |newspaper = UCLA Today |date = December 9, 2003 |access-date = January 25, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090108190942/http://www.today.ucla.edu/portal/ut/031209campus_woodens.aspx |archive-date = January 8, 2009 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> Named the "Nell & John Wooden Court", Wooden asked for the change from the original proposal of the "John & Nell Wooden Court", insisting that his wife's name should come first.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.pe.com/columns/patton/stories/PE_SP_npatton21.578bc.html |title = Wooden's legacy finally on Pauley Pavilion paint |author = Gregg Patton |newspaper = Press-Enterprise |date = December 21, 2003 |access-date = January 25, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20040313091828/http://www.pe.com/columns/patton/stories/PE_SP_npatton21.578bc.html |archive-date = March 13, 2004 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> In 2008, Indiana State also bestowed this honour on Wooden by naming their home court in the [[Hulman Center]] the "Nellie and John Wooden Court".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/11/03/sports/s115650S84.DTL |title=Indiana St. naming basketball court after Wooden |agency=Associated Press |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |date=November 3, 2008 |access-date=January 25, 2010 }} {{dead link|date=May 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> The student recreation centre at UCLA is also named in his honor.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.uclabruins.com/genrel/062200aac.html |publisher = UCLABruins.com (official athletic site of the UCLA Bruins) |title = John Wooden Centre – Student Recreation Facility |access-date = January 30, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120308171222/http://www.uclabruins.com/genrel/062200aac.html |archive-date = March 8, 2012 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> Also in 2008, Wooden was honoured with a commemorative bronze plaque in the [[Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum]] Memorial Court of Honor because his UCLA basketball teams played six seasons in the [[Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.pac-10.org/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/052008aab.html |title=John Wooden Honoured at Coliseum |date=May 20, 2008 |publisher=Pacific-10 Conference |access-date=January 30, 2010 }} {{dead link|date=May 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> On November 8, 2008, [[Indiana State Sycamores|Indiana State]] officially named the floor at the [[Hulman Centre]] The Nellie and John Wooden Court in honor of the legendary coach and his late wife, Nellie. The ceremony included taped comments from Coach Wooden and the participation of members of his 1946–47 and 1947–48 teams.<ref>{{cite web|author=Basketball-M |url=http://www.gosycamores.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=15200&ATCLID=1617084 |title=Wooden Court Ceremony Set For November 8 At Hulman Centre – GoSycamores.com—Official Web Site of Indiana State Athletics |publisher=Gosycamores.com |date=October 23, 2008 |access-date=August 4, 2012}}</ref> The Sycamores christened the newly named floor by defeating the [[Albion College]] (MI) Britons in an exhibition game.

On July 23, 2003, John Wooden received the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]], the nation's highest civilian honor. It was presented by [[George W. Bush]] after a three-year campaign by [[Andre McCarter]], who was on Wooden's 1975 National Championship team. The Ukleja Center for Ethical Leadership at [[California State University, Long Beach]] established the John Wooden Ethics in Leadership Award in 2009, with Wooden being the inaugural recipient.<ref>{{cite web | title = Ukleja Centre Presents Award to Legendary Coach John Wooden | work = Inside CSULB | publisher = [[California State University, Long Beach]] | date = June 15, 2009 | url = http://csulb.edu/misc/inside/core/?p=5502 | access-date = June 15, 2009 | archive-date = August 5, 2011 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110805230750/http://www.csulb.edu/misc/inside/core/?p=5502 | url-status = dead }}</ref> In 1986, John Wooden was honored as an Outstanding Alumnus of the School of Liberal Arts at Purdue University – the first year the award was given.

In 1976, Wooden received the Golden Plate Award of the [[Academy of Achievement|American Academy of Achievement]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement|website=www.achievement.org|publisher=[[American Academy of Achievement]]|url=https://achievement.org/our-history/golden-plate-awards/#sports|access-date=August 23, 2020|archive-date=December 15, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161215023909/https://achievement.org/our-history/golden-plate-awards/#sports|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=John Wooden Biography and Interview|website=www.achievement.org|publisher=[[American Academy of Achievement]]|date=February 27, 1996|url=https://achievement.org/achiever/john-wooden/|access-date=April 23, 2020|archive-date=September 26, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230926095643/https://achievement.org/achiever/john-wooden/|url-status=live}}</ref>

On May 17, 2004, Wooden was awarded the Ambassador Award of Excellence by the LA Sports & Entertainment Commission at the [[Riviera Country Club]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-apr-11-sp-simers11-story.html |title=The 'People's Choice' Has the Gift of Gag |website=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=April 11, 2004 |access-date=July 16, 2012}}</ref>

On Wooden's 96th birthday in 2006, a post office in [[Reseda, Los Angeles|Reseda, California]], near where Wooden's daughter lives, was renamed the Coach John Wooden Post Office.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.advocacy.ucla.edu/events/Coach_Wooden_Post_Office_Dedication.htm |title = Coach John Wooden Post Office Dedication Ceremony |author = UCLA Government & Community Relations |date = October 2006 |access-date = January 30, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100706102658/http://www.advocacy.ucla.edu/events/Coach_Wooden_Post_Office_Dedication.htm |archive-date = July 6, 2010 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> This act was signed by President [[George W. Bush]] based on legislation introduced by Congressman [[Brad Sherman]].<ref name =UCLABruins/>

[[File:John R. Wooden Drive Street Sign.jpg|thumb|left]]In July 2010, Wooden's alma mater, Purdue University, named a street on campus after him.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://archive.jconline.com/article/20100709/NEWS09/100709012/Purdue-renames-street-honor-John-Wooden |title = Purdue renames street to honor John Wooden |author = Eric Weddle |newspaper = Lafayette (Indiana) Journal and Courier |date = July 9, 2010 |access-date = July 2, 2015 |df = mdy-all }} {{dead link|date=October 2017|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>

On October 14, 2010, the Undergraduate Student Association Council of UCLA held a "John Wooden Day Celebration" to honor Wooden's 100th birthday and to commemorate his contributions to the university.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.uclabruins.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/101210aaa.html |title = UCLA Students to Honor Memory of Late Coach John Wooden on His 100th Birthday on Oct. 14 |publisher = UCLA Athletics |newspaper = Daily Bruin |date = October 12, 2010 |access-date = October 12, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120405155109/http://www.uclabruins.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/101210aaa.html |archive-date = April 5, 2012 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> A portion of the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame at Morgan Centre is a recreation of Wooden's den office in honor of his memory on campus.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.dailybruin.com/index.php/article/2010/10/celebration_of_john_woodens_life_and_legacy_in_commemoration_of_his_100th_birthdayl |title = Celebration of John Wooden's life and legacy in commemoration of his 100th birthday |publisher = ASUCLA Media |newspaper = Daily Bruin |date = October 15, 2010 |access-date = October 18, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110614082238/http://www.dailybruin.com/index.php/article/2010/10/celebration_of_john_woodens_life_and_legacy_in_commemoration_of_his_100th_birthdayl |archive-date = June 14, 2011 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

''[[Golf Digest]]'' lists Wooden as one of four people to score both a [[Albatross (golf)|double eagle]] and a [[hole in one]] in the same round of [[golf]].<ref>Dwyre, Bill – [http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-dwyre26-2010jan26,0,3945751.column When John Wooden worked magic on a golf course] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100129041927/http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-dwyre26-2010jan26,0,3945751.column |date=January 29, 2010 }}. Los Angeles Times, January 26, 2010</ref> The feat was accomplished in 1947 at the South Bend Country Club in [[South Bend, Indiana]].

The flagship leadership development program of Wooden's fraternity, [[Beta Theta Pi]], is named "The John and Nellie Wooden Institute for Men of Principle" after Coach Wooden and his wife, Nellie.<ref>{{cite web | title = The Wooden Institute | url = http://www.betathetapi.org/events/wooden-institute | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101124000132/http://www.betathetapi.org/events/wooden-institute | archive-date = November 24, 2010 | df = mdy-all }}</ref> Coach Wooden's maxims and creed are central to the teaching of leadership development at the institute.

On October 26, 2012, a bronze statue of Wooden by sculptor [[Blair Buswell]] was dedicated at the newly renovated [[Pauley Pavilion]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Yoon |first=Peter |title=UCLA unveils John Wooden statue |date=October 26, 2012 |work=ESPN.com |url=https://www.espn.com/los-angeles/ncb/story/_/id/8556762/john-wooden-statue-unveiled-ucla-bruins-pauley-pavilion |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121028081731/http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/ncb/story/_/id/8556762/john-wooden-statue-unveiled-ucla-bruins-pauley-pavilion |archive-date=October 28, 2012 |url-status=live  }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.dailybreeze.com/ci_21861237/ucla-john-wooden-statute-be-unveiled-today-at|title=UCLA: John Wooden statue to be unveiled today at new Pauley Pavilion|access-date=August 15, 2017|language=en|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121028002138/http://www.dailybreeze.com/ci_21861237/ucla-john-wooden-statute-be-unveiled-today-at|archive-date=October 28, 2012}}</ref>

''[[Wooden's Legacy]]'', a 2012 public artwork statue by Jeffrey Rouse, is exhibited in [[Indianapolis, Indiana]].

The United States Postal Service honored Wooden as the subject of a first class forever postage stamp issued in February 2024.<ref>{{Cite press release| title=Celebrating a Transformative Figure in Sports and Leadership |website=USPS | url=https://about.usps.com/newsroom/national-releases/2024/0224-usps-dedicates-forever-stamp-honoring-ucla-coach-john-wooden.htm | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240228013439/https://about.usps.com/newsroom/national-releases/2024/0224-usps-dedicates-forever-stamp-honoring-ucla-coach-john-wooden.htm | access-date=2025-08-17 | archive-date=2024-02-28}}</ref> The unveiling was held at UCLA with former students such as Kareem Abdul-Jabar and Jamaal Wilkes reminiscing on Wooden's accomplishments.<ref>{{cite press release |last1=Kivowitz |first1=Elizabeth |title=A 'masterpiece' of a day: Hundreds gather at UCLA to honor Coach John Wooden |url=https://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/hundreds-gather-at-ucla-to-honor-coach-john-wooden-stamp |website=UCLA |access-date=May 23, 2025 |archive-date=March 18, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250318064247/https://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/hundreds-gather-at-ucla-to-honor-coach-john-wooden-stamp |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Following Wooden==
Three of Wooden's former players would take over the program and leave within a few years. [[Gene Bartow]], [[Gary Cunningham]], [[Larry Brown (basketball)|Larry Brown]], and [[Larry Farmer (basketball)|Larry Farmer]] were the four coaches who entered and left UCLA in the nine years following Wooden. One former UCLA head coach, former [[ESPN]] analyst and former [[St. John's Red Storm men's basketball|St. John's]] head coach [[Steve Lavin]] (fired from UCLA in 2003), has said "The mythology and [[pathology]] of UCLA basketball isn't going to change" due to Wooden's legacy and believes that every basketball coach will eventually be fired or forced out from UCLA.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/sports/2003/01/12/2003-01-12_trouble_bruin_steve_lavin_fe.html |title = Trouble Bruin: Steve Lavin feels the heat again, but this time it may be too much |author = Dick Weiss |newspaper = New York Daily News |date = January 12, 2003 |access-date = January 30, 2010 }} {{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

Bartow, Wooden's immediate successor at UCLA, went 28–5 in 1976, but was blown out twice that season by [[Bob Knight]]'s eventual undefeated national-champion [[1975–76 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team|Indiana Hoosiers]], the second time in the Final Four, and lost 76–75 in the 1977 West Region semifinals to [[Idaho State Bengals men's basketball|Idaho State]].
Bartow won 85.2% of his games (compared to Wooden's 80.8%) in two years, yet supposedly received death threats from unsatisfied UCLA [[Fan (person)|fans]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2015}}

Wooden himself often joked about being a victim of his own success, calling his successors on the phone and playfully identifying himself ominously as "we the [[alumni]]..."<ref>{{cite journal |url = https://www.espn.com/espnmag/story?id=3670253 |author1 = Steve Lavin |author2 = Chris Snow |title = Coach to Coach: What does John Wooden pass to another coach? |journal = ESPN the Magazine |date = October 5, 2009 |access-date = January 30, 2010 |archive-date = November 9, 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181109193728/http://www.espn.com/espnmag/story?id=3670253 |url-status = live }}</ref> In his autobiography, Wooden recounts walking off the court in 1975 after his last game as a coach, having just won his tenth title, only to have a UCLA fan walk up and say, "Great win coach, this makes up for letting us down [[1973–74 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|last year]]" (UCLA had lost in the semifinals in double overtime in [[1974 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|1974]] to eventual national champion [[1973–74 NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team|North Carolina State]]).<ref>Wooden, John. ''They Call Me Coach.'' McGraw-Hill, 2004. {{ISBN|0-07-142491-1}}</ref>

Bartow's successor, Wooden protege Gary Cunningham, posted an even better two-year record after Bartow, .862 (50–8) and No. 2 rankings each year, but could not proceed past two wins in the NCAAs, and left. Larry Brown came next, racking up more losses, 17, in two years than UCLA had experienced the previous four. With a near-magical end-of-season run typical of his career, he managed to coach UCLA into the title game in 1980, where the Bruins lost to [[1979–80 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team|Louisville]], coached by [[Denny Crum]]. Coincidentally, Crum had played for Wooden at UCLA before working for him there as an assistant coach. Brown then left UCLA. Former UCLA players Larry Farmer and Walt Hazzard then took turns directing the UCLA program from 1981 to 1988. Hazzard's 1985 team won the [[1985 National Invitation Tournament|National Invitation Tournament]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sdut-former-ucla-nba-star-walt-hazzard-dies-2011nov18-story.html |title=Former UCLA, NBA star Walt Hazzard dies |last=Harris |first=Beth |date=November 18, 2011 |website= The San Diego Union-Tribune |access-date=December 12, 2023 |quote=In 1985, he led them to the school’s first NIT championship.}}</ref>

UCLA went 20 years after Wooden's retirement before winning another [[1994–95 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|national championship]], finally hanging a [[Pauley Pavilion#UCLA championship banners|banner]] again in [[1995 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|1995]] under coach [[Jim Harrick]], when [[Ed O'Bannon]] starred for the Bruins as they beat Arkansas 89–78 in the title game and denied [[Nolan Richardson]] back-to-back titles. In [[2005–06 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|2006]], [[Ben Howland]] led the team back to the [[2006 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|national championship game]] for the first time since the 1995 title game, but they were defeated 73–57 by the [[2005–06 Florida Gators men's basketball team|Florida Gators]] and their star player [[Joakim Noah]].<ref name="UCLA History"/> Harrick was the only coach of John Wooden's nine successors who has guided the Bruins to an NCAA championship.

==Personal life==
Wooden met his future wife, Nellie "Nell" Riley, when he was a freshman in high school<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.coachwooden.com/ |title = The Journey – A Brief Professional and Personal History Timeline – July, 1926 |publisher = CoachWooden.com – The Official Site of Coach John Wooden |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = February 9, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100209202101/http://www.coachwooden.com/ |url-status = live }}</ref> They married in Indianapolis when they were both 21 years old.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.coachwooden.com/ |title = The Journey – A Brief Professional and Personal History Timeline – August, 1932 |publisher = CoachWooden.com – The Official Site of Coach John Wooden |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = February 9, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100209202101/http://www.coachwooden.com/ |url-status = live }}</ref> They had a son, James Hugh Wooden, and a daughter, Nancy Anne Muehlhausen.<ref name =UCLABruins/> Nellie died on March 21, 1985<ref name =UCLABruins/> from cancer at age 73.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_144599.asp |title = The Ultimate Valentine |author = Roy Exum |date = February 12, 2009 |newspaper = The Chattanoogan |access-date = January 25, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100608134654/http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_144599.asp |archive-date = June 8, 2010 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

He was a devout Christian, considering his beliefs more important to him than basketball.<ref>{{cite book |author= John Wooden |year = 2003 |title = They Call Me Coach |publisher = McGraw-Hill |isbn = 978-0-07-142491-2 }}</ref> Wooden's faith strongly influenced his life. He read the [[Bible]] daily and attended the First Christian Church.<ref name="Horowitz">{{cite journal |url = http://www.mitchhorowitz.com/john-wooden.html |author = Mitch Horowitz |author-link = Mitch Horowitz |title = From the Socks Up: The Extraordinary Coaching Life of John Wooden |date = November 2004 |journal = Science of Mind |access-date = February 7, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100226063620/http://www.mitchhorowitz.com/john-wooden.html |archive-date = February 26, 2010 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

In a 2009 interview he described himself politically as a "liberal", who had voted for some Republican presidential candidates.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.si.com/more-sports/2009/08/24/john-wooden |title=Checking in on John Wooden |last=Davis |first=Seth |date=August 24, 2009 |magazine=Sports Illustrated |access-date=December 12, 2023}}</ref>

==Final years and death==
[[File:Johnwooden.jpg|alt= A smiling, elderly man is shown from the waist up. He is shaking someone's hand, but that person is out of the picture. The man is wearing a dark suit with a yellow boutonniere. He has thin white hair and large glasses. He is standing in front of a blue screen that has the script "UCLA" logo on it in yellow letters.|thumb|upright|Wooden at a ceremony on his 96th birthday]]
Wooden was in good physical health until the later years of his life. On April 3, 2006, he spent three days in a Los Angeles hospital, receiving treatment for [[diverticulitis]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/mensbasketball/2006-04-06-wooden-released_x.htm |title=John Wooden goes home from hospital |agency = Associated Press |date = April 6, 2006 |access-date = January 31, 2010 | work=USA Today}}</ref> He was hospitalized again in 2007 for bleeding in the colon, with his daughter quoted as saying her father was "doing well" upon his subsequent release.<ref>{{cite news |title=Wooden released from hospital |url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18026874/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071115033731/http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18026874/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 15, 2007 |agency = Associated Press |date=April 16, 2007| access-date= February 7, 2010}}</ref> Wooden was hospitalized on March 1, 2008, after a fall in his home. He broke his left wrist and his collarbone in the fall, but remained in good condition according to his daughter and was given around-the-clock supervision.<ref>{{cite news |url = https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/news/story?id=3271552 |title = Wooden breaks left wrist, collarbone in fall at home |agency = Associated Press |work = ESPN |date = March 1, 2008 |access-date = January 30, 2010}}</ref> In February 2009, he was hospitalized for four weeks with pneumonia.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.dailynews.com/sports/ci_11956069 |title = UCLA's Holiday uses opportunity to run the show |author = Brian Dohn |newspaper = Los Angeles Daily News |date = March 20, 2009 |access-date = January 30, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100815004145/http://www.dailynews.com/sports/ci_11956069 |archive-date = August 15, 2010 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

On May 26, 2010, Wooden was admitted to the [[Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center]] after suffering from dehydration.<ref>{{cite news |url = https://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2010/06/04/sports-bkc-wooden-hospitalized_7661675.html |title = UCLA: John Wooden suffering from dehydration |author = Beth Harris |newspaper = Forbes.com |date = June 4, 2010 |access-date = June 4, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100605083214/http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2010/06/04/sports-bkc-wooden-hospitalized_7661675.html|archive-date=June 5, 2010 }}</ref> He remained hospitalized there and died of natural causes at age 99 on June 4, 2010.<ref name=espndeath>{{cite news |url = https://www.espn.com/los-angeles/news/story?id=5253601 |title = Wooden dies at age 99 |publisher = ESPN Los Angeles |date = June 4, 2010 |access-date = June 4, 2010 |archive-date = January 4, 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200104203520/https://www.espn.com/los-angeles/news/story?id=5253601 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name=cnndeath>{{cite news |url = http://www.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/06/03/basketball.wooden.obit/index.html?hpt=T1 |title = Legendary basketball coach Wooden dies |work = CNN |date = June 4, 2010 |access-date = June 4, 2010 |archive-date = June 6, 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100606172921/http://www.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/06/03/basketball.wooden.obit/index.html?hpt=T1 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/mensbasketball/2010-06-04-john-wooden-obit_N.htm|title=Remembering John Wooden|date=June 5, 2010|work=USA Today|access-date=June 5, 2010|archive-date=June 5, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100605071829/http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/mensbasketball/2010-06-04-john-wooden-obit_N.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> He was survived by his son, daughter, three grandsons, four granddaughters, and 13 great-grandchildren. Following a private ceremony, Wooden was interred with his wife Nellie in an outdoor community [[mausoleum]] at [[Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills)|Forest Lawn Memorial Park]] in the [[Hollywood Hills]] neighborhood of Los Angeles. A public memorial service was held two weeks later at UCLA's [[Pauley Pavilion]].

==Seven Point Creed==
John Wooden's Seven Point Creed<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.espn.com/espn/eticket/story?page=wooden&redirected=true |title = Forever Coach |author = Eric Neel |date = October 16, 2005 |access-date = January 24, 2010 |archive-date = September 29, 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200929015207/http://www.espn.com/espn/eticket/story?page=wooden&redirected=true |url-status = live }}</ref> was given to him by his father Joshua upon his graduation from [[grammar school]]:

# Be true to yourself.
# Make each day your masterpiece.
# Help others.
# Drink deeply from good books, especially the [[Bible]].
# Make friendship a fine art.
# Build a shelter against a rainy day.
# Pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings every day.

Wooden also lectured and authored a book about the Pyramid of Success.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.woodencourse.com/pyramid-of-success|title=The John R. Wooden Course|website=www.woodencourse.com|access-date=May 11, 2019|archive-date=May 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190511101555/https://www.woodencourse.com/pyramid-of-success|url-status=live}}</ref> The Pyramid of Success consists of philosophical building blocks for succeeding at basketball and at life. In his later years he was hired by corporations to deliver inspirational lectures and even appeared in commercials for Hartford Insurance and the NCAA. Following his death in June 2010—shortly after the basketball season— all UCLA sports teams wore either a patch or helmet sticker with the initials "JRW" inside a black pyramid for the remainder of the season, in honor of his philosophy. Furthermore, the men's basketball team continues to wear the patch as of 2019, though not in black. It is generally known that he received lecture fees that exceeded the salaries he was paid as a coach. Wooden proudly claimed that these late in life windfalls allowed him to set up education accounts for all of his grandchildren. At the top of the Pyramid of Success was "Competitive Greatness" which Wooden defined as "Perform at your best when your best is required. Your best is required each day."<ref>Bergin, Mark. "Atop the pyramid". ''WORLD magazine''. July 3, 2010: 78</ref>

Wooden was also the author of several other books about basketball and life.

One of his maxims was
"Be quick, but don't hurry"<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20091018071035/http://www.latimes.com/sports/college/basketball/la-sp-wooden-birthday-pictures,0,5256022.photogallery PHOTOS: John Wooden turns 99], ''Los Angeles Times'', October 14, 2009</ref><ref>Mike Penner, [https://web.archive.org/web/20091016114555/http://www.latimes.com/sports/college/basketball/la-sp-john-wooden14-2009oct14,0,5372928,full.story On his 99th birthday, 99 things about John Wooden], ''Los Angeles Times'', October 14, 2009</ref>

==Publications==
* John Wooden and Steve Jamison (2010) ''The Wisdom of Wooden: My Century On and Off the Court'', McGraw-Hill Education. {{ISBN|978-0071751162}} 
* John Wooden and Don Yaeger (2009) ''A Game Plan for Life: The Power of Mentoring'', Bloomsbury USA. {{ISBN|978-1-59691-701-9}}
* John Wooden and Steve Jamison (2009) ''Coach Wooden's Leadership Game Plan for Success: 12 Lessons for Extraordinary Performance and Personal Excellence'', McGraw-Hill Professional. {{ISBN|978-0-07-162614-9}}
* John Wooden and Steve Jamison (2007) ''The Essential Wooden: A Lifetime of Lessons on Leaders and Leadership'', McGraw-Hill Education. {{ISBN|978-0-07-148435-0}}
* John Wooden with Swen Nater (2006) ''John Wooden's UCLA Offense'', Human Kinetics. {{ISBN|978-0-7360-6180-3}}
* John Wooden and Steve Jamison (2005) ''Wooden on Leadership: How to Create a Winning Organization'', McGraw-Hill Education. {{ISBN|978-0-07-145339-4}}
* John Wooden, Jay Carty (2005) ''Coach Wooden's Pyramid of Success Playbook'', Revell. {{ISBN|978-0800726263}}
* John Wooden with Steve Jamison (2004) ''My Personal Best'', McGraw-Hill Professional. {{ISBN|978-0-07-143792-9}}
* John Wooden, Jay Carty (2003) ''Coach Wooden One-on-One'', Regal. {{ISBN|978-0830732913}}
* Andrew Hill with John Wooden (2001) ''Be Quick – But Don't Hurry: Finding Success in the Teachings of a Lifetime'', Simon & Schuster {{ISBN|978-0743213882}}
* John Wooden with Steve Jamison (1997) ''Wooden: A Lifetime of Observations and Reflections On and Off the Court'', Contemporary Books. {{ISBN|978-0-8092-3041-9}}
* John Wooden with Jack Tobin (1972) ''They Call Me Coach'', Word Books. {{ISBN|978-0876803059}}
**(1985) Hardcover Revised Edition. Word Books. {{ISBN|978-0849904387}}
**(2003) Revised Edition. McGraw-Hill Professional. {{ISBN|978-0-07-142491-2}}
* John Wooden (1966) ''Practical Modern Basketball''. The Ronald Press Company.

==See also==
{{Portal|Biography}}
* [[List of college men's basketball coaches with 600 wins]]
* [[List of NCAA Division I Men's Final Four appearances by coach]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Clear}}
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* Morrow, Barbara Olenyik. ''Hardwood Glory: A Life of John Wooden'' (Indiana Historical Society, 2014)
* Nader, Swen and Ronald Gallimore. ''You Haven't Taught Until They Have Learned: John Wooden's Teaching Principles and Practices'' (FiT Publishing, 2010) {{ISBN|978-1935412083}}
* Davis, Seth. ''Wooden: A Coach's Life'' (St. Martin's Griffin, 2014) {{ISBN|1250060850}}

==External links==
{{sister project links|d=Q551032|c=category:John Wooden|n=no|b=no|v=no|voy=no|m=no|mw=no|s=no|wikt=no|species=no}}
* {{Official website}}
* [https://achievement.org/achiever/john-wooden/#interview John Wooden Biography and Interview] with [[Academy of Achievement|American Academy of Achievement]]

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