Wooden: A Coach's Life

A provocative and revelatory new biography of the legendary UCLA coach John Wooden, by one of America's top college basketball writers

No college basketball coach has ever dominated the sport like John Wooden. His UCLA teams reached unprecedented heights in the 1960s and '70s capped by a run of ten NCAA championships in twelve seasons and an eighty-eight-game winning streak, records that stand to this day. Wooden also became a renowned motivational speaker and writer, revered for his "Pyramid of Success."

Seth Davis of Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports has written the definitive biography of Wooden, an unflinching portrait that draws on archival research and more than two hundred interviews with players, opponents, coaches, and even Wooden himself. Davis shows how hard Wooden strove for success, from his All-American playing days at Purdue through his early years as a high school and college coach to the glory days at UCLA, only to discover that reaching new heights brought new burdens and frustrations. Davis also reveals how at the pinnacle of his career Wooden found himself on questionable ground with alumni, referees, assistants, and even some of his players. His was a life not only of lessons taught, but also of lessons learned.

Woven into the story as well are the players who powered Wooden's championship teams – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Walton, Walt Hazzard, and others – many of whom speak frankly about their coach. The portrait that emerges from Davis's remarkable biography is of a man in full, whose life story still resonates today.

1115728665
Wooden: A Coach's Life

A provocative and revelatory new biography of the legendary UCLA coach John Wooden, by one of America's top college basketball writers

No college basketball coach has ever dominated the sport like John Wooden. His UCLA teams reached unprecedented heights in the 1960s and '70s capped by a run of ten NCAA championships in twelve seasons and an eighty-eight-game winning streak, records that stand to this day. Wooden also became a renowned motivational speaker and writer, revered for his "Pyramid of Success."

Seth Davis of Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports has written the definitive biography of Wooden, an unflinching portrait that draws on archival research and more than two hundred interviews with players, opponents, coaches, and even Wooden himself. Davis shows how hard Wooden strove for success, from his All-American playing days at Purdue through his early years as a high school and college coach to the glory days at UCLA, only to discover that reaching new heights brought new burdens and frustrations. Davis also reveals how at the pinnacle of his career Wooden found himself on questionable ground with alumni, referees, assistants, and even some of his players. His was a life not only of lessons taught, but also of lessons learned.

Woven into the story as well are the players who powered Wooden's championship teams – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Walton, Walt Hazzard, and others – many of whom speak frankly about their coach. The portrait that emerges from Davis's remarkable biography is of a man in full, whose life story still resonates today.

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Wooden: A Coach's Life

Wooden: A Coach's Life

by Seth Davis
Wooden: A Coach's Life

Wooden: A Coach's Life

by Seth Davis

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Overview

A provocative and revelatory new biography of the legendary UCLA coach John Wooden, by one of America's top college basketball writers

No college basketball coach has ever dominated the sport like John Wooden. His UCLA teams reached unprecedented heights in the 1960s and '70s capped by a run of ten NCAA championships in twelve seasons and an eighty-eight-game winning streak, records that stand to this day. Wooden also became a renowned motivational speaker and writer, revered for his "Pyramid of Success."

Seth Davis of Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports has written the definitive biography of Wooden, an unflinching portrait that draws on archival research and more than two hundred interviews with players, opponents, coaches, and even Wooden himself. Davis shows how hard Wooden strove for success, from his All-American playing days at Purdue through his early years as a high school and college coach to the glory days at UCLA, only to discover that reaching new heights brought new burdens and frustrations. Davis also reveals how at the pinnacle of his career Wooden found himself on questionable ground with alumni, referees, assistants, and even some of his players. His was a life not only of lessons taught, but also of lessons learned.

Woven into the story as well are the players who powered Wooden's championship teams – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Walton, Walt Hazzard, and others – many of whom speak frankly about their coach. The portrait that emerges from Davis's remarkable biography is of a man in full, whose life story still resonates today.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781250060853
Publisher: St. Martins Press-3PL
Publication date: 01/13/2015
Pages: 610
Sales rank: 164,080
Product dimensions: 6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 1.35(d)

About the Author

Seth Davis is the author of the New York Times bestseller When March Went Mad: The Game That Transformed Basketball and the memoir Equinunk, Tell Your Story: My Return to Summer Camp. In 1995, he joined the staff of Sports Illustrated, where he is currently a senior writer. He is also an on-air studio analyst for CBS Sports and CBS Sports Network during coverage of college basketball and the NCAA tournament. A graduate of Duke University, he lives with his family in Los Angeles.

Table of Contents

Contents

Prologue: The Den 1

Part One: Spring

1. Hugh 7

2. The Artesians 15

3. Nell 24

4. Piggy 31

5. Johnny Wooden, All-American 43

6. An English Teacher 52

7. The Kautskys 68

8. The Hurryin' Sycamores 79

9. Clarence 89

Part Two: Summer

10. Unwelcome 105

11. The Nonconformist 118

12. L.A. Story 127

13. Willie the Whale 135

14. The Dons 145

15. Pete 154

16. Walt 172

17. "Don't Be a Homer!" 188

18. Gail 197

19. Perfect 211

Part Three: Autumn

20. J. D. 233

21. Lewis 242

22. Stallball 256

23. Game of the Century 275

24. Kareem 298

25. The Last Banquet 320

26. The Redhead 338

27. Sam 356

28. Streaking 380

29. Intolerable 399

30. Farewell 420

Part Four: Winter

31. Clean Gene 445

32. The Shadow 459

33. The Hardest Loss 477

34. Andy 489

35. Yonder 505

Epilogue: The Poet 516

John Wooden's Coaching Record, 1946–1975 526

Notes 527

Acknowledgments 565

Index 569

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