Wooden: A Coach's Life (88 page)

“Our practices were hellish”: Charlie Caress interview with Alan Karpick.

Lambert insisted that they remain on campus: Karpick,
Boilermaker Basketball
, p. 30.

“He was way ahead of his time in fast break basketball”: Purdue interview.

a solution of benzoin and tannic acid: Ward L. Lambert,
Practical Basketball
(Chicago: Athletic Journal Publishing, 1932), p. 229.

Lambert himself was a smoker and inveterate poker player: Karpick,
Boilermaker Basketball
, p. 60.

“He taught me the value of a controlled offense”: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 18.

“I’ve seen Piggy getting up, leading cheers, coaching, and officiating all at the same time”: Clyde Lyle interview with Alan Karpick.

“it’s an uncomfortable feeling to be calling them as you see ’em”: Wilson and Brondfield,
Big Ten
, p. 105.

“anxious to be relieved of the nervous strain and mental punishment”: Karpick,
Boilermaker Basketball
, p. 60.

the place was so jammed that some fans sat on steel trusses above the floor: Ibid., p. 23.

his habit of flinging his elbows when cradling the ball could be a menace to his teammates during practice: Ibid., p. 28.

“He was a beanpole”: Lyle interview with Karpick.

Gordon Graham, reported that Wooden “had proven himself capable”: “Boilermaker Quintet Looks Good in Opener Against Don White’s Bears,”
Lafayette Journal and Courier
, Dec. 16, 1929.

“I saw them at the hospital instead of at the game”: Wooden interview with Jares.

Wooden’s absence was “keenly felt”: “Butler Downs Purdue’s Cage Quintet, 36–29,”
Lafayette Journal and Courier
, Dec. 23, 1929.

“The Boilermakers, without a doubt, turned in one of the most disgusting exhibitions of basketball”: “Boilermakers Are Beaten by Montana State Outfield, 38–35,”
Lafayette Journal and Courier
, Jan. 2, 1930.

Wooden “lacked the stamina”: “Coach Piggy Lambert Must Whip Five Into Shape for Conference,”
Lafayette Journal and Courier
, Jan. 4, 1930.

“the Bob Cousy of our day”: Reporter’s file for
Sports Illustrated
by Red Marston of the
St. Petersburg Times
.

“he often flew five or six rows into the stands”: Reporter’s file for
Sports Illustrated
by Jack Tobin, Aug. 9, 1968.

“You need to put two men on Murphy and two men on Wooden”: “Boilermaker Quintet Grabs 2nd Conference Triumph by Downing Purple Five, 39–22,”
Lafayette Journal and Courier
, Jan. 14, 1930.

“Lambert gave us considerable freedom in our play”: Reporter’s file for
Sports Illustrated
by Red Marston of the
St. Petersburg Times
.

“India Rubberman”:
Lafayette Journal and Courier
, Jan. 14, 1930.

“He never held a grudge and you simply couldn’t rattle the guy”: Reporter’s file for
Sports Illustrated
by Art Rosenbaum, Aug. 1, 1968.

“a sophomore who promises to become an immortal in this league”: “A.P. Places Murphy and Wooden on All Star Conference Team,”
Lafayette Journal and Courier
, Mar. 12, 1930.

Lambert called Wooden into his office to report that a well-to-do doctor in town had offered to take care of Wooden’s living expenses: Wooden with Tobin,
They Call Me Coach
, p. 45; Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 17.

“When you walk out of here, your head will be up”: John Wooden interview with Alan Karpick.

5. JOHNNY WOODEN, ALL-AMERICAN

Interview: John Wooden

“comparative midgets”: “Lead Purdue Net Champions Against Notre Dame’s Quintet,”
Lafayette Journal and Courier
, Dec. 15, 1930.

“The thing I remember the most is that he was so fast”: Krider,
Indiana High School Basketball’s 20 Most Dominant Players
, p. 247.

“It took a hunk of meat”: Wooden interview with Jares.

Wooden missed a chance to tie the score: “Free Throws Win for Easterners; Wooden Injured,”
Lafayette Journal and Courier
, Dec. 31, 1930.

she actually fainted in the stands: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 14.

“He was always moving”: Ibid., p. 290.

Wooden was again offered the chance to play professional baseball: Wooden with Tobin,
They Call Me Coach
, p. 47.

“You can’t play in the dirt without getting dirty”: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 17.

She told Wooden that if he accepted, she would call off the marriage and join a convent: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 16.

“We could make a lot more sandwiches that way”: Wooden interview with Karpick.

“a squad that depends more on speed and cleverness than physical power”: “Purdue Basketball Squad Will Play Tough Schedule,”
Lafayette Journal and Courier
, Dec. 3, 1931.

George Keogan went so far as to devise a “Wooden defense”: Reporter’s file for
Sports Illustrated
by Jack Tobin, Aug. 9, 1968.

his tonsils did flare up: Wooden interview with Karpick; Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 26.

“‘Fire department basketball,’ they call it in Indiana”: Associated Press, “Purdue Cage Team Looms as Big Ten’s Strongest Following Great Showing in Early Season Games,”
Lafayette Journal and Courier
, Jan. 6, 1932.

he sliced the ring finger on his shooting hand: Wooden interview with Karpick.

“He had a way of stalling the game out by fantastic dribbling”: Reporter’s file for
Sports Illustrated
by Art Rosenbaum, Aug. 1, 1968.

“Wooden’s going to play tomorrow. All you’re going to do is sit”: Chapin and Prugh,
Wizard of Westwood
, p. 57.

“He had a very unusual thing he did”: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 25.

“Wooden was somewhat of a folk hero here in Indiana”: Ibid., p. 277.

“the name of John Wooden outshines all others”: “Johnny Wooden Called Best Amateur Player in America,”
Lafayette Journal and Courier
, Mar. 21, 1932.

“probably the greatest all-around guard of them all”: Krider,
Indiana High School Basketball’s 20 Most Dominant Players
, p. 243.

“because people remembered him thirty years prior as one of the greatest basketball players”: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 209.

“Wooden to the kids of my era was what Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, or Lew Alcindor is today”: Reporter’s file for
Sports Illustrated
by Jack Tobin, Aug. 9, 1968.

Halas paid Wooden $100 a game: Wooden with Tobin,
They Call Me Coach
, p. 247.

The Celtics were willing to pay Wooden $5,000: Purdue interview.

“He told me without telling me”: Ibid.

First Bank and Trust had gone under: Wooden with Tobin,
They Call Me Coach
, p. 48; Wooden interview with Jares.

“You guys sang so long, I thought you would never stop”: Purdue interview.

6. AN ENGLISH TEACHER

Interviews: Bob Dunbar, Eddie Ehlers, John Gassensmith, Ed Powell, Jim Powers, Jim Rudasics, Ben Stull, Tom Taylor, John Wooden

“We went down there with nothing”: Wooden interview with Jares.

the regular varsity coach, Willard Bass, was demoted to the girls’ team: Chapin and Prugh,
Wizard of Westwood
, p. 46.

he spent some time picking the brain of Noble Kizer: Wooden interview with Jares.

“You’re not man enough to do it”: Wooden with Jamison,
My Personal Best
, p. 53.

“We had some real loafers on our team”: Chapin and Prugh,
Wizard of Westwood
, p. 44.

“If you missed an easy layup, he’d be right there to crack you”: Ibid., p. 45.

“Having been a player of outstanding reputation, perhaps I expected too much”: Wooden interview with Jares.

Lou Foster, accused Wooden of teaching “dirty basketball”: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 27; Chapin and Prugh,
Wizard of Westwood
, p. 44.

Dayton finished the season with just 6 wins to 11 losses: Chapin and Prugh,
Wizard of Westwood
, p. 45.

“He was such a good Christian man”: Ibid., p. 47.

“He laid down a set of rules and expected the guys to follow it”: Reporter’s file for
Sports Illustrated
from Jim Schottelkotte, Aug. 9, 1968.

“He’d invite us for supper and we stayed the rest of the evening”: Ibid.

The teacher had asked his students to come up with their own personal definition of
success
: Wooden with Jamison,
My Personal Best
, p. 86.

the “ladder of success” that Glenn Curtis had presented to him: “Glenn Curtis Dies in Hospital,”
Martinsville Daily Reporter
, May 13, 1982.

a 15–3 record: Chapin and Prugh,
Wizard of Westwood
, p. 46.

At South Bend’s Central High School, Wooden was again wearing many hats: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 27.

In addition, he was the school’s comptroller: Wooden with Jamison,
My Personal Best
, p. 60.

“I don’t think South Bend knew whether I’d be a good English teacher or not”: Purdue interview.

The players found their own way to the game, but Wooden left them on the bench: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 5.

The next day, Nell was looking through a newspaper and came upon a picture of the players at the dance: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 279.

“That made Wooden in South Bend”: Reporter’s file for
Sports Illustrated
from Jack Tobin, Aug. 9, 1968.

he sat his whole team down for fifteen minutes to express his displeasure: “Wooden Files Objection on Umpire Ruling,”
South Bend Tribune
, Apr. 30, 1939.

Wooden was a “stickler for good penmanship”: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 5.

“I think he ended up a common laborer”: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 129.

“He used this as an example to show that he could quit when he wanted to”: Mark Heisler,
They Shoot Coaches, Don’t They?: UCLA and the NCAA Since John Wooden
(New York: Macmillan, 1996), p. 21.

“You no-good little bulldog!”: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 280.

“You have to walk it”: Academy of Achievement interview.

“Johnny Wooden, South Bend Central’s basketball coach, will be the featured speaker at Elkhart High’s sports banquet”: Chapin and Prugh,
Wizard of Westwood
, p. 17.

“Not everybody came out of their exposure to John Wooden and made the grade”: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 285.

“You just never had the ball in your hands”: Ibid., p. 293.

he was floored by how efficient Leahy’s workouts were: John Wooden interview with ESPN, Mar. 12, 1998.

“I noticed that most players wear shoes that are too large”: Academy of Achievement interview.

“He was very concerned about nutrition”: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 284.

“There is no pass that is lower than a roll”: Ibid., p. 291.

“When I tell them it was done shooting two-handed, they really don’t believe it”: “Wooden Hero to Many,”
Indianapolis News
, Dec. 11, 1975.

“We couldn’t stop him”: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 290.

“Back then, we used to think Wooden wasn’t flexible enough”: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 27.

“It was not a healthy situation”: Purdue interview.

Wooden rushed at Shake and swung his fist: Peter J. DeKever,
On the Brink: Shelby Shake and Johnny Wooden
(South Bend, Ind.: South Bend Public Library, 1999), p. 6; Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 294.

“I’ve never seen [Wooden] as upset as I did that night”: Powell interview with Jares.

“Those kids never quit”: “Bears Couldn’t Hit; Wooden Praises Rally,”
South Bend Tribune
, Mar. 8, 1943.

7. THE KAUTSKYS

Interviews: Ed Orme, Ed Powell, John Wooden

“I tell you, he was phenomenal”: Bisheff,
John Wooden
, p. 4.

Kautsky was a bundle of energy who fancied cigars and three-piece suits: Gould,
Pioneers of the Hardwood
, p. 49.

“He was a very wonderful person”: Wooden interview with Jares.

“My dad always said [Wooden] could stop on a dime and give you five cents change”: “A Top Talent in His Day,”
Indianapolis Star
, Apr. 2, 2006.

“The first thing they asked us when we entered the court was, ‘Which one was John Wooden?’” Murry R. Nelson,
The National Basketball League: A History, 1935–1949
(Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 2009), p. 49.

“I often worked on my lesson plans as I traveled”: Wooden interview with Jares.

The NBL disbanded after just one year: Gould,
Pioneers of the Hardwood
, p. 57.

“I’d have to be careful I didn’t stop playing and start watching them”: Ibid., p. 59.

“Even Johnny Wooden’s clever dribbling was lost as [Rens guard] Clarence Jenkins policed the Kautsky star throughout the contest”: Ibid.

“I went down hard and I came up fightin’ mad”: Wooden interview with the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, July 2001 (hereafter cited as Hall of Fame interview).

“Wooden used to be gone two or three days a week”: Johnson,
John Wooden Pyramid of Success
, p. 217.

Kautsky reached out to his erstwhile partner from Akron to form yet another new league, the Midwest Basketball Conference: Nelson,
National Basketball League
, p. 14.