In the spring of 1948 a young coach named John Wooden had just finished his second season as the head basketball coach, head baseball coach, and athletic director at Indiana State University. After serving in the Navy in World War II, the former Purdue Boilermaker guard took a job with multiple roles at a small program in Terre Haute, Indiana. He led the Sycamores to a 44-15 record over two years and one national runner up finish, all while earning his Master’s degree in Education. He was a sought after coach, not short on opportunities to choose from. In the aftermath of the 1947-1948 season, Wooden received numerous calls to lure him away from Indiana State. But, it would be a call that he never received that would shape the remainder of his career and propel him to his “fallback” option where he would become a coaching legend over a 27 year span.

The first to pursue Wooden was his alma-mater Purdue University. After the 1946-1947 season Purdue offered him a role as an assistant to his former coach, Mel Taube. The plan would be to assist Taube and then take over after Taube’s contract expired and the university chose to not renew it. Despite the pull to his alma-mater, Coach Wooden turned the opportunity down. Fiercely loyal, Wooden wanted no part in “running out” his old coach, Mel Taube. He returned to Indiana State and led the team to a conference championship and national runner up finish. 

The next offseason would prove to be a monumental transition for the future “Wizard of Westwood.” After sifting through a few options, the future home of the Wooden family would be narrowed down to Minneapolis, Minnesota or Los Angeles, California. Wooden interviewed for head basketball coach positions with the Minnesota Gophers and the UCLA Bruins. Neither had secondary sport coaching or administrating responsibilities attached. It would be all basketball, and influencing young men for Wooden and his wife Nellie. The question became where?

John and Nellie were midwestern to their core. Having met as freshmen in high school and marrying at the age of 21, the Wooden family had deep roots in the state of Indiana and the midwest. Having played at Purdue University, Coach Wooden loved the Big-Ten conference and the familiarity it provided. They loved what the Twin Cities had to offer and the commitment that the University of Minnesota had made to basketball and athletics. The position suited them well, and would allow the family to remain in the Midwest. UCLA certainly had a lot to offer as well. Despite a great opportunity at UCLA, they really desired to head to the University of Minnesota. 

After interviewing with Gopher athletic director, Frank McCormick, Wooden excelled. The two seemed to really connect and all signs pointed to Wooden wearing maroon & gold and chanting “Ski-U-Mah” for decades. There was one snag in the process though. McCormick wanted Wooden to retain the current coaching staff and Wooden wanted to bring his own assistants with him. There was one year remaining on the contract of the outgoing coach. McCormick had to get approval from the president of the university to buyout the staff and allow Coach Wooden a clean slate for his new staff. The two discussed this would be sort of a “deal breaker." McCormick agreed to discuss with the president and get back with Coach Wooden. Wooden scheduled a call for 6:00 p.m. a few days later and fully expected a job offer from McCormick.

Despite heavily leaning towards Minnesota, and genuinely hoping that would be the destination for the Wooden family, he remained open-minded and poised about his other opportunities. He scheduled a call with the UCLA athletic director Wilbur Johns for 7:00 p.m. the same day as the Gopher call. 

As 6:00 p.m. approached, Wooden waited by the phone. He had hoped the issue around assistants had been approved and an offer from McCormick would be on the way as soon as the phone rang. The problem was as 6:00 p.m. rolled around, the phone didn’t ring. 6:30 p.m. came and still no word from Minneapolis. By 6:45 p.m. Wooden assumed that it was curtains on the Gophers head coaching role for the Wooden family. 

At 7:00 p.m. the phone finally rang. It was not McCormick with the University of Minnesota but instead it was Johns with the UCLA Bruins. Despite a small gym, and being miles from the midwest and the friendly confines of his home state of Indiana, UCLA was a sleeping giant. The future Sporting News - “Greatest Coach of All Time” had gotten his offer. He accepted a three year contract offer with the first year salary a touch over $8,000.

At UCLA he would go on to win an unprecedented 10 NCAA National Championships including seven in a row from 1967-1973. His Bruin teams would reach the NCAA Final Four 12 times in his tenure at UCLA. He was a five-time national coach of the year. He would recruit, develop, and coach future NBA stars Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton. He would author eight books on leadership and coaching philosophies transcending anything he accomplished on the court. He did all of this, at his fallback choice - UCLA.

A few days after accepting the job offer to lead the UCLA Bruins, Wooden finally did receive a call from Minneapolis. It was McCormick and he was pleased to announce to Wooden that he had gotten approval from the president, and would like to extend an offer for Coach Wooden to lead the Golden Gophers men’s basketball team. He adamantly apologized for his delay. He explained that a blizzard had ripped through the upper midwest and had knocked out all power lines in the Twin Cities metro area. McCormick had no way to reach Wooden until power was restored, which was ultimately too late. Despite Minnesota being his first choice, Coach Wooden was a man of his word. He kindly declined the offer, stating that he had already accepted an offer from UCLA and was preparing to move. A late winter storm proved to be the only thing standing in the way of John Wooden being the Gopher head men’s basketball coach. 

Transitions are critical in the life of a leader. Below are some observations from the life of Coach John Wooden and his journey to Westwood, California.

Dream Big, Start Small

For anyone who has studied the life and legacy of John Wooden, it does not seem that Coach Wooden was an ego-driven leader. A man of clear principles, and deep faith, it almost seemed as if he would have been content at Indiana State for the remainder of his career. The development of this leader, and hall of fame coach began in a small gym and a small program. Certainly not the dream job, but the perfect training ground for the characteristics that were showcased in the spotlight during decades of success at UCLA. Every accomplished leader, coach, CEO, artist, author, actress, musician started small.

Trust God To Order Your Steps

There’s an old saying about discerning God’s will during transitional times - “If this is the door God intends for you, no man can close it. If this is not the door God intends for you, no man can open it.” Coach Wooden was a man driven by his faith. There has to be an element of faith in navigating the key transitions in life, both personally and professionally. God may not use a blizzard to knock out power lines to lead you to a destination, but if we believe that we are on our own in navigating this life, we are heading towards deep stress, prolific narcissism, and a counterfeit resting place by ourselves. I would like to believe, in this eleventh hour of waiting and wondering, John and Nell Wooden were stable and held their plans loosely. UCLA sure seemed to have worked out well for this couple.

Whichever Gym, Work Hard

I’m sure many Gopher fans played the “what-if” game. Perhaps Coach Wooden did as well. Could Coach Wooden have duplicated his success at UCLA at the University of Minnesota? Would he have been able to attract the type of talent to Minneapolis as he did to Westwood? My guess is undoubtedly, yes. It’s necessary at times to consider transitions, and potential career maneuvers. But, we must never forget that when you move to a new job, a new company or a new gym, your skills and character are going with you. Coach Wooden was successful, not just because of UCLA, but because of his leadership and coaching skills that he crafted before and after arriving at UCLA, all the way into and beyond his retirement. Don’t lay awake pondering which gym to move on to. Instead, ponder which skills need to be improved right where you are right now.

Stay The Course, 

JB