| abstract | - John Robert Wooden (October 14, 1910 – June 4, 2010) was a former American college basketball player and Hall of Fame Head coach. Nicknamed the "Wizard of Westwood", he won ten NCAA national championships in a 12-year period — seven in a row[2] — as head coach at UCLA, an unprecedented feat.[3][4] Within this period, his teams won a record 88 consecutive games.[2] He was named national coach of the year six times. As a player, Wooden was the first to be named basketball All-American three times and he won a national championship at Purdue. Wooden was named a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame as a player (inducted in 1961) and as a coach (in 1973), the first person ever enshrined in both categories. Only Lenny Wilkens and Bill Sharman have since had the same honor.[5] He was one of the most revered coaches[2] and was beloved by his former players, among them Kareem Abdul Jabbar and Bill Walton. Wooden was renowned for his short, simple inspirational messages to his players, including his "Pyramid of Success." These often were directed at how to be a success in life as well as in basketball.[2]
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