This weekend, all eyes will be on Minneapolis as the Men's NCAA Final Four commences. With the exception of the Super Bowl, no athletic competition in the country draws as many viewers and media as the NCAA tournament.
Some states have even made office pool betting for the tournament (along with the Super Bowl) officially legal, thus cementing its importance in the sporting calendar. So as Michigan State, Duke, Arizona, and Maryland battle for collegiate basketball supremacy in one of the most highly anticipated Final Fours in recent history, one must wonder: how does this era of Krzyzewski and Izzo dominance stack up in NCAA history?
If you ask me, the current era can't hold a candle to the John Wooden-UCLA era of the 60's-70's. The Bruins but together a string of 10 championships in 12 years that is unparalleled in sports.
While John Wooden ruled the courts of Pauley Pavilion, the Bruins compiled four 30-0 seasons. The only team since that has been able to complete one season undefeated was the 1975-76 Indiana Hoosiers led by a fresh-faced Bobby Knight.
The Bruins also won 19 conference championships under Wooden, won at least 20 games in 17 consecutive seasons (1966-67 through 1982-83) and during one seven year stretch (1966-67 through 1972-73) compiled a record of 205-5, recording 30-0 three times, 29-1 three times, and 28-2 once. And of course you had those 10 championships, seven straight from 1967-1973.
I only talk about this dominance because it will probably never be duplicated again in the future. Many reasons exist for this.
A major reasons is the early entry of collegiate athletes into the pro ranks, which was unheard of back in Wooden's time. Even if this practice were accepted in college basketball, a Bruin playing under John Wooden would not even consider skipping a few college seasons in order to break into the pros.
Wooden above all stressed education and duty, even over basketball, which was reflected in his near-perfect graduation rate. Even Bill Walton, who was known for his alternative views on life (reflected during the hippie-era), became a straight-edged soldier under Wooden's regime, adhering to the old man's methodical lessons, both basketball and seemingly non-basketball related.
Wooden was famous for his first lesson of the season, which revolved around the proper way to wear athletic socks and to tie shoes. Although Wooden was a strict coach, his players admired and respected the man with the turtle-shell glasses.
One famous story of this respect revolved around Walton, who showed up to practice one day with a shaggy beard. When Wooden told Walton to shave it off for next practice, Walton responded that he wanted to look a certain way, and that was his business.
Wooden replied, "Your appearance reflects everything about you, from your attitude to your basketball game. If you can't even groom yourself properly, how will you be able to stop Louisville in next week's game properly?" Walton shaved the beard off the next morning.
Unfortunately, the player-coach relationship has deteriorated with the advent of the early entry to the draft. Whereas 30 years ago, a coach like Wooden could count on his star players like Walton and Lew Alcindor putting in a full four years of college ball, nowadays the superstars of the NCAA are most likely to leave for the pros early.
Even a well-respected coach such as Mike Krzyzewski of Duke must risk some of his players jumping ship in order to play for the "elite" teams of the NBA, such as the storied programs of the Vancouver Grizzlies and the LA Clippers.
This was most recently demonstrated two years ago when Elton Brand, William Avery, and Corey Maggette all left Duke early to play for the pros, even though they nearly won the championship that season (Connecticut beat Duke in a close thriller.) The three were the first players to EVER leave Duke early.
Arguably if the three players had stayed, they would have formed one of the most talented groups of players ever along with Shane Battier, Chris Carrawell and then-freshman Jason Williams that would have captured the NCAA title instead of Michigan State. With the addition of Chris Duhon, Mike Dunleavy Jr. and Carlos Boozer, this season's team could easily have gone undefeated and would be a double-digit favorite to win an NCAA championship.
This year's Final Four will most likely be highly entertaining, complete with memorable moments that make the NCAA Tournament what it is.
But as you watch the dazzling displays of wizardry that these young men put on, keep in mind the olden days of 1960s-70s b-ball, with John Wooden patrolling the sidelines of the Pauley Pavilion, or Lew Alcindor performing his nonpareil hook shot, or non-UCLA players such as "Pistol" Pete Maravich of LSU competing for hardwood glory against the UCLA machine. There may never be another era like it, ever again.
