To my dismay, his lecture wasn’t about UCLA basketball or his accomplishments, but rather about some sort of Pyramid of Success. I was a little confused but as he went on, he spliced his teachings into how it translated onto the basketball court. But he kept emphasizing how little basketball meant to him and how important living honestly and earnestly was the key to true success.

I recall my mom and all of the other parents just being mesmerized by Coach Wooden. We all got an autographed copy of his Pyramid of Success book and although I went away feeling somewhat cheated, I later looked on that night as getting the opportunity to meet someone famous and profound. It wasn’t until much, much later that I actually read his book and took heart to what he was saying. Sometimes the hardest things in life are actually the easiest to accomplish. It’s just a matter of breaking it down into it’s simplest form to find the true meaning of what you are looking for.

RIP John Wooden, and thank you for taking the time to speak to a group of kids, particularly one who eventually grasped what you were trying to teach.