The night John Wooden spoke in Cedar Rapids

John Wooden died Friday. It was impossible not to like him.

I was a boy when Wooden's UCLA teams were so dominant in college basketball, and I always rooted against UCLA, the goliath. It was heartbreaking when Drake came so close before losing to the Bruins and Lew Alcindor in the 1969 national semifinals, 85-82. But you couldn't dislike Wooden. He was too gracious, too gentlemanly.

In 1997, Wooden came to Cedar Rapids for a speaking engagement. He met with reporters beforehand. Here is my column in the Gazette from that night:

John Wooden has an entry in the World Book Encyclopedia.

They don't give those to just any sports figure.

Few sports figures would be in demand as a motivational speaker 22 years after retiring, but few blazed a trail like Wooden. He coached UCLA to 10 national basketball championships in 12 years, which is vastly superior to any program in the game's history.

As long as there is college basketball, people will remember the Wooden Era.

Wooden, 86, was in Cedar Rapids Thursday night to speak to the Collins Leadership Club, a group of Rockwell employees. The basketball world has seen great changes since his Bruins ruled, but he says certain basics about athletes and coaching haven't changed a lick.

"Kids will always be the same," Wooden said. "There are different problems in every era, and you have to face them. But kids are the same. They tested you 50 years ago, and they'll test you 50 years from now. If you're patient and listen and try to be fair, you'll get along today or 50 years from now."

The keys to basketball success? According to Wooden, those haven't changed, either.

"The three things that matter are to be in the best possible condition physically and mentally, to teach and execute the fundamentals - not only properly, but quickly - and to teach players to play together as a team."

Common sense instead of nonsense. Boring stuff in 1997? Not to everyone.

"I don't believe any player who played for me will ever tell me that I mentioned winning," Wooden said. "Does that mean I didn't want to win? No. I probably wanted to win as much as anybody. But I still believe winning was a byproduct of other things.

"I will always feel you're in college to get an education, and that should always be first.

"I think education is going to serve you all your life. Basketball, no matter how good you are, will be for a comparatively short period of time."

Wooden was very visible at the men's Final Four in his home state of Indiana several weeks ago, appearing here and there and being the proverbial goodwill ambassador. He doesn't love everything about the modern game, but who does?

"It's the greatest spectator sport," Wooden said. "Overall, it's a wonderful sport. I'm concerned about some things. I don't like the taunting you see today. I think showmanship has taken over.

"We're losing the beauty and the finesse of the game. I think the dunk is bad for basketball, but it will stay because everybody loves it. You see a give-and-go or a screen-and-roll, and you hear a smattering of applause. Do a fancy dunk, and they roar. It's showmanship, which in turn has hurt team play.

"But I have to admit, the crowds are still coming."

Don't look to one old coach to moan about the money his successors make.

"If you sign a contract and finish a contract, then get all you can get," Wooden said. "But live up to that contract.

"I think it's wonderful for them if people are willing to pay them (big money). But there are some things I don't like. Selling yourself and making a player wear a certain shoe, I never believed in that. But if the money goes to scholarships, I have no problem with that."

The Wizard of Westwood could have been the Sultan of the Cyclones.

"I visited Ames one time in 1940 or '41," Wooden said. "Iowa State offered me the (basketball coaching) position there prior to World War II."

He instead enlisted in the Navy, and went to UCLA two years after his discharge in 1946. The rest is history. Genuine sports history.