Page 83 - How to Create a Winning Organization

Good Values Attract Good People
leges and universities nationwide courted him with such abandon, 65
lavishing praise and promises on the gifted seven-foot two-inch
student-athlete, that, at times, it perhaps bordered on the embar-
rassing. (However, Abe Lemons, the great Oklahoma basketball
coach, told me later he would never have Lewis on his team after
what the young man said to him when offered a scholarship. I
asked, “Abe, what was it Lewis told you that was so offensive?”
Coach Lemons replied, “He told me, ‘No.’ ”)
While nearly every college basketball coach in America wanted
Lewis to choose their school and many contacted him directly
about doing so, I would not initiate a meeting. Throughout my ca-
reer I had a policy of doing virtually no off-campus recruiting of
student-athletes. In those rare instances when I did visit a young
man and his family at their home—perhaps 10 or 12 over a period
of 29 years as a college coach—it had to be preceded by an inquiry
directly from them or someone speaking on their behalf. I would
not make the first move to meet a prospective student, and Lewis
was no exception. My reason was simple: I didn’t think I should
have to talk a young man into attending UCLA and playing bas-
ketball for the Bruins. If he wasn’t eager to join us, then perhaps it
was best he attended another school.
I believe my policy, in effect, helped keep things in perspective
for the young man. Also, it may have had the added benefit of
weeding out individuals who were simply shopping around for the
best offer, waiting for me, and others, to come and “sell” them on
our school. If any selling was going to be done, I preferred to have
the young athletes try and sell me something; let them take the ini-
tiative, reach out and contact us. That would serve as a good indi-
cation they had a strong desire to come to UCLA and be a part of
our team.
My policy of not contacting players had its downside, of course,
but one with which I was willing to live. Prior to Lewis’s emergence