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RIP Morgan Wootten

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by Starman, Jan 22, 2020.

  1. Starman

    Starman Well-Known Member

    Probably the best-known high school basketball coach ever.

    Morgan Wootten, Hall of Fame high school basketball coach, dies at 88

    In a way, he was kind of responsible for the rise of private/parochial super teams that now dominate "high school" basketball. Although he certainly didn't invent the phenomenon.
     
    Last edited: Jan 22, 2020
  2. heyabbott

    heyabbott Well-Known Member

    "You get to do things for people who will never pay you back, and they say you never have had a perfect day until you've done something for someone who will never pay you back." RIP Coach Wootten
     
    OscarMadison likes this.
  3. The Big Ragu

    The Big Ragu Moderator Staff Member

    I know a few guys who played for him, and he was beloved. Along the way, he had offers from several high-profile D1 programs, but he had no desire to leave. I believe John Wooden thought he was the greatest coach he ever saw. RIP
     
    Tweener and OscarMadison like this.
  4. Starman

    Starman Well-Known Member

    I believe he was offered Maryland ahead of Lefty Dreisell, and turned it down.
     
  5. CD Boogie

    CD Boogie Well-Known Member

    Wootten coached 13 future NBA players (most notably Adrian Dantley) at DeMatha.

    That's insane.
     
  6. Songbird

    Songbird Well-Known Member

    He, and DeMatha, were always featured on ESPN's Scholastic Sports America when Chris Fowler hosted.
     
  7. heyabbott

    heyabbott Well-Known Member

    James Brown went to DeMatha. Played for Wootten and turned down D1 scholarships to go to Harvard. His roommate at Harvard was Harvard University professor/philosopher/activist Cornel West
     
  8. CD Boogie

    CD Boogie Well-Known Member

    So I guess Wootten didn't have a positive impact on every player he had.

    [​IMG]
     
    Chef2 and ChrisLong like this.
  9. BitterYoungMatador2

    BitterYoungMatador2 Well-Known Member

  10. heyabbott

    heyabbott Well-Known Member

    Thompson did to Maryland what Wootten did to Thompson. And Thompson couldn't play the race card against Wootten because DeMatha, even though a Catholic School in a then majority white area, ran an honest diverse program as did its football teams.

     
  11. CD Boogie

    CD Boogie Well-Known Member

  12. Tweener

    Tweener Well-Known Member

    Wooten is definitely on the Mount Rushmore of D.C. sports legends. It’s impossible to not know of the man if you’ve lived there and have any kind of awareness of the sports scene.
     
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