When the John R. Wooden Award was established in the mid-1970s, its founders wanted a trophy that reflected Coach Wooden’s philosophy of the “total basketball player.” The result was one of the most unique and meticulously crafted awards in college sports — the John R. Wooden Trophy, which this season celebrates its 50th anniversary.
Origins and Inspiration
The idea for the trophy came from Wooden Award Chairman Richard “Duke” Llewellyn, then Athletic Director at The Los Angeles Athletic Club and a close friend of Coach Wooden. Llewellyn envisioned a piece that symbolized Wooden’s belief that true greatness came from mastering all facets of the game.
The design would feature five distinct figures, each representing one of the core skills Wooden emphasized: rebounding, passing, defense, shooting and dribbling. Work began in 1975 with a committee combing through hundreds of action photographs of UCLA basketball players, searching for images that could be translated into sculpture. While defense, dribbling, and passing were captured in existing photographs, rebounding and shooting required new images — so the Club hired a photographer and recruited two of its members, both former college players, to pose for reference.
From Clay to Bronze
The task of bringing the trophy to life fell to sculptor Don Winton, a former track and field competitor who had created numerous sports awards. Using the photographs as guides, Winton sculpted detailed clay models, then cast them in wax, carefully reproducing the proportions of uniforms, shoes, hands, and the basketball itself.
Coach Wooden and Llewellyn personally reviewed the models, suggesting refinements before the molds were finalized. Robert Graves, a master mold-maker known for producing the Emmy and Grammy Awards, handled the casting process. Each of the five figures required as many as ten sections per mold, with additional molds needed for intricate details around the basketball and players’ hands.
In all, 170 pounds of material went into the molds. Each figure was cast, hand-polished, soldered together, and layered with multiple platings of copper, nickel, and bronze to create the finished look.
The Finished Trophy
The completed trophy stands 17 ¾ inches tall, with the tallest figure frozen in the motion of a hook shot at 10 ¼ inches. The solid walnut base measures 7 ½ inches, giving the award both presence and weight — more than 25 pounds. The first trophy cost approximately $7,500 to produce.
Since its unveiling, the Wooden Trophy has been presented annually to the nation’s top collegiate basketball player and his school. Permanent versions reside at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Massachusetts, the Amateur Athletic Foundation in Los Angeles, and in Coach Wooden’s own home. At The Los Angeles Athletic Club, a special trophy stands prominently on a marble pedestal in the main lobby, welcoming visitors with a lasting tribute to Wooden’s legacy.
A Lasting Symbol
Half a century later, the John R. Wooden Trophy remains more than just an award. It is a symbol of the values its namesake embodied: discipline, balance, and mastery of all aspects of the game. As the Wooden Award celebrates its 50th anniversary, the trophy continues to honor the very best in college basketball — and the enduring wisdom of Coach John Wooden.