By W.G. Ramirez
The Sporting Tribune
The John R. Wooden Award will celebrate it’s 50th anniversary this season. Leading up to the award ceremony on April 10, 2026, The Sporting Tribune in partnership with the Wooden Award and the Los Angeles Athletic Club will highlight past winners of the Wooden Award and the Legends of Coaching Award.
If you need a great example of someone who mirrored the late great John Wooden, look no further than Denny Crum.
Crum used his innovative and confident style of coaching, combined with Wooden’s discipline and fundamentals, and built an identity with Louisville basketball.
None of that should be a surprise, however, as Crum played under and coached with Wooden at UCLA, learning the Pyramid of Success, preparation habits, and how to build a winning culture. By the time Crum took over at Louisville, it was more than bringing a carbon copy from Westwood; he enhanced the system to his players and the style of game being played in the 1970s and ’80s.
Crum, who in 2002 received the Legends of Coaching award given by the John Wooden Award Committee, won two NCAA Championships (1980 and ’86), led the Cardinals to six Final Fours and 23 NCAA Tournament appearances.
Known for his composure on the sideline, while many of his rivals were erratic and boisterous, Crum was known for his composure, always staying calm while projecting confidence into his players.
Louisville’s teams reflected his poise, never getting rattled, most importantly in big tournament moments.
Crum, known for his red blazer to match Louisville’s school colors, emphasized an up-tempo style based on stringent defensive pressure, while letting his athletic players run and create in transition. His “Doctors of Dunk” squads during the early ’80s were both dominant and entertaining, which built Louisville’s national reputation into one that was feared annually.
It would be in 1980, when National Player of the Year Darrell Griffith, the Wooden Award recipient, led the Cardinals to a 33–3 record, as they defeated Crum’s alma mater, UCLA, 59-54, to win the national championship. It was that squad that was credited with popularizing the celebratory “High-5.”
As a brilliant game-planner, Crum used his meticulous scouting ability both pre- and mid-game to his advantage, as he was known to switch defenses. Crum’s teams were able to adjust without losing composure, which is why they were able to execute in crunch time, particularly in March Madness.
Crum’s impeccable reputation allowed him to recruit both local talent – like Griffith – and under-the-radar prospects, blend their personalities and talents to build chemistry and eventually develop them into stars.
Crum always had an eye for talent, as he not only recruited blue-chippers, but built his teams with all-around players who could work well among others and fit his system.
Not too long after retiring in 2001, Crum co-hosted a local radio talk show with former Kentucky coach Joe B. Hall, from 2004 through 2014, the Joe B. and Denny Show. It became the top Fox Sports radio show in the state of Kentucky and was carried by 21 stations in all during its peak.
Crum also founded The Denny Crum Scholarship Foundation, Inc., which awards scholarships to individuals who have demonstrated leadership, community service, and academic achievement. It has awarded over $1.5 million in scholarships
Crum had two strokes, one in 2017 and another in 2019. He died at the age of 86 on May 9, 2023.