MoxDash

Bobby Hurley may not know it, but he’s chasing an Arizona State legend.

Once upon a time, Ned Wulk was the best basketball coach in the 48th state. He took the Sun Devils to the doorstep of the Final Four — not once, but three times. He owned rival Arizona. He helped build Wells Fargo Arena.

In 1980, Wulk led the Sun Devils to the NCAA Tournament. In 1981, he took them back. In the 37 years since, no ASU coach has led the Sun Devils to back-to-back NCAA Tournaments. This season, a year after taking the Sun Devils to the First Four, Hurley has a chance.

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For Wulk, it wasn’t easy. He had poor stretches. He worried about his job security. But there’s no doubt the program’s best moments came on his watch. Many consider Wulk a university pillar. The basketball version of football’s Frank Kush.

How did he do it? Let’s look back. Thirty-seven years have passed since those back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. Here are 37 items from the 25-year Ned Wulk era, told by those who knew him best:

1. What was it like to play for Ned Wulk? Joe Caldwell laughs. “He taught me how to play defense in zone press and play without drinking water,” said the former ASU star, who played from 1961-64. “I played 11 years, and never drank water during a game.”

Art Becker, a teammate of Caldwell’s, confirms.

“I was thinking about not mentioning that to you, to be honest, because it sounds awfully cruel, but no, there was not,” he said. “But it was kind of a contest, and the contest was who could sneak out and get a drink of water while shooting free throws after we ran.”

Caldwell: “When I came back in the 1980s, I went to a practice with Ned and about 10 minutes into practice he hollered, ‘Water break!’ And I walked over and said, ‘Water break? What do you mean, ‘Water break?’ He said, ‘I can’t do what I did years ago. The kids got to drink water or else they’ll be suing me.”’

2. Wulk’s practices were long — about two hours, 45 minutes. Today, coaches use a clock to time drills. Back then, Wulk kept track of everything in his head. Sessions were heavily structured with little spare time — unless the coach wanted to make a point. During the 1978-79 season, Fat Lever missed a dunk during a game. The next day, as the Sun Devils started practice, Wulk told him: “OK, Fat, you want to prove to everybody you can dunk, prove it to your teammates. If you miss it, everybody’s running.” Said Lever: “All the guys just automatically started running up the stairs.”

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3. One year, after an exhibition loss to Athletes in Action, Wulk made the Sun Devils wait around until Sun Devil Gym cleared out. Then they returned to the court. “They pushed the bleachers back against the wall and we practiced,” said standout guard Lionel Hollins, who played under Wulk from 1973-75. “I don’t know if you’ve ever been in the old men’s PE gym, but from wall to wall is a long way and we used to run sprints.”

4. To play up tempo, Wulk wanted his teams in top condition. “Boy, I tell you, his conditioning exercises were awesome,” said Bruce Haroldson, an assistant under Wulk from 1967-74. Lined up on the baseline, Wulk made the Sun Devils run to the opposite end. If someone made it before he blew the whistle, that was it. Drill over. But, of course, no one ever made it.

“Nobody was ever going to get there before he blew his whistle,” Hollins said. “Everybody’s sprinting like crazy, like Tasmanian devils, and he’d blow the whistle just as somebody got close. We’d turn around and go the other way. We were like Pavlov’s dogs. We were just stupid.”

5. Hollins attended ASU because he liked Wulk’s approach. Unlike other schools recruiting him, Wulk didn’t promise to turn Hollins into an All-American or NBA first-round draft pick. In fact, Wulk didn’t say a whole lot during Hollins’ official visit to Tempe. He simply told Hollins that he appreciated his talent and how hard he played. “He wasn’t a snake-oil salesman,” Hollins said.

6. In 1963, Wulk produced one of the program’s defining wins, beating UCLA 93-79 in the NCAA Tournament West Region semifinals. The Sun Devils led 62-31 at halftime. “We wore the Bruins out,” Caldwell said. Years later, Wulk said UCLA coach John Wooden thanked him for “calling off the dogs” in the second half.

7. The next night, ASU stumbled. In the West Region final, Mel Counts scored 26 points to lead Oregon State to an 83-65 win, robbing the Sun Devils of the program’s first Final Four. It marked one of three times Wulk led ASU to the Elite Eight. Each ended in defeat.

8. Wulk and Wooden clashed 12 times during Wulk’s ASU career. The Sun Devils won four. Were the two coaches close? It depends whom you ask.

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Haroldson: “They got along professionally, but Wooden was not one of Ned’s closest friends.”

Greg Wulk, the coach’s son: “After beating them (in 1963), my dad never could get them to play us (before the Sun Devils joined the Pac-10), except at tournament time. And then we’d play them at Pauley Pavilion because the NCAA was more concerned with making money than fairness.”

Tim Tyers, retired Phoenix sportswriter: “They never liked each other.”

Greg Wulk: “I know my dad always envied all the talent Wooden had. He would say, ‘I’d love to have his third string.”’

9. Three ways Wulk was ahead of his time:

• He appreciated solid post play, but he knew the game’s future was in the backcourt. “The too-tall players already are ruining professional basketball,” he said in 1960. “I’m convinced fans would rather see a Bob Cousy score by out-slickering opponents than watch some tall guy just dunk the ball into the basket. The dunkers are a curiosity, but fans appreciate skill more.”
• He designed his own advanced metrics. A player got one point for a field goal, a half-point for an assist and a half-point for the rebound that led to the possession. A missed shot or turnover resulted in a negative half-point. At the end of games, Wulk divided ASU’s possessions by total points for an efficiency rating. “I’m primarily interested in offense, how my team reacts to scoring opportunities,” Wulk told the Arizona Republic. “I’d rather have a scouting report on my own team than one on the opposition. That way I can improve on situations where we may be making mistakes.”
• The fast break.

10. Bruce Haroldson first saw Wulk coach at the 1965 Far West Classic, a tournament in Portland. A high school coach, Haroldson watched the Sun Devils beat No. 3 Michigan, a squad that featured eventual Player of the Year Cazzie Russell. “ASU ran ’em right off the floor,” Haroldson said. “I could not believe what an efficient fast break they had.” Said Haroldson to himself: “I got to learn this.”

Years later, Wulk hired Haroldson as an assistant coach.

“I come down and I’m so excited to see how he does this,” Haroldson said. “We go out for practice the very first time and he runs the fast-break drills. I’m telling you, balls were flying all over the place. I couldn’t believe it. All he wanted to do — he didn’t worry about the balls flying all over the place — he was emphasizing the fact that when we got a rebound, you were running as hard as you could to get to the other end of the court. The ball would get there.”

It wasn’t run and gun.

“Ned had an organized fast break” said Mike Hopwood, who played for Wulk from 1969-72. “He was a pioneer in that respect, just like John Wooden. You had to get the ball to the middle. You had to fill the lane. You had to have a trailer. It wasn’t helter-skelter.”

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11. Wulk worked the officials just as hard as Hurley does today. In 1973, Arizona Republic columnist Frank Gianelli wrote that Wulk’s “vendetta with officials is as colorful as a chapter from ‘Winning of the West,’ and sometimes sanguinary as the Battle of Little Big Horn.”

“He’d get on them,” Becker said. “I don’t know if he would get on them to the extent that (Hurley) does, but not many do.”

Today, a coach is ejected after receiving his second technical foul. Back then, however, there was no rule. A coach could get T’d up several times and stay on the bench. Greg Wulk isn’t sure, but he thinks his dad once got eight technical fouls in a game.

“I can still see him jumping up and pumping his fists in the air,” said Roger Detter, who played from 1966-69.

Haroldson: “When I saw him exploding off the bench, I would go out and get in front of him, in-between him and the official, and a lot of times I felt like I was pass blocking.”

12. To help, the Scottsdale Quarterback Club jokingly had a seat belt installed on Wulk’s seat on the ASU bench in the early 1960s. Always a good sport, Wulk strapped himself in before ASU’s next home game.

13. Wulk dominated the University of Arizona. During his time in Tempe, he was 39-14 against the rival Wildcats, once winning 14 in a row.

14. ASU competed in the Border Conference for Wulk’s first five seasons. Then the program shifted to the Western Athletic Conference. After two successful years, ASU had six consecutive losing seasons. In 1969-70, the Sun Devils went 4-22. “That was tough,” Greg Wulk said. “That’s when I was going to ASU, during his worst years. He had some times when he was a little worried about losing the job. He was definitely not himself. Normally, he didn’t bring anything home that was bad, but there were a couple really bad years there.”

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15. Although some former players claim Wulk had his favorites, few question his loyalty. In 1979, Lever, then a sophomore, wanted to play on the U.S. Olympic team, and he was probably good enough to do so. Only problem: Wulk didn’t let him try out because teammate Alton Lister was older. “I had just come back from the Junior Olympics in Brazil,” Lever said. “And the next year, they were like, ‘OK, we have sent out invitations, one guy from each school.’ Alton was older, so he got the invite. That was just him. That’s what you admired about him.”

16. Wulk got along well with local media. For most of his career, the coach had the ASU beat writers, along with some other basketball-types, back to his house after games to eat and talk basketball. “His wife, Fern, was a hell of a cook,” Tyers said. “She was fantastic. She’d made pastries and Italian food. We talked about everything. It would start off with basketball, something from the game. It was an invitation-type thing. Five or six people and their wives.”

17. Scribes weren’t the only folks who visited. Greg Wulk remembers former Indiana coach Bob Knight, as well as former UTEP coach Don Haskins, stopping by to talk hoops with his dad.

18. From almost the time he arrived in the desert, Wulk worked to get a new arena. For most of his career, the Sun Devils played in Sun Devil Gym, an aging 3,500-seat capacity facility that most considered an embarrassment. Greg Wulk recalls a tall redhead from California visiting ASU only to realize ASU had no chance at landing Bill Walton because of the home gym. In addition, a couple of high-level recruits from Indiana told Wulk that their high school gyms were bigger.

19. Greg Wulk laughs, recalling all the players his dad promised during recruitment that one day they would play in a new arena — only to never see it happen. But the coach finally got his way.

20. Wulk was involved in the arena’s design, traveling to his home state of Wisconsin for ideas, working closely with architect Herman Jacoby. In fact, two of the palm trees in front of the arena came from Wulk’s backyard. “If Ned could have gotten his new building back when we really had it going,” Dennis Dairman, a standout during the early 1960s, told former Phoenix-based writer Bob Jacobsen, “I think it might have been him and not John Wooden, who won all those national titles.”

21. Wells Fargo Arena — initially called the University Activity Center — opened in 1974. Later that season, ASU hosted the NCAA Tournament’s opening round, and beat Alabama 97-94 in front of a record crowd of 14,733.

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22. As strict as he was, Wulk helped players as much as possible, even if it meant breaking NCAA rules. During his time in Tempe, Hollins’ grandmother became ill and he had to return home. “I know all that stuff would be illegal and everything, but he knew I needed to get home, and he made it happen,” Hollins said. “Not like a first-class (plane) ticket or anything — I rode the bus home — but he helped me get home.”

23. After his junior season, Hollins was drafted by the Utah Stars of the old ABA and the guard wasn’t sure what to do, leave or stay in school. To help, Wulk took Hollins to see then Suns general manager Jerry Colangelo. “He had him sit down and explain all the ramifications and whether or not I should come out,” Hollins said. “Jerry gave me advice that the league might not survive and maybe I should stay in school and wait for the NBA Draft the next year, which I did.” In 1975, Hollins was the sixth overall pick in the NBA Draft. He played 10 NBA seasons.

24. Although he had offers — including some from professional basketball — Wulk never seriously considered leaving ASU. This went against advice from his coaching buddies, who told him a coach never should stay in one place longer than six seasons, but Wulk didn’t care. He felt he had a great job. He also loved the weather.

25. Sometimes, however, longevity can be a coach’s worst enemy. During ASU’s disappointing 16-14 season in 1979, fans brought banners to games that read: “No More Ned.” Shortly thereafter, respected sportswriter Bob Moran wrote a column in the Arizona Daily Star headlined: “Sun Devil Cage Fans Want Wulk’s Scalp.” Perhaps the season’s worst loss: coughing up a four-point lead in the final nine seconds to lose 85-83 at UCLA. Even so, the Sun Devils rebounded the next season, going 22-7 and returning to the NCAA Tournament.

26. ASU opened the 1980-81 season with Final Four hopes. The Sun Devils featured a  starting five of Lever, Byron Scott, Sam Williams, Johnny Nash and Alton Lister. Years later, longtime Arizona Daily Star columnist Greg Hansen called the group the “single best starting lineup in league history,” noting all but Nash played extended stretches in the NBA.

27. On March 7, 1981, ASU beat No. 1 Oregon State 87-67 in Corvallis, the program’s first win over a top-rated team. The Sun Devils that season finished 16-2 in the Pac-10, a game behind Oregon State. “My best team ever?” Wulk said. “Ask me in a month.” He was right. The No. 3 Sun Devils — seeded second in the NCAA Tournament’s Midwest Region — fell to Kansas in the second round. Most agree this team was good enough to win a national championship. “We were good,” Lever said, “but not as good as we should’ve been.”

28. The early exit got people wondering if Wulk’s best days were behind him. They questioned his old-school ways and how they affected recruiting. It got worse. Before the 1981-82 season, Byron Scott — the previous season’s leading scorer — was ruled academically ineligible for the fall semester. In late December the high-scoring guard learned he had completed the necessary coursework to rejoin the Sun Devils, but Scott decided to sit out the rest of the season. He told the Arizona Republic this was for “personal reasons.”

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29. Not helping: A feud between assistant coaches Jim Newman and Paul Howard caused friction inside and outside the program. Wulk tried to mediate, but failed. He refused to fire either coach, both former players. “It was about recruiting and being respectful to each other (regarding) who’s got what and who’s doing what and not undercutting the other,” Howard said of the rift. “It got in the way a little bit. In all due respect, Newman was a tremendous recruiter and basketball guy.” ASU finished the 1981-82 season 13-14. It was Wulk’s last.

30. In March, a university vice president instructed athletic director Dick Tamburo to make a change. Publicly, ASU announced it had promoted Wulk to an administrative position in charge of facilities, but everyone knew the truth. In 25 seasons, Wulk went 406-272 in Tempe. He needed just five wins to reach 500 for his career, a coaching milestone. His former players fumed. “I thought it was as cruel a thing as they could do to him,” Becker said. “He was done wrong by ASU, there’s no doubt about it.”

Wulk later said he believed the administration felt the program needed a “fresh look,” one that would boost sagging attendance. He also heard ASU had lined up a “big-name” coach, but the coach, whom he didn’t name, backed out.

31. After the dismissal became public, Don Haskins told Wulk that if Wulk joined his staff at UTEP he’d let him coach long enough to get the 500 wins. Wulk was flattered, but declined.

32. Wulk also declined the administrative job ASU offered and instead stayed in the Physical Education Department, where he taught courses in the coaching of basketball and golf. Although he had a designating parking space, Wulk rode his bike to campus, locking it up alongside the other student bikes. He also kept attending the school’s basketball and football contests.

33. When Ole Miss coach Rob Evans interviewed for the ASU job in 1998, he met with Wulk. They discussed the pros and cons of the job, the opportunity for growth and the challenge for support in a pro-sports market. After Evans got the job, he often sent a manager or assistant to pick up Wulk so the old coach could watch practice. “I was in touch with him quite a bit,” Evans said. “Always sought out his counsel, and not only his, but all the experienced coaches around the country. Lou Henson, Eddie Sutton, but certainly Coach Wulk because he knew the ins and outs of Arizona State.”

34. On March 6, 1999, ASU renamed the arena floor “Ned Wulk Court.” Wulk joked that the honor “floored” him. He also admitted it brought back uneasiness. “I was always kind of hampered by the way it ended,” Wulk told the Arizona Republic. “This will erase practically all of it, but I don’t think I’ll ever eliminate it. It was all part of my career. It didn’t end very well. That part of it was disappointing.”

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35. Wulk was inducted into the Arizona Hall of Fame in 1985 and the Pac-10 Hall of Honor in 2003. During his 25 years in Tempe, he produced 16 winning seasons. Of the program’s 15 NCAA Tournament appearances, nine came on his watch.

36. In his later years, Wulk suffered from dementia, but Greg Wulk noticed something. Whenever his dad walked into Wells Fargo Arena to watch a game, he always seemed to “pull out of it.” He felt at home on the basketball court.

37. Wulk died Nov. 15, 2003, at age 83. At the funeral, Haroldson — his former assistant — delivered a eulogy, praising a demanding, yet caring coach who was before his time. “Ned was a great coach and an even greater human being, not because of the extraordinary things he did, but because of the ordinary things he did in an extraordinary way,” Haroldson said that day. “The Ned Wulks of this world are few and far between.”

In some ways, ASU still is trying to replace him.

(Top photo: Sun Devil Athletics)

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