With March Madness in progress, Ron Wyden reflects on his own hoop dreams

 

By MICHAEL KOHN
Oregon Capital Bureau

In the fall of 1967 on the campus of University of California-Santa Barbara, a wiry freshman took to the basketball court for the Gauchos against rivals Cal Berkeley. The young forward made a big impression on the Gaucho fans and his college hoops career was off to a good start.

That game ended up being one of the personal highlights for the young Gaucho. His dreams of playing in the NBA fizzled as the games went on and his time on the bench increased. But a successful career was still ahead of him, not in basketball but in politics. That player was Oregon’s senior senator, Ron Wyden.

According to sportsreference.com, Ron Wyden played 16 games for UCSB, averaging 2.6 points per game and 1.5 rebounds. He shot 50% from the field and 82% from the free throw line.

This year’s NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament was special for Wyden because his Gauchos were one of the 64 teams to qualify.

Wyden’s bracket had UCSB making it to the Sweet 16. They didn’t get that far, losing in the first round to Baylor 74-56.

But Wyden still has some skin in the game. He is pulling for Gonzaga, a college that offered him a scholarship to play basketball. Go Zags! says Wyden.

“I got an offer from the Zags and they were so incredibly nice,” he said. “They came down on a recruiting visit, talked with my mom, who got a master’s degree from Yale. She was really smart, and they were talking in detail about my mom’s views with respect to my being involved in the Jewish community and they kept saying that they had such and such. And she felt that they were so incredibly nice, and she also liked that they were interested in me. So I tell people that if I had gone to Gonzaga I would have gotten even more bench time at Gonzaga than I did at UCSB, but history would have shown that a Jewish kid could play with the Jesuits based on my scholarship offer.”

Here is the rest of our interview with Wyden about his basketball career:

Why did you decide on UCSB?

Wyden: It was a good program. I very much liked the coaching staff. They were interested in somebody who could be a swing guy, a guard and forward. I felt there was an opportunity to be a swing guy, but what happened was I played freshman ball and had a good year. Then I played varsity ball my sophomore season and it was clear it wasn’t going to work. I transferred to Stanford my sophomore year and that was the beginning of my recognition that pro basketball was not to be.

I always tell people it’s the honor of a lifetime representing Oregon in the Congress, though I would have loved to hear Bill Schonely to call out “Rip City!” when I made a basket for the Trail Blazers earlier in life.

Who were your NBA heroes back then?

Wyden: Obviously I admired Bill Bradley tremendously because of his work ethic. Bill Bradley was extraordinary. And after my senior year in high school, I played in the East-West All-Star game. There were two guys, Charles Johnson who (later) played for Golden State and Charles Lowry, who (later) played for the Milwaukee Bucks. (They) were people that I admired very much. We trained for the East-West All-Star game on the University of Santa Clara campus and training with them was one of the greatest moments of my life. Both Charles went on to play with the NBA. (Editor’s note, Wyden later said he also admired Dennis Awtrey and Bill Russell).

Did you dream of playing in the NBA?

Wyden: I grew up absolutely convinced that I was going to play in the NBA, I kind of dribbled my way through school and I am not proud of the fact that I didn’t hit the books.

And it wasn’t until the splash of cold water on my face that the NBA wasn’t going to happen that I decided to get serious about studying.

Let’s roll back to your first college hoops game.

Wyden: It was a home game against Cal and I think I had a big night. My first game people were pretty stunned, big numbers, points and rebounds. But it went downhill from there.

How was the game played back then?

Wyden: I had a good year, my freshman year, good numbers. The head coach was Ralph Barkey and the top assistant was Ray Bosch. I had my big year as a freshman. I was playing with very good athletes but not all of them would go on to get big minutes in college or as a professional. I continued early in the UCSB days this delusional theory that I could make it in the NBA but toward the end of my freshman year I started to say, all right, time to get brutally honest and when I sized it up I said I don’t see it happening.

How did the Gauchos do back then?

Wyden: UCSB took basketball seriously. That was what I liked about it. It was a middle-range school, and they sent a bunch of people to the pros. (Our rivals were) Santa Clara, St. Mary’s. My biggest game was my first game as a freshman and people were stunned when I had a big night.

Midway through my sophomore season, when I was picking up a lot of splinters on the bench, I said this NBA career isn’t going to happen. I don’t see it.

How about this year’s tournament?

Wyden: I am rooting for the Zags, for a couple of reasons. One, they treated my mom so nicely, during the recruiting visit, even though my mom was asking some pretty tough questions about how close the school was with the Jewish community. Also because of Senator Maria Cantwell, somebody who I do a lot of work with. She is on the Finance Committee on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. She has a tech background in natural resources, and Maria is a huge Zag fan. She is always taking pictures when she meets Zag players and sending them to me.

How is your bracket looking now?

Wyden: It was a good year for us. Obviously the Baylor loss was tough; a lot of people got upset. But Bill Bradley and I talked about Princeton and their win, but I am rooting for the Zags the rest of the way.

And you are trying to bring a WNBA team to Portland?

Wyden: I am working it very hard, working with everyone involved. We had a wonderful meeting with WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert. It was Oregon at its best. We have the Ducks there, the Beavers there, the Blazers sent their execs, the Thorns sent their execs, and the commissioner was really impressed with the phenomenal grassroots showing.… I think it will be a huge economic shot in the arm too. I think so many Oregonians love the sport. I certainly do. What I like to do is take the family ball and dribble it down to Dunaway School in southeast (Portland). But sometimes, if it’s nice out and there is no traffic, I just dribble right down the middle of the street. And people go, there’s Ron Wyden in the lane.

How is your game?

Wyden: You can’t do everything you can do when you were 20, but it’s fun. I enjoy it. I shoot hoops, and if the children are with me, we pretend, there are 10 seconds left in the game…

Let me give you one last story. I won the House of Representatives Free Throw Shooting Contest, making 47 out of 50 free throws. I was walking through the gym one day with my son and there was a big sign. My son says you ought to do this. I took a few practice shots. Missed the first one then made about 25 in a row, then had another long run, missed one, went on another run. 47 out 50. Now I think constantly about what happens if I get brought into a charitable event for free throw shooting and I make far less than 47 out of 50. People will think the contest was rigged. Fortunately, since then, when I had to take free throws in public, I didn’t do so badly, seven out 10, or something like that. But I can go through my whole life and I would never make 47 out of 50 again.