What Would Online Gambling Have Been Like In John Wooden Era?

John Wooden is widely considered to be the best basketball coach of all-time. There are some who would pick Red Auerbach or Phil Jackson, but the majority would point to what Wooden did at UCLA in his defense.

Wooden, according to several media reports, is gravely ill and is being treated at UCLA Medical Center. At 99, Wooden is one of the last of legendary coaches that is still alive, and his presence is being felt even in the NBA Finals that began on Thursday night.

In the decades since wooden retired, online sports books have become hugely popular around the world. The 2010 NBA Finals will be the subject of millions of dollars in bets made at these sports books. With the dominance that Wooden's UCLA teams enjoyed, some are wondering what would have come of bets on those Bruins teams.

"John Wooden and UCLA held such a dynasty in college basketball that it would be amazing to see what type of point spreads would have been offered online on their games," said Gaming Analyst Steve Schwartz. "The majority would have been double digits, and money lines would not have been available for underdog teams."

Gambling was popular when Wooden coached the Bruins in the fifties, sixties, and seventies, but it was not advanced to the point it is now. UCLA had an eighty-eight game winning streak during Wooden's tenure. Had gambling been like it is today, sports books would have had odds on when the Bruins would finally lose a game.

The sports books also would have offered gamblers the opportunity bet on how many championships Wooden would retire with, how many losses a season the Bruins would have, and how many consecutive titles Wooden and UCLA would have won. It is because of Wooden that odds makers understand how to place large odds on games with heavy favorites.

A member of the Hall of Fame as both a player and a coach, Wooden is as legendary a basketball figure as has ever walked the Earth. Today, as Wooden writes the final chapter to his amazing life, even the gambling world looks back and salutes a true pioneer.

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