“People say Morgan Wootten is the best high school basketball coach in the country. I disagree. I know of no finer coach at any level high school, college, or pro. I’ve said it elsewhere, and I’ll say it here: I stand in awe of him.”
-John Wooden – Head Basketball Coach, UCLA (1949-75)
-John Wooden – Head Basketball Coach, UCLA (1949-75)
Morgan Wootten coached an amazing 1,274 wins during his tenure as Head Basketball Coach at DeMatha High School in Hyattsville, MD. His career winning percentage of .869 is the highest winning percentage of any coach with more than 500 wins in the history of organized sport. The prestigious Naismith Foundation has named Morgan Wootten the No. 1 Prep Coach of the 20th Century. And, on October 13, 2000, Morgan Wootten was inducted into the National Basketball Hall of Fame. His career highlights include:
- Enshrined in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, Class of 2000
- Received Naismith Award as the Outstanding Male Prep Coach of the 20th Century
- With almost 1,300 wins and a winning percentage of 87%, he is considered to be the winningest coach in basketball history
- Has helped more than 250 student-athletes receive a full college scholarship
- His teams have been selected national champs five times
- Won more than 100 major titles and voted No. 1 in the Washington, D.C. area 23 times
- National Coach of the Year four times and Coach of the Year in the Washington, D.C., area 10 different years
- 1991 recipient of the John W. Bunn Award presented by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
- Initial recipient of the Disney Award as the top U.S. sports coach
- Heavily in demand as a clinician and teacher, he has spoken on five continents, in numerous foreign countries as well as in most states in the U.S.