Los Angeles ? Danny Manning is reaping the rewards of a senior season that had a frustrating start and a championship ending.
“I came back for my senior year and wanted it to be special, to go out a winner,” Manning said Wednesday. “Only a few come out that fortunate. Our senior class was special.”
The Kansas All-American won the John R. Wooden Award on Wednesday as the nation’s top college basketball player, two days after he led the Jayhawks to the NCAA title.
The annual award is named for former coach John Wooden, who led UCLA to 10 NCAA titles in 12 seasons.
In voting by 1,000 sports writers and broadcasters, Manning finished with 865 points, just 20 ahead of Bradley’s Hersey Hawkins, the nation’s scoring leader.
Voting for the Wooden Award didn’t close until Tuesday, and Manning did some last-minute campaigning with 31 points and 18 rebounds in Kansas’ 83-79 upset victory over Oklahoma in Monday night’s NCAA championship game.
The other finalists, in order of balloting, were Sean Elliot of Arizona, Danny Ferry of Duke, Gary Grant of Michigan, Mark Macon of Temple, David Rivers of Notre Dame, Rony Seibaly of Syracuse, Troy Lewis of Purdue and Charles Smith of Pittsburgh.
Manning earlier was named winner of the Naismith Award, which he was to receive today in Atlanta. The Jayhawks were 12-8 at one point this season. But they finished at 27-11 after beating Oklahoma Monday night in the championship game.
“Being in the position I was in this year was the best thing that could have happened to me, to help me in the future,” Manning said.
“I faced adversity and I learned flexibility and dependability. Those things can only help me in my future.”
His next step will be into the NBA. Asked where he hoped to end up, he said: “I’m a basketball fan — I just like basketball.”
Manning, MVP of the NCAA tournament, stressed that Kansas was not a one-man team.
“My teammates heard that all year, and they took the challenge in turning things around. Guys were asked to do things that did not expect to do, and they did them well. That helped us mature as human beings and as athletes.”
Manning was accompanied to the announcement at the Los Angeles Athletic Club by his father, Ed, an assistant coach at Kansas.
Jayhawk coach Larry Brown originally was scheduled to accompany his star player, but did not show up. Brown, the leading candidate for the vacant UCLA job, indicated that he wanted Ed Manning to share the experience with his son.
“It makes me feel good when people tell me Danny’s a nice guy, a nice young man,” Ed Manning said.
“I feel very proud of Danny,” he continued. “I hope he has his head on straight. If he doesn’t have his head on straight by now, it’s not because I didn’t harp on him. He can go on and be the best player in the country.”
