Bill Sweek
Sweek with the Bruins during 1968–69 season
Personal information
Born (1947-01-09) January 9, 1947
Los Angeles County, California
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Career information
High schoolPasadena (Pasadena, California)
CollegeUCLA (1966–1969)
NBA draft1969: 7th round, 86th overall pick
Selected by the Phoenix Suns
Playing career1969–1975
PositionGuard
Coaching career1971–1991
Career history
As player:
1969–1970Hamden Bics
1971–1972CSC
1972–1975Stade Français
As coach:
1971–1972EO Goulette Kram
1971–1972Tunisia
1972–1975Stade Français
1976–1977Clermont UC
1977–1979Le Mans
1983–1984Hungary
1985–1990AS Monaco
1990–1991Limoges CSP
Career highlights and awards

William Thomas Sweek[1] (born January 9, 1947)[2] is an American former basketball player and coach. He played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins under Coach John Wooden, winning three straight national championships from 1967 through 1969. The guard played professionally in France, and also became a coach in Europe and Africa. Sweek coached Clermont UC and Le Mans Sarthe Basket to national championships in France, and also led the Tunisia national basketball team. He was later a sports agent, and in time also worked as a high school coach and teacher.

Early life

Sweek played basketball at Pasadena High School in Pasadena, California.[3] In his senior year in 1964, he was the school's co-Player of the Year with teammate Jim Marsh, and was also named to the San Gabriel Valley All-Star Team by the Pasadena Independent and Star News.[4]

College career

Sweek was a rugged guard who was a key reserve at UCLA.[2][5][6] Bruins coach John Wooden called him "one of the best players we've ever had at going into a game and stirring things up."[7] Led by the dominant play of Lew Alcindor (known later as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar),[6] the Bruins went 88–2 in Sweek's three seasons on the varsity squad.[8] Sweek is one of 14 players who won three National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) titles at UCLA under Wooden.[9]

Sweek played on the UCLA freshman team in 1964–65,[10] and redshirted the following season.[11] In 1966–67, he was joined on the varsity team by incoming sophomores Alcindor, Lucius Allen, Lynn Shackelford and Kenny Heitz, who were recruited in 1965.[6][12] Sweek was the sixth man for the Bruins, who went 30–0 and won the national title.[13] Wooden typically utilized him late in games whenever the opponents were rallying.[14] Against USC in February 1967, Sweek helped stave off an upset in overtime after scoring two baskets, making two steals, and forcing another turnover in a 40–35 victory over their intercity rivals.[7][14][15] For the season, he and Shackelford shared honors as the team's most improved player.[16] By the start of his junior year in 1967–68, Sweek was supplanted by Mike Lynn as UCLA's top reserve.[17] In the season opener, Sweek hit a game-winning, outside shot with two seconds remaining in a 73–71 win against Purdue.[7][18] However, he generally received little playing time that season.[19]

As a senior in 1968–69, Sweek was again voted the Bruins' most improved player.[20] The team had lost starting guards Allen and Mike Warren from the year before, but they were effectively replaced by Sweek, Heitz, and junior college transfer John Vallely, who each played about equally.[21] In the semifinals of the 1969 NCAA tournament against Drake, the Bruins started poorly. Towards the middle of the first half, Sweek missed a defensive assignment, prompting Wooden to pull him from the game.[22][23] Already unhappy with his playing time having shrunk in the prior weeks, Sweek remained on the bench for most of the game.[22][24] When Vallely fouled out with four minutes left in the game, Sweek was directed by Wooden to re-enter the game. However, he was casual in checking in, prompting the coach to ask him to sit if he did not want to play. Instead, Sweek walked off the court and headed to the locker room.[23][24] After the game, won 85–82 by UCLA, Wooden was furious with Sweek, who felt certain he would be kicked off the team.[22][23] However, the coach eventually forgave him, and played him in the title game two nights later against Purdue.[23][24] Sweek shot a perfect three of three in the game, which the Bruins won by 20 points for their record-setting third consecutive NCAA title.[24][25] As years passed, Sweek's appreciation for Wooden's gesture grew.[23] "Somehow, he was gracious enough to forgive me when I was totally wrong," said Sweek.[26]

Professional career

The Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA) selected the 6-foot-2+1⁄2-inch (1.89 m) Sweek in the seventh round of the 1969 NBA draft with the 86th overall pick.[27][28] He played professionally for Stade Français in Paris.[29] Sweek served in the Peace Corps, and also became a coach in Europe and Africa.[2] One of the top coaches in France,[30] he led Le Mans Sarthe Basket to consecutive national titles in 1978 and 1979 after having guided Clermont UC to a women's national championship in 1977.[31][32][33] He also coached the Tunisia national basketball team.[3]

Sweek was later a sales representative with Adidas,[34][35] and became the vice president of team sports with Virginia-based sports marketing firm ProServ, where he was also a sports agent.[36][37] He represented European NBA players, as well as Americans interested in playing in Europe.[37] Some of his clients included the 7-foot-7-inch (2.31 m) Gheorghe Mureșan, the tallest player in NBA history,[38] Martin Müürsepp,[37] John Amaechi,[39] Terry Davis,[40] and Damon Bailey.[41] Sweek was also a French interpreter for the Romanian Mureșan.[36][42] While still at ProServ in 1996, he began coaching basketball at George Mason High School in Falls Church, Virginia.[43] By 2010, he had become a teacher in Sonoma, California, where he taught history, science and physical education.[2][23]

Sweek played in a minor role in the 1971 movie Drive, He Said, which was directed by Jack Nicholson. Michael Warren, Sweek's former UCLA teammate who became an actor, was also in the film.[44]

References

  1. ↑ "William Thomas Sweek was born on January 9, 1947 in Los Angeles County, California". californiabirthindex.org. California Birth Index. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Myers, Laura (June 13, 2010). "Picking up more than splinters". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 24, 2015.
  3. 1 2 Gohlke, Rich (April 5, 1972). "212 Victories in 10 Years". The Argus. Fremont, California. p. 14. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  4. ↑ Jensen, George (March 23, 1964). "Marsh Named Valley's Top Prep Cager". Pasadena Independent. p. 15. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  5. ↑ Witz, Billy (February 4, 2003). "BLAST FROM THE PAST AS SEASON CRUMBLES, UCLA'S ALUMS CRINGE". Daily News. Los Angeles. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Highbeam Research.
  6. 1 2 3 King, Jason (May 29, 2009). "Class of classes". Yahoo! Sports. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016.
  7. 1 2 3 Schrader, Loel (March 8, 1968). "If UCLA Needs a Pickup Saturday, Sweek Will Be Ready". Independent. Long Beach, California. p. C-1. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  8. ↑ Mayer, Bill (May 1, 2009). "KU roster could be best ever". KUSports.com. Archived from the original on August 3, 2015.
  9. ↑ Crowe, Jerry (April 3, 2009). "Kobe Bryant vs. Ron Artest is worth hearing". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on May 29, 2015.
  10. ↑ "Brubabes Trample PCC, 89–72". Pasadena Independent. December 19, 1964. p. 13. Retrieved August 2, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  11. ↑ Ives, Hank (March 13, 1966). "Heartbreaking Opportunity". Independent Star-News. p. A-2. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  12. ↑ Davis, Seth (2014). Wooden: A Coach's Life. Macmillan. pp. 251, 263. ISBN 9780805092806. Retrieved August 3, 2015.
  13. ↑ Meier, Ted (March 27, 1967). "UCLA—Place Where The Rich Get Richer". The Morning Herald. Associated Press. p. 16. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  14. 1 2 Hollingworth, Hank (March 29, 1967). "Warren's Scoring Sacrifice Key To UCLA". Independent. Long Beach, California. p. C-2. Retrieved August 2, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  15. ↑ "Weekly Cage Award Goes To Bill Sweek". The Independent. Pasadena, California. February 7, 1967. p. 15. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  16. ↑ "Alcindor Votes MVP By The Bruins". El Paso Herald-Post. UPI. April 5, 1967. p. C-6. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  17. ↑ Esper, Dwain (December 9, 1967). "UCLA Most Devastating". Independent Star-News. p. 8. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  18. ↑ "Bruins Win Cage Opener Over Purdue". The Daily Plainsman. AP. December 3, 1967. p. 10. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  19. ↑ "Lew And UCLA Eyeing Another Great Season". The Mexia Daily News. AP. December 5, 1968. p. 4. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  20. ↑ "Alcindor Selected Most Valuable Bruin". Independent. Long Beach, California. May 8, 1969. p. C-3. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  21. ↑ "'Different' Bruins Eye Record". Piqua Daily Call. AP. March 18, 1969. p. 9. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  22. 1 2 3 Davis, Seth (January 13, 2014). "The Wizard And the Giant". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  23. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Padecky, Bob (June 9, 2010). "When Wooden lost his cool". The Press Democrat. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  24. 1 2 3 4 Williams, Pat; Wimbish, David (2006). How to Be Like Coach Wooden. Health Communications, Inc. p. 161. ISBN 9780757303913. Retrieved July 31, 2015.
  25. ↑ McMane, Fred (March 24, 1969). "Lew Came To Play in Finals". El Paso Herald-Post. UPI. p. C-1. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  26. ↑ Witz, Billy (June 6, 2010). "Wooden's Legacy Extends Beyond Titles". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 4, 2015.
  27. ↑ "Bucks Draft Alcindor's Teammate". Panama City News. AP. May 8, 1969. p. 16. Retrieved July 31, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  28. ↑ "1969 NBA Draft". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
  29. ↑ Jones, Allen; Naison, Mark (2009). The Rat that Got Away. Fordham Univ Press. p. 170. ISBN 9780823231027. Retrieved July 31, 2015.
  30. ↑ "The world of pro basketball". Manila Standard. AP. November 2, 1989. p. 23. Retrieved July 31, 2015.
  31. ↑ "Le Mans team profile". euroleague.net. July 27, 2007. Archived from the original on September 25, 2015.
  32. ↑ Krasnoff, Lindsay Sarah (May 3, 2015). "French Basketball, from Cain to Batum". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on September 27, 2015.
  33. ↑ HISTOIRE DU MSB / SCM (in French). September 22, 2008. Archived from the original on August 4, 2015. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  34. ↑ Jordan, Michael (January 13, 1999). "For the Love of the Game". CNN.com. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  35. ↑ Weiss, Dick (2013). True Blue: A Tribute to Mike Krzyzewski's Career at Duke. Skyhorse Publishing, Inc. ISBN 9781613214176. Retrieved July 31, 2015.
  36. 1 2 Wilbon, Michael (September 17, 1993). "A BIG CHANCE FOR EVERYONE". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on March 14, 2016.
  37. 1 2 3 Gwin, Peter (June 1, 1997). "Translatlantic [sic]: How Europe is shaping US basketball hoops". Europe. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2015 – via Highbeam Research.
  38. ↑ Casey, Tim (December 2, 2013). "THE WIZARDS' WELCOMING GIANT". Sports On Earth. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
  39. ↑ Johnson, K. C. (July 18, 2001). "Bulls are plotting more moves". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016.
  40. ↑ Bucher, Ric (July 1, 1998). "FOR MANY WIZARDS, IT'S BUSINESS AS USUAL". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on March 13, 2016.
  41. ↑ Sokeland, Justin. "Damon Bailey to France". Times-Mail. Archived from the original on August 4, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
  42. ↑ Brennan, Christine (September 16, 1993). "BIG BULLET SET TO GO". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on March 14, 2016.
  43. ↑ S and ler, Michael (February 14, 1996). "GEORGE MASON BOYS 56, RAPPAHANNOCK COUNTY 51". Washington Post. Archived from the original on March 13, 2016.
  44. ↑ "Bill Sweek - Filmography". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 25, 2016.
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