Sidney Wicks

Wicks was born on September 19, 1949, in Contra Costa County, California.[1] He attended Alexander Hamilton High School in Los Angeles. Because of non-qualifying grades in high school, Wicks attended Santa Monica College for a year before he could attend his preferred university, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Wicks later received Academic All-America honors at UCLA in 1971.[2] He earned a degree in sociology from the school.[3]

A 6'8" power forward/center, Wicks was a phenom at UCLA, playing on three straight NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championships from 1969 to 1971. He was the Bruins' star player on the latter two championship teams. Wicks was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four in 1970, the Helms National Co-Player of the Year (1970), and the USBWA and Sporting News Player of the Year (1971), and was a consensus All-American in 1970 and 1971. On February 1, 1996, his jersey #35 was retired in a halftime ceremony at UCLA's home court, Pauley Pavilion. Wicks was a 1985 inductee into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame. In 2010, he was selected to the College Basketball Hall of Fame.[4]

The Portland Trail Blazers selected Wicks with the second pick of the 1971 NBA draft after paying the Cleveland Cavaliers $250,000 not to select him.[3] The Dallas Chaparrals chose him in the 1971 ABA draft. After averaging 24.5 points and 11.5 rebounds for the Trail Blazers, Wicks was named NBA Rookie of the Year.[5] He also played in the NBA All-Star Game.[6]

Wicks in 1972

Wicks played for the Trail Blazers from 1971 to 1976,[7] earning a total of four All-Star selections (1972–1975).[8] He held the Blazers' franchise record for rebounds in a game with 27 until being surpassed by Enes Kanter Freedom.[9] Wicks averaged 22.3 points and 10.3 rebounds a game in his five years with the team.[3]

In October 1976, the rights to Wicks were sold to the Boston Celtics; Portland went on to win an NBA championship the next season. Wicks played for the Celtics from 1976 to 1978.[3] Wicks then went to the San Diego Clippers and played there until 1981. Overall, Wicks averaged 16.8 points per game and 8.7 rebounds per game over ten seasons and 760 games in the NBA.[10] His scoring average dropped every year after his rookie season. Following his NBA career, Wicks played one season in Italy.[3]

Following his playing career, Wicks lived for a year in Italy before returning to the United States.[3] He served as an assistant coach at UCLA during Walt Hazzard's four years as head coach.[11] Following coaching, he entered the real estate field, living in Atlanta, Florida, and Los Angeles.[3]

Wicks was married from 1973 to 1979. He has one daughter, Sibahn Epps.[3]

At 9 a.m. on May 5, 1989, in Mira Mesa, San Diego, California, Wicks was seriously injured in a car accident. A loaded cement truck failed to stop at a red light and struck the driver's side of Wicks's vehicle.[12] Wicks had his ruptured spleen removed at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, California. He also had facial lacerations and minor head injuries. A passenger in Wicks' car suffered a mild concussion and facial injuries. The cement truck driver was not injured.[13][14]

As of 2006, Wicks lived in North Carolina and Los Angeles.[3]

• Media related to Sidney Wicks at Wikimedia Commons
• Career statistics and player information from NBA.com and Basketball-Reference.com