Sidney Wicks

Lore & Background

Wicks played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins, winning three straight NCAA championships from 1969 to 1971. He was named Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four in 1970, Helms National Co-Player of the Year (1970), and USBWA and Sporting News Player of the Year (1971), and was a consensus All-American in 1970 and 1971. His jersey #35 was retired by UCLA in 1992. He was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame in 1985 and the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010.

In Their Own Story

The roar of the Memorial Coliseum was deafening as Sidney Wicks caught the inbound pass near the baseline. With two defenders collapsing on him, he didn't hesitate; with a burst of explosive power that seemed to defy gravity, he launched into the air. The net snapped in rhythm with his landing as the crowd erupted, a testament to the man who carried the Blazers' hopes on his shoulders through the chaotic glory days of the 1970s.

Reader's Guide

Wicks played for the Trail Blazers from 1971 to 1976, earning four All-Star selections (1972–1975). He averaged 22.3 points and 10.3 rebounds per game in five seasons with Portland. In October 1976, his rights were sold to the Boston Celtics; Portland won the NBA championship the next season. He played for the Celtics from 1976 to 1978, then for the San Diego Clippers until 1981. Overall, he averaged 16.8 points and 8.7 rebounds per game over ten NBA seasons. After his NBA career, he played one season in Italy.

Did You Know?

• Wicks held the Trail Blazers' franchise record for rebounds in a game with 27 until surpassed by Enes Kanter Freedom.
• He was selected by the Dallas Chaparrals in the 1971 ABA draft.
• Wicks earned a degree in sociology from UCLA and later served as an assistant coach at UCLA under Walt Hazzard.
• He was seriously injured in a car accident on May 5, 1989, in Mira Mesa, San Diego, when a cement truck struck his vehicle.