Lavin Turns a Deaf Ear to AM Radio

Sure, the subject of Coach Steve Lavin’s future is popular fodder on talk radio, but Lavin insists he never tunes in. “I’m an FM guy,” he said, adding he never listens to AM except during the 30 seconds or so before he goes on the air for an interview.

Besides, he reasons, he’ll never satisfy those fans who expect him to be as successful as legendary Bruin coach John Wooden. So why bother listening?

“It’s a 26-year-old theme,” Lavin said. “Talk radio has expanded, but the theme, the subject matter, the content--a UCLA coach not being as good as John Wooden--that’s old. . . . It’s kind of boring. Teaching and coaching get me excited, the challenge of working with young people, those things get me going. . . . None of it is going to have an effect on our team playing better basketball. So you focus in on what you can control.”

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UCLA’s 1979-80 team advanced to the NCAA tournament--and eventually to the championship game against Louisville--despite having won only 17 games during the regular season. It was reported in Thursday’s edition that no Pacific 10 Conference team had made it to the tournament with fewer than 18 victories.