Assistant basketball coach Milt Wagner simply doesn't know how to lose. Having won championships in high school, college, the NBA and overseas, Wagner knows what it takes to be a winner and is hoping to bring his winning pedigree to the Auburn basketball program.
"If you look at all our coaching staff, all of our coaches have been winners in their career, so we just try and pass that on to guys that we recruit," Wagner said. "Whatever system you come from, what we try and do here is something special. We're all about winning here. There's no other way of thinking."
Wagner has been with coach Tony Barbee for the past 12 seasons dating back to their days at The University of Memphis and The University of Texas at El Paso. Wagner was the director of basketball operations at Memphis, while Barbee was an assistant coach under coach John Calipari.
"In working with (Barbee) at Memphis, I saw that he was going to be a great head coach because I saw his work ethic there," Wagner said. "I knew I was eventually going to be an assistant coach. I watched how he was one of the best recruiters in the country there and did hard work and got some of the best guys in the country to come to the University of Memphis. I knew he had a good coaching mind and would be a very good head coach once his opportunity came."
After winning a state championship at Camden High School in New Jersey and a national championship at the University of Louisville, Wagner went to the NBA and won a championship with the Los Angeles Lakers. Wagner's first season with the Lakers was a memorable experience.
"It was unbelievable," Wagner said. "At that time, I was the only rookie on the team. Just being around those guys in practice every day, I learned so much knowledge of the game. Those guys are Hall-of-Famers. (James) Worthy, Magic (Johnson), Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar)--just being around those guys watching them go about their day-to-day, how they prepare themselves, it was so big for me."
Even though his coaching resume isn't as established as his playing resume, Wagner has already built a reputation for himself as being an ace recruiter on Barbee's staff. He relishes the opportunity to turn Auburn's program around.
"That's why I try and go out and get some of the best players in the country," Wagner said. "That's what it's all about. Coach relies on us to bring in top guys to turn this program around, and I take pride in that. No pressure at all, that's something I want to be considered."
Wagner's son, Dajuan, was the No. 6 overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft, but it was something Wagner didn't push him to pursue.
"Of course, you want your son to do what you do, but I never wanted to put pressure on him," Wagner said. "I had him at such a young age, at 20 in college, so he grew up watching his father at Louisville and the Lakers, so he wanted to do what I do. And he ended up being better than me. His talent is special."
Wagner has won almost every title imaginable as a player, but he lacks a title as a coach. With the foundation coach Barbee and his staff have built, Wagner hopes to add that to his resume as well.
"It's not going to be easy," Wagner said. "You've got to put in hard work, and we try and show them the ways to get to that next level because we've all been there."
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