048 - Greg Lee

The Game Changer … A shoot-first, playmaking guard at Reseda High. Coached by his father (Marvin), a former Bruin—beaming from the sideline … Ran the show. Ran wild ... Averaged 20 points as a sophomore, 27.3 as a junior, 29.0 as a senior. Two-time L.A. City Player of the Year. Just like future Bruin Gail Goodrich nearly a decade earlier ... Valedictorian, to boot ... Destined for Westwood. Attended Wooden’s summer camps for years. “Never owned anything red” because of his hatred for that school across town … At UCLA: Banners in the rafters. Band blaring. Wooden glaring … Forty minutes of basketball wizardry alongside Walton and the Gang. “If I had a perfect game, we’d win by 50 instead of 40.” ... A pass-first, shoot-last pawn in Wooden’s system … His job? Feed the Horse—get it to Big Bill somehow: Bounce. Chest. Or the majestic lob. Cue legendary UCLA broadcaster Dick Enberg for the obligatory, “Oh, my!” … Dropped 14 assists in the title game blowout of Memphis State in ’73—the one where Walton was 21 of 22 from the field. “I think I had more than 14 that night, if you want to know the truth.” Walton, his roommate and lifelong best friend: “Greg was the master of delivering the ball to a teammate.” … Back-to-back 30–0 seasons, winning NCAA titles in ’72 and ’73—just following the game plan … Sweet stroke? Didn’t matter. “It was debilitating. Coach just didn’t want me to shoot.” … Missed being the BMOC. “There is a tremendous amount of ego involved with guys who achieve this level of play in high school and it’s just not right to bring them all together like this.” … Tried hypnosis, meditation to help his focus … Senior year: Sat more than started … Remembered more for the losses. Record 88-game win streak snapped by Notre Dame in South Bend. Road setbacks to the Beavers and Ducks—on consecutive nights. And the double-OT dagger to David Thompson’s N.C. State squad in the NCAA tourney, ending the Bruins’ eight-year title run … “We thought we knew all there was to know and didn’t listen to our coaches as in past years.” … Three-year varsity record: 86–4. Averaged 5.8 points on 46 percent shooting and 3 assists per game, the lone season they kept track. Three-time Academic All-American ... But the box score didn’t tell his story. Walton: “He was the key to our success, the heart of our team.” … Next stop? The pros … Drafted by both leagues—chose the ABA’s San Diego Qs over the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks. Lasted five games, despite per-36 marks of 10.3 points, 7.4 assists, and 2.3 steals … Reunited with Walton in Portland in ’75—cut again after another strong five-game trial … Kept the dream alive. Took his talents to West Germany, playing for Leverkusen Bayer Giants in the late ’70s and early ’80s … His legacy? Etched in sand, not hardwood. On the beaches, playing on the Pro Beach Tour: No coach, no clipboard. No clock … Just air, sand, rhythm. “I love the beach. Is there anything wrong with that?” … Teamed with fellow Bruin Jim Menges for a record 13 straight tournament wins—25 total titles. “They were an incredibly mentally tough duo,” said Volleyball legend Karch Kiraly. “He had more gab in him, and he would use the gift to distract, deter, and deflate people and teams across the net.” … Volleyball Magazine’s No. 1 in ’76 … Crowned King of the Beaches by a local rag … “I used to have that All-American image, and I hated it. Now I’m an All-American beach bum.” … Born Gregory Scott Lee on Dec. 12, 1951, in Reseda, CA … After the cheering stopped, taught calculus and trigonometry, and coached hoops and tennis at Clairemont High … Inducted into the California Beach Volleyball HOF in ’97. And the Los Angeles City Section HOF in ’22, just weeks prior to his death … Passed at age 70 on Sept. 21, 2022 in San Diego—after a series of lengthy illnesses.

Sourcing: Boston Globe, 9/26/2022; Daily Breeze, 2/7/1974 [didn’t wear red; attended Wooden’s camps as a kid; straight A student; two-time LA City POY; ego quote], 8/13/1974, 9/3/1977 [playing in West Germany], 8/19/1981, Daily News-Post, 8/14/1974; Long Beach Independent, 8/14/1974; Los Angeles Times, 2/18/1969, 2/8/1970, 11/7/1974, 9/3/1976, 9/8/1978, 9/10/1979, 2/13/1980 [joined Leverkusen, West Germany team], 8/14/1980, 3/4/1981, 7/10/1985, 6/17/1990 [taught calculus, trigonometry, and coached hoops and tennis at Clairemont], 9/23/2022, 9/25/2022; Newsday, 9/26/2022; San Diego Union-Tribune, 9/25/2022; Sumter Item, 3/28/1974; Tampa Tribune, 2/28/1998; Turlock Journal, 7/25/1997; bvbhof.com, accessed 4/15/2025; volleyballmag.com, 9/27/2022; Back from the Dead (Walton, 2017); Bill Walton, Super Center (Irwin Stambler, 1976) [Lee’s HS stats; types of passes to Walton].