Legendary US trainer
The biggest rival sends Coach K into retirement
4/3/2022 10:29 am
Three-time Olympic champion, two-time world champion: With Team USA, Mike Krzyzewski wins everything there is to win. But he has a much more influential effect at college, at Duke University. The basketball coach has been on the sidelines there for 42 years. But now it’s over.
Mike Krzyzewski has long secured his place in the basketball hall of fame, and that’s no empty phrase. The now 75-year-old was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2001, which did not stop him from adding a few highlights to his already impressive career. But now, after 42 years as a Duke University coach, one of the most successful coaches in his sport is retiring.
Five times he led the Duke Blue Devils to the prestigious US college basketball title, to victory in the legendary final tournament, in the March Madness. However, the great rival, the University of North Carolina, now prevented a sixth title. In the semi-finals of this year’s tournament, Coach K’s team lost 77-81 to the Tar Heels in front of more than 70,000 spectators, remaining with the triumphs of 1991, 1992, 2001, 2010 and 2015. Only John Wooden, who once won UCLA ( University of California, Los Angeles) had led to ten championships.
“It wasn’t about me here,” Krzyzewski said after his last game for the Durham, North Carolina-based university: “I’ve always said throughout my career that my season should end in a way that my players either have tears of joy or tears of sadness Shed sorrow. Because then you know that they gave everything. I myself will deal with all of this my way at some point.”
Only one, very bitter loss with Team USA
Krzyzewski steps down as coach with most wins in college basketball, 1,202 unmatched by anyone else. He took charge of the Blue Devils in 1980, having previously coached for the United States Military Academy (Army) selection from 1975 – for which he had served as a guard during his own university days. His first experience on the sidelines was as an assistant to Bob Knight, himself a legend who had mentored the University of Indiana for nearly 30 years.
However, Coach K not only celebrated remarkable successes at college, his eleven years as national coach of the USA are also marked by titles. In 2008 he led Kobe Bryant’s “Redeem Team” to the Olympic gold medal, as he did in 2012 and 2016 with top scorer Kevin Durant. There were also two world championship titles (2010 and 2014). Krzyzewski lost a single game with Team USA. After the semi-final defeat at the 2006 World Cup against Greece – which he described as the worst day of his career – the coach had to settle for bronze.
The Chicago-born son of Polish parents owes his nickname to his last name, which is complicated for American speakers. In the USA, Coach K has long been synonymous with successful basketball. The list of NBA pros who have made it from the Blue Devils to the top league in the world feels endless. In the current season alone, more than 20 former Duke players have appeared in the NBA, including superstars Kyrie Irving, Jayson Tatum and the currently long-term injured Zion Williamson.
However, after more than four decades, Krzyzewski’s time in Durham is now coming to an end, with his long-time assistant coach Jon Scheyer taking over. Who in turn wore the Blue Devils jersey from 2006 to 2010.
