How Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski satisfied NBA itch without dealing with the NBA grind
Mike Krzyzewski addressed USA Basketball’s men’s senior national team at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas. It was the summer of 2006, just before the team began preparations for the FIBA World Championships in Japan.
He had been tabbed as the coach and tasked with restoring an aimless program that had a disappointing bronze-medal finish at the 2004 Athens Olympics.
Krzyzewski needed buy-in from LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, Carmelo Anthony.
Within his opening remarks to that squad, he said, "You’re going to know people’s names."
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It was collegial, for sure and makes sense coming from the Duke coach, but it was part of his effort to re-establish a culture of respect, accountability and solidarity. Every one played a role, from the press officer to the trainer to the less prominent USA Basketball staffers.
It worked. With the talent and that culture, the U.S. senior men’s team under Krzyzewski won three Olympic gold medals, two FIBA World Cup titles, and Krzyzewski finished his tenure with a 60-1 record in FIBA competitions, including the Olympics.
We know what Krzyzewski did for USA Basketball, but what did USA Basketball do for Krzyzewski, who will begin his final NCAA tournament Friday when his second-seeded Blue Devils meet the 15th-seeded Cal State Fullerton Titans.
Above all, Krzyzewski, a West Point grad, was honored to represent his country. An Olympic assistant under Chuck Daly for the 1992 Dream Team, Krzyzewski took great pride in this U.S. basketball appointment just as Gregg Popovich, an Air Force grad, did when he took over for Krzyzewski after the 2016 Olympics.
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It also satisfied Krzyzewski’s NBA curiosity. He had an interest in coaching NBA players. In 2004, the Los Angeles Lakers made a serious run at Krzyzewski after Phil Jackson briefly stepped away from coaching. It was a substantial financial offer, and Krzyzewski told former Duke star JJ Redick on "The Old Man and the Three" podcast that it was the closest he ever came to leaving Duke.
Other NBA teams made a run at the Duke coach, some fading from memory or not that publicized because Krzyzewski didn’t have interest. In 1990, longtime college coach and executive Dave Gavitt was hired by the Boston Celtics in 1990 and had significant interest in Krzyzewski, but team president and Celtics legend Red Auerbach preferred a coach with NBA experience.
The Philadelphia 76ers, when former Duke player Billy King ran basketball operations, showed interest in 2003, as did Portland in 1994.
Krzyzewski could never leave Duke for the NBA full-time, but he reached for the next best thing: coaching the best American professionals without the grind of the NBA’s long season, travel and back-to-backs. You don’t have to play New Orleans and then Oklahoma City the next day. Instead, you get to spend three weeks in some of the world’s best cities coaching some of the world’s best basketball players.
James, Wade, Anthony, Paul, Howard, Kobe Bryant, Chris Bosh, Jason Kidd, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, Kevin Durant, Jimmy Butler, DeMar DeRozan, Paul George and Draymond Green are among the players who played for Krzyzewski on the Olympic team.
Krzyzewski also didn’t feel the same paternal protection with pro players as he did with his college players. He didn’t have to shield James or Bryant or Wade the same way he had to with Zion Williamson, Kyrie Irving, Jayson Tatum or Redick. At least away from the sideline, Krzyzewski appeared less intense with USA Basketball than he did with Duke. It allowed him to coach and banter with the media in a different way.
He developed lasting relationships with many USA Basketball stars, including Bryant, James, Anthony and Durant, who played in multiple Olympics for him. Krzyzewski called Bryant a friend who doted on Krzyzewski’s grandchildren. Before Krzyzewski’s last regular season game, Duke asked James to make a video.
"Coach K is probably one of my favorite coaches if not my favorite," James said. "His ability to connect with players from all different shapes and sizes and age groups is unbelievable. You understand and know why he is the leader, the GOAT that he is – the greatest of all-time."
By the time Krzyzewski took over for USA Basketball, he had won three NCAA tournaments and reached 11 Final Fours. He was coaching royalty by 2006. But that didn’t stop him from learning more about the game.
At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Krzyzewski told Paste BN Sports, "I’ve learned more in the last 11 years doing this than I ever learned in the 30 years previous about the game, people and preparation by being in this environment."
It was not hollow talk. He absorbed what James and Bryant said to him, and surrounded himself with great coaches: Jim Boeheim, Mike D’Antoni, Nate McMillan, Tom Thibodeau and Monty Williams.
"By his own admission to me, he became a better coach," former USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo told Paste BN Sports. "He was already a Hall of Fame coach. But he became a much better coach because of his experience with USA Basketball. It was being around some of the NBA players and coaches who were part of staffs. It had a great impact on him."
Follow Jeff Zillgitt on Twitter @JeffZillgitt.