Basketball legend Mike Krzyzewski announced that after the 2021-22 basketball season, he will retire. Coach K spent 42 seasons coaching with the Duke Blue Devils and won five national championships under him. Duke also won 15 conference championships under Coach K helping him be the first coach to achieve 1,000 wins.
The Accomplishments
Mike Krzyzewksi will go down as one of the greatest coaches in sports history. Not only did he turn Duke into a perennial powerhouse, but he also led Team USA to three gold medals in the Olympics. While also adding two gold medals in the FIBA World Cup for Team USA as well. Coach K had opportunities to move to the NBA multiple times however he turned down those jobs to continue his Duke legacy. This legacy includes 5 national championships, 3 Naismith Coach of the Years, 12 ACC regular season titles, 15 ACC tournament championships, 12 Final Fours and 2 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees.
The Impact Left On Basketball
There have been plenty of players to come out of Duke under Mike Krzyzewski that have made successful careers in the NBA. I might also add, he has a line of many assistant coaches to go on to become successful at their own school. However, players that Coach K didn’t even coach in college have developed a great relationship with him during the Olympics. Players like Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and many more have gone on record talking about how much they love and respect Coach K.
Who Will Take Over
This breaking announcement leaves the question of who will take the throne over. The early favorite and my pick is Jon Scheyer who is an assistant for Duke and former player for the Blue Devils. He also has been the lead recruiter on many of Duke’s highest ranking prospects. This would keep good continuity in the Duke system which helps keep players on board. Other candidates include… Bobby Hurley who is a Duke Alumni and coach of Arizona State, Brad Stevens who just stepped down into a Celtics front office job and also Jeff Capel who is the head coach of the Pittsburgh Panthers. These would all be great hires but I think most close to Duke still do expect Scheyer to get the job.