Krzyzewski, Mike
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Wikipedia-Article "Mike Krzyzewski"
Michael William "Mike" Krzyzewski (pronounced sha-SHEF-skee, born February 13, 1947 in Chicago, Illinois), often referred to as Coach K, is the head coach of the Duke University men's basketball team, one of the most successful of the 1980s to 2000s.
He attended the United States Military Academy at West Point, NY for college and played basketball while training to become an officer in the U.S. Army. From 1969-74, Krzyzewski served in the military and directed service teams for three years and then followed that up with two years as head coach of the U.S. Military Academy Prep School in Belvoir, Virginia.
In 1974, he resigned from the Army having attained the rank of captain. At age 26, Bobby Knight, his former coach at Army, called and offered him a graduate assistant position at Indiana University. That 1975 squad posted an 18-0 Big Ten mark and a 31-1 overall record.
Prior to joining the Duke program, Krzyzewski spent five years building the program at his alma mater in West Point. He led the Cadets to two NIT berths and left with a five-year record of 73-59.
In 1981, he was hired by Duke University to coach the university basketball team. After some difficult early seasons, the program achieved a level of success not seen in college basketball since the John Wooden years at UCLA. Duke lost in the NCAA championship game in 1986 and then made five consecutive Final Fours starting in 1988, the last two of which resulted in NCAA titles (see 1991 and 1992). In the 1992 offseason, Krzyzewski served as an assistant on the Dream Team, the legendary US Olympic basketball team that was the first to feature NBA players. (Duke star Christian Laettner, who graduated that year, was the only college player on the Dream Team.)
"Coach K" also led Duke to Final Fours in 1994, 1999, 2001, and 2004, with another national championship in 2001. With 66 wins in the NCAA tournament, Coach K has surpassed UNC's Dean Smith as the winningest coach in the tournament.
During his years at Duke, Coach K has led the Blue Devils to 10 Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season titles and nine ACC tournament titles (at the end of the 2004-05 season). Five of the ACC tournament titles were in consecutive years (1999-2003). In addition, Krzyzewski has won 12 National Coach of the Year awards. He was enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001.
Coach K has totalled over 700 career victories and is only the 17th coach in NCAA history to reach that milestone. Other such coaches include Dean Smith, Adolph Rupp, Bob Knight, Eddie Sutton, Jerry Tarkanian, Lute Olson, Jim Boeheim, and Jim Calhoun.
During his long tenure at Duke, Krzyzewski has been given the opportunity to coach in the NBA three times. The first time came after the 1990 season when he led the Blue Devils to their third straight Final Four appearance. The Boston Celtics offered a coaching position to Coach K, but he soon declined their offer. The next season, Krzyzewski proceeded to lead the Blue Devils to the first of two straight national championships. In 1994, he was pursued by the Portland Trail Blazers, but again he chose to stay with Duke. In 2004, Coach K was also interviewed by the Los Angeles Lakers following the departure of high-profile coach Phil Jackson. He was given a formal offer, reportedly for five years and $40 million, but again turned down the NBA.
Duke has named the floor at its basketball venue, Cameron Indoor Stadium, Coach K Court in his honor. Similarly, the grassy area outside of Cameron has been named Krzyzewskiville or "K-Ville".
Krzyzewski currently has a lifetime contract with Duke University earning $800,000 in salary per year. Including his expense accounts and other allowances, Krzyzewski has a total compensation package from Duke around $1.5 million per year.
Recently, Coach K was recently picked to coach the U.S. basketball team for the 2006 world championships and 2008 Beijing Olympics.
In addition to being mentored by Bob Knight and following in his footsteps in various ways, Coach K's behind-the-scenes style has often been compared with Knight's, as both have emphasized discipline and teamwork on and off the court along with academic achievement. Both have also been known for calculated tirades behind closed doors, to get their players' attention. Their public comportment has been notably different, though, as Knight's behavior has made him a lightning rod for criticism, whereas Krzyzewski has a polished, low-key style when dealing with the press and public. It has been said that Coach K maxes out his players talent in college, sending them off to the NBA to become below average players, compared to their expectations coming out of college. Other coaches, such as Knight, Roy Williams, Dean Smith, Jim Calhoun, ect., lead their players to become productive NBA players.