Has the game passed Coach K by?

Bingo. Look, I get the Duke hate on here -- I really do.

But it really seems an odd question, given that this Duke team probably overachieved.

They didn't have a ton of talent. Could they have shot their way a lot deeper into the tournament? Sure. But they didn't.

But I hardly think that means the game is passing Coach K by...

 

I don't think it's passed him by, but Duke needs to recruit some inside players. If those kinds of kids are passing Duke by, then I guess they have some problems, but I can't see that happening. I despise Duke just as much as the next guy, but I'm pretty sure he knows what the team needs now.

 

It seems as if K has made a clear effort since the Maggette, Will Avery era that he isn't going to take one-and-done players because of what that instabilty does to the program. That's why Kris Humphries cut ties with Duke after signing a LOI.

The price of that is that if you're only going to take 3 and 4 year guys, the pool of bigs remaining is very thin. Bigs that stay are the exception. Most 4-yr bigs have a flaw. They were projects as freshmen, they're a little undersized, etc.

He probably needs to find a balance between one and dones and just 4-yr guys.

 

This is bang on.

I think he's did a fine job with the roster he had this season. The team was severely mis-matched in the post all season.

He got the most out of this team. He'll get more if he can recruit a post player or power forward.

 

If K can sign a post player that can demand double teams, the Blue Devils will contend for a title.

 

Shit.

Dean Smith got by on reputation. The man's two national championships were gift-wrapped on last-minute brain-dead opponent moves. Dean, before anyone else, welcomed an arena named after him while he was coaching. Dean Smith couldn't carry Wooden's - or K's - clipboard.

 

OK, Well, maybe he could carry K's clipboard. For a half.

 

And give the halftime pep talk.

 

Dean Smith had a few teams in his later years that had the talent to win the national title, but fell short. I used to think that showed what a mediocre coach he was (and no, he's not as good a coach as Knight or Krzyzewski). It would be interesting to find out what percentage of his recruits in that era, if any, came because Jordan the former Tar Heel had established himself as the best player on the planet. They never won it without a gift in the title game, yes, but dude was a great coach. You still have to mold talent once it gets to campus. Great coach, who coached in an era when there were a lot of great coaches at great programs.

The game has not passed Coach K by. He has had a couple of those years like his mentor Knight used to have a lot in his prime: a team that challenges for a conference title, give a good account of itself during the regular season, secures a top-3 seed, then is exposed as overrated and lacking the talent to advance in the tourney. I would say that's a tribute to what a great coach Krzyzewski remains. As others have said, all he needs is a certain recruit or type of recruit, and this talk is absurd. He has shown he can produce an excellent season without having the best talent, and Final Fours with the best talent.

Besides, he's now free from The Curse of Knight.

(After Duke beat Indiana in 1992 in a Final Four game and went on to win it all (thus pissing off Knight), Duke had teams capable of winning it all after that, but lost in the title game in 1994 and, more memorably, 1999, a year after absolutely choking away an Elite Eoght game againt Kentucky. Then Knight was canned and out of coaching in 2001, and Duke won it again. He comes back the following year, and nada for the Blue Devils since. Yes, I have too much time on my hands).

:-X :-X :-X :-X :-X :-X

 

As long as Duke continues to get every fucking call imaginable in the regular season and the selection committee continues to overseed them - like the 5 seed masquerading as a 2 seed this year - Duke will be ok.

 

There's no way it's passed him by.
Not a chance.
Other intangibles worked against in the past 2 years.
It's nothing substantial. He'll be back for more, soon.

 

Couldn't have put it any better acc. I'm not a duke fan, not an acc fan, not a UNC fan by any means, but I think we've seen a running trend after he had so many guys bail back then that he's not interested in the one and done types.
A lot of old school coaches I think have gotten burned by this concept over the years (Tom Izzo), but the difference between them and K is that they all found that balance you spoke of.
It's a nice concept to try and get guys who you know will be there for four years so you can develop a great team concept, but in the day and age basketball is in ... it's really tough to do.
They haven't had that go-to guy because the majority of them anymore are one and done.
The game certainly hasn't passed him by, he's not Joe Paterno, but his recruiting tactics certainly need to be re-worked.