Nobody's talking about Coach K

[Twoback]

Coach K is an ***.

Because ... why?

 

[Claws for Concern]

Kobe Bryant's probably happiest about the chance to play for Coach K since he was the one who had wanted him to coach the Lakers, too. Was Kobe at least recruited by Duke even though he went to the NBA out of high school?

 

[Bruhman]

I think Coach K deserves the most credit for being smart in which 12 he picked.

Carlos Boozer had no reason being on that team.

Boozer was the 11th or 12th man. Somebody had to fill the role. He did a great job along with Michael Redd. Maybe that sort of unselfishness should be a given, but it's not, especially among guys used to heavy minutes. Boozer and Redd earned their medals as much as anyone else.

 

[broadway joe]

LeBron James is no prima donna. He played and carried himself the same way in China that he does everywhere else.

I don't believe Dwyane Wade is a prima donna.

Chris Paul is not a prima donna.

Yeah, I'm curious which players from this team you think are prima donnas.

Prima donnas is too strong a term, but these are wealthy NBA stars with the healthy egos that accompany having been The Man on almost every team they've ever played on. This team was picked with an eye towards getting players who, in addition to being talented, were mature and intelligent enough to keep those egos in check, and whose games and personalities fit well together. Colangelo and Coach K obviously had the main role in that, and for that they deserve credit.

 

[forever_town]

Coach K is an ***.

Because ... why?

You didn't quote the other part of Missou's post. Have an agenda you want to share?

 

[Twoback]

I'm just curious why some people perceive him to be an ***.
I can look at the titles to see why they perceive him as a great coach.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

I'm just curious why some people perceive him to be an ***.

Because he is one.

 

[Trey Beamon]

I'm just curious why some people perceive him to be an ***.

Because he is one.

Riveting stuff there, Mizzou.

 

[PeteyPirate]

I'm just curious why some people perceive him to be an ***.
I can look at the titles to see why they perceive him as a great coach.

Because in interactions with the media, he can be an ass. It's easy to see that he has plenty of friends and is generous with his time and money to good causes, but when most of what you get is the belittling and the short shrift, then it's not the greatest motivation to endorse his character.

 

[bagelchick]

I know people either love him or hate him, but I was genuinely touched by his show of emotion when the team won.
I also thought the pic of him wearing everyone's gold medals was great.

I would expect we'll hear that one of them gave him their medal....why coaches don't get them is strange to me.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

The thing about Coach K is that the national media almost never portrays Coach K the way he actually is. He's not as bad as Bob Knight, but he's not that far off. The difference is, Coach K is smart enough to know when to turn it on and off so the national guys think he's the nicest guy in the world, while his beat writers know he's an insufferable prick.

He is a great coach though... Nobody would ever even try to deny him that...

 

[Oz]

The thing about Coach K is that the national media almost never portrays Coach K the way he actually is. He's not as bad as Bob Knight, but he's not that far off. The difference is, Coach K is smart enough to know when to turn it on and off so the national guys think he's the nicest guy in the world, while his beat writers know he's an insufferable prick.

The same goes for many, many coaches and many, many athletes. Not that uncommon.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

True, but rarely is the national perception as far off as the local perception as it is with Coach K.

 

[Twoback]

The thing about Coach K is that the national media almost never portrays Coach K the way he actually is. He's not as bad as Bob Knight, but he's not that far off. The difference is, Coach K is smart enough to know when to turn it on and off so the national guys think he's the nicest guy in the world, while his beat writers know he's an insufferable *****.

He is a great coach though... Nobody would ever even try to deny him that...

Those beat writers have no idea how bad it can be.
They want to see insufferable, tell 'em to try covering the sainted Joe Paterno.
Krzyzewski allows his players and coaches to talk, and nobody gives writers more insight in a postgame press conference than he does. He doesn't spend much time with locals because he doesn't need to; he rarely recruits locally. But he doesn't interfere with them covering the team, as many others do.

 

[BYH]

Good. Let's keep it that way. cause otherwise we'd have to mention 1989 and 1999 and 2002 and 2004, and really, that's only the start.

 

[JR]

Good piece on Chris Bosh in today's Globe. Bosh epitomized the team player under Coach K.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080825.OLYHOOPS25//TPStory/Sports

"I know I can score the basketball, but that wasn't my duty," Bosh said. "I had to realize that as a basketball player and do everything I could to affect the game some way. If they threw me a bone, I'd take it."

The U.S. team needed unselfish players who did odd jobs, and that was Bosh.

He rebounded. He motivated. He played defence, especially against the international pick-and-roll, which so wounded the Americans four years ago in Athens, when the great basketball power slumped to bronze. He stayed active on offence, always presenting himself as a threat, even if he didn't always get the ball.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

The thing about Coach K is that the national media almost never portrays Coach K the way he actually is. He's not as bad as Bob Knight, but he's not that far off. The difference is, Coach K is smart enough to know when to turn it on and off so the national guys think he's the nicest guy in the world, while his beat writers know he's an insufferable *****.

He is a great coach though... Nobody would ever even try to deny him that...

Those beat writers have no idea how bad it can be.
They want to see insufferable, tell 'em to try covering the sainted Joe Paterno.
Krzyzewski allows his players and coaches to talk, and nobody gives writers more insight in a postgame press conference than he does. He doesn't spend much time with locals because he doesn't need to; he rarely recruits locally. But he doesn't interfere with them covering the team, as many others do.

There's no question, Paterno is the ultimate example of someone who the national media portrays as a saint, but is actually a gigantic douche to the locals. Paterno is first, but Coach K might be a pretty close second.

 

[Twoback]

The thing about Coach K is that the national media almost never portrays Coach K the way he actually is. He's not as bad as Bob Knight, but he's not that far off. The difference is, Coach K is smart enough to know when to turn it on and off so the national guys think he's the nicest guy in the world, while his beat writers know he's an insufferable *****.

He is a great coach though... Nobody would ever even try to deny him that...

Those beat writers have no idea how bad it can be.
They want to see insufferable, tell 'em to try covering the sainted Joe Paterno.
Krzyzewski allows his players and coaches to talk, and nobody gives writers more insight in a postgame press conference than he does. He doesn't spend much time with locals because he doesn't need to; he rarely recruits locally. But he doesn't interfere with them covering the team, as many others do.

There's no question, Paterno is the ultimate example of someone who the national media portrays as a saint, but is actually a gigantic douche to the locals. Paterno is first, but Coach K might be a pretty close second.

If so, it's like the distance between Tiger and the guys trying to win majors against him.

 

[PeteyPirate]

The thing about Coach K is that the national media almost never portrays Coach K the way he actually is. He's not as bad as Bob Knight, but he's not that far off. The difference is, Coach K is smart enough to know when to turn it on and off so the national guys think he's the nicest guy in the world, while his beat writers know he's an insufferable *****.

He is a great coach though... Nobody would ever even try to deny him that...

Those beat writers have no idea how bad it can be.
They want to see insufferable, tell 'em to try covering the sainted Joe Paterno.
Krzyzewski allows his players and coaches to talk, and nobody gives writers more insight in a postgame press conference than he does. He doesn't spend much time with locals because he doesn't need to; he rarely recruits locally. But he doesn't interfere with them covering the team, as many others do.

There's no question, Paterno is the ultimate example of someone who the national media portrays as a saint, but is actually a gigantic douche to the locals. Paterno is first, but Coach K might be a pretty close second.

If so, it's like the distance between Tiger and the guys trying to win majors against him.

And Krzyzewski is still a prick.

 

[Boobie Miles]

LeBron James is no prima donna. He played and carried himself the same way in China that he does everywhere else.

I don't believe Dwyane Wade is a prima donna.

Chris Paul is not a prima donna.

Yeah, I'm curious which players from this team you think are prima donnas.

Kobe, LeBron Kidd and Carmelo would qualify right off the bat, and that's from their time in the NBA when they are the focus of everything on their teams. Getting them to blend together as a team wasn't a simple task.

I don't even consider prima donna a put-down. How could those guys not have monster egos?