By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
Shy of actually taking over head-coaching responsibilities at an NBA team, Mike Krzyzewski will instead work for the league as the Special Adviser to Basketball Operations.
Krzyzewski, 76, was confirmed for his new role on Wednesday.
He retired following the 2021-22 season after spending over four decades as Duke’s play-caller. Besides winning five NCAA championships, the Hall of Famer coaching Team USA amounted to three Olympic gold medals and two FIBA World Cup gold medals standing out among remaining achievements.
Per the press release: “The NBA announced today that Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski, the all-time wins leader in NCAA Division I men’s basketball and a six-time gold medalist as head coach of the USA Basketball Men’s Senior National Team, has been appointed Special Adviser to Basketball Operations.
In his new role, Krzyzewski will provide counsel to the league office, NBA team executives and other leaders across the league on a host of issues related to the game. He will begin in this consulting capacity by attending a meeting of NBA general managers next week in Chicago.
“We are honored to have Coach K join the NBA family and share his vast experience and expertise with the league and our teams,” said NBA President, League Operations Byron Spruell. “As a preeminent coach and renowned leader who cares deeply about the game of basketball, he is uniquely suited to drive discussions and offer insights about the present and future of the NBA.”
“This is a tremendous opportunity to deepen my connection to the NBA and participate in conversations about further strengthening the league and the game,” said Krzyzewski. “Even in my retirement from coaching, my passion for the sport has never been higher. This role will enable me to stay engaged with basketball at the highest level.”
Krzyzewski joins the NBA one year after completing a storied 47-year career as a college basketball head coach, including 42 seasons at Duke (1980-2022) and five seasons at his alma mater, Army West Point (1975-80). He went 1,202-368 (.766) overall and 1,129-309 (.785) with the Blue Devils, making him the winningest men’s coach in NCAA history and at one school.
During his extraordinary tenure at Duke, Krzyzewski won five national championships and set the NCAA record for Final Four appearances by a head coach with 13. He also holds NCAA Tournament records for the most victories (101) and appearances (36) by a head coach.
Duke averaged nearly 27 victories per season under Krzyzewski, who won a national Coach of the Year award in eight different seasons and was selected as the ACC Coach of the Year five times. The Blue Devils spent 127 weeks ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25 College Basketball Poll, the most by a head coach in poll history. Krzyzewski tutored 73 NBA Draft selections at Duke, including 46 first-round picks and four No. 1 overall picks.
In addition to his historic college coaching career, Krzyzewski made his mark in international competition as head coach of USA Basketball Men’s Senior National Team from 2005-16. He guided the program to an 88-1 record, including a 24-0 mark in the Olympics.
With Krzyzewski at the helm, the United States won three gold medals in the Olympics (2008, 2012 and 2016), two in the FIBA Basketball World Cup (2010 and 2014) and one in the FIBA AmeriCup (2007). Krzyzewski is the only basketball head coach to lead a nation to three consecutive Olympic championships, and he helped the United States earn back-to-back titles at the FIBA Basketball World Cup for the first time. He was named the USA Basketball National Coach of the Year a record seven times.
Among his other accolades, Krzyzewski was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001 and the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006. The Chicago native was also enshrined in the Army Sports Hall of Fame (2009), the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame (2010) and the Duke Athletics Hall of Fame (2011).
A West Point graduate and three-year letterman on the basketball team, Krzyzewski served as an Army officer and attained the rank of Captain before moving into college coaching. In recognition of his service to the United States, Krzyzewski was honored with the Distinguished Graduate Award by the United States Military Academy in 2005 and the George Catlett Marshall Medal by the Association of the United States Army in 2014.”
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