University of Kansas

In Focus: KU vs Duke 1988 Final Four

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[The following is an excerpt of a chapter from my upcoming book, Tao of the Passing Big Man, and other essays. Due out if ,and when we survive this global pandemic.]

 

The 1988 Final Four is remembered for many things, people have written ad nauseum about “Danny and the Miracles” besting OU and Duke to hoist up Kansas’ first national championship since 1952. I wanted to pinpoint and highlight a historical game from the national semifinal between Duke and Kansas, but not because of the score–or anything that happened in the game for that matter–, but because of all the players involved in this nationally televised piece of theater.

Not only was this a rematch of the 1986 National Semifinal (both teams had also played each other earlier in the a regular season game in Lawrence, Kansas), but this game was a confluence of different basketball minds who would impact the game in a variety of ways. 

 

This was the first of five straight final fours for Coach K [Duke would go to 7 Final Fours in a 9 year span from 1985 to 1994. ] and the second time in 3 years the teams would face off in the National Semifinal. Larry Brown ( a Dean Smith protege) was facing off against Coach Mike Krzyzewski, a graduate of the Bobby Knight School for the Gifted Bullies. 

The side stories turned out to be more interesting than the game itself. It was a pretty intense game (because of the stakes) but anything but pretty. It wasn’t a terribly entertaining game, one of many turnovers, and lots of stoppage in actual play. Kansas controlled the game for the most part, and Duke would have trouble getting loose against the Kansas defense. In fact, it would be a forgettable game if not for the names of the schools involved. If this had taken place during the regular season there would be very little reason to recall this event. The final score was a tepid 66-59.

Duke’s record was 28-7 for the season and at 26-11, Kansas would barely make the tournament. Neither team won their conference, yet here they both were in the Final Four; facing off for the chance to play against the Sooners.

The Game was played in Kemper Arena; in Kansas City, Missouri, which is only 45 minutes from the town of Lawrence the location of University of Kansas campus. So this was basically a home game for the Jayhawks. Anyway, enough background let’s get to it. 

                           Duke Blue Devils

  • The Duke Blue Devils were of course, coached by the legendary whiny Mike Krzyzewski.
  • Future Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey was an assistant coach on the bench, as well as future NBA scout Bob Bender.
  • Coach K’s starting point guard was former Mercer Island standout, and future Utah Jazz head coach, Quin Snyder (before his stint in the NBA, Snyder would strangely enough become the head coach of Mizzou, Kansas’ biggest rival, for 6 years; perennially losing to first Roy Williams, and later Bill Self). Snyder would have stops in Los Angeles (for both franchises), Philadelphia, and Atlanta as an assistant coach before getting the head gig in Utah.
  • Power forward Danny Ferry would not only go on to to play 13 seasons in the NBA, playing with the Cleveland Cavaliers and San Antonio Spurs. Ferry would go on to gain notoriety as a GM for the Cavs and later the Atlanta Hawks (before famously get canned for speaking too freely about African free agents during team conference calls).
  • Center Alaa Abdelnaby spent four seasons in the NBA, bouncing around the league; playing for five teams in that short span of time.
  • Future Nets and 76ers GM (and Bill Simmons punchline) Billy King started at small forward for the Dukies. King would manage to last 18 years in the NBA as an executive before getting replaced during the Brooklyn Nets house cleaning period.

 

                                  Kansas Jayhawks

 

  • Head coach Larry Brown would win this game and the next one, then proceed to take a 25 year break from coaching college; taking jobs on the NBA level for teams like the Sixers, Pacers, Knicks, Pistons, Clippers, and Bobcats (now the Hornets again). Brown would spend a little time in Dallas at SMU before leaving his position for suspicious reasons.
  • Assistant coach Ed Manning (who played for coach Brown with the ABA Carolina Cougars) was also Danny Manning’s father. Many thought Danny Manning was going to go to University of North Carolina, but when Larry Brown hired Ed Manning to coach with him at Kansas, Ed moved the entire family to Lawrence, Kansas where Danny won the state championship at Lawrence High School, then four years later won the national championship less than a mile away at the local university. Danny’s father would go on to be an assistant for Larry Brown when Brown left Kansas for San Antonio, and later, to be an NBA scout.
  • Ed’s son, Danny, would not only manage to play 16 injury riddled seasons in the NBA, but then would go on to coach at University of Tulsa and later Wake Forest. Of course, Jayhawks fans will remember Manning as a bench coach during Bill Self’s title run 20 years from Manning’s own title run in 1988.
  • Future San Antonio Spurs executive RC Buford was an assistant coach on the Kansas bench, as well as Alvin Gentry, who would later be a head coach in the NBA for the Suns (Gentry was an assistant for Mike D’Antoni during the :07 seconds or less era), Pistons, Heat, Clippers, and Pelicans. Gentry would get his first NBA ring as an assistant for Steve Kerr on the Golden State Warriors.
  • Starting forward, Milt Newton would go on to play overseas, before becoming an NBA exec, eventually landing as GM for the Timberwolves for a time spell.
  • Guard Mark Turgeon would go on to have a successful head coaching career; most notably at Wichita State, Texas A & M, and currently Maryland.
  • Guard Kevin Pritchard would be successful as an NBA executive and not a player, working as a GM for first the Portland Trailblazers (he was doomed the minute he selected Greg Oden) and currently the Indiana Pacers.

Aside note: Forward Scooter Barry happens to be the son of Rick Barry; who played with Larry Brown in the ABA for the Oakland Oaks.

 

The conclusion to be drawn from all this useless bit of trivia is that obviously your kids are better equipped to succeed in life if they choose to go to Kansas over Duke. Larry Brown would win an NBA title with the Detroit Pistons in 2004. Alvin Gentry would get a ring as an assistant with the Golden State Warriors in 2015. RC Buford would help the Spurs to develop enough talent around Tim Duncan, as the Spurs would win 5 titles in 15 years. On the Duke side, besides Coach K, no one involved in that game really won anything ( Danny Ferry did get a ring in 2003, playing sparingly on the Spurs). So mothers, don’t let your kids grow up to be Dukies.

 

BM

Book Review: A Coach’s Life

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You don’t have to go very far down the Dr. James Naismith coaching tree to find Dean Smith’s name. Coach Smith played for Dr. Phog Allen in the 50’s, as a sparsely used reserve on the 1952 and 1953 Final Four teams. They beat St. John’s for the title in 1952 and lost in 1953 to Indiana–incidentally it would be the St. John’s head coach, Frank McGuire who would change Smith’s life almost 10 years down the road, by hiring him as an assistant at Carolina.

I am hard pressed to think of a more sincere and heart warming memoir than the one I found in A Coach’s Life.  It is rife with history and lessons, and none of it comes off as pompous or self serving (the exact opposite of what I imagine a Coach K memoir to be like). Dean Smith touched a lot of lives and thought of himself more as a teacher than just a coach.

His practices were notoriously just as precise as John Wooden’s, and there was nothing frivolous about the drills implemented into a 2 hour practice. Everything was mapped out by time of the drill, duration of the drill and the emphasis of the drill. Before practice even began Smith would lay out the “thought for the day” as well as an “emphasis for the day.” Smith and his players were well prepared before the game even tipped off, and were ready for any situation to occur during game time. In his retelling of the 1993 Championship game, Smith talks about scouting Michigan after defensive rebounds, and how they set Michigan to use all their time outs before Chris Webber would make his infamous mistake near the end of the game.

It is a great book that not only talks about events, but the reader gets some insight into coaching in the NCAA and how college basketball changed over time. Coach Smith doles out some free philosophy that doesn’t come off as advice or browbeating. You can tell he really cared about using the game to teach young men about life, and that he really cared about his players. Jerry West once remarked that former UNC players had an allegiance to Dean Smith that was almost scary.

There is a lot of wisdom to glean from this book, as the reader follows Smith from Emporia to Topeka to Lawrence, and eventually to Chapel Hill. Smith lead a long and fruitful life that inspired everyone he came across to be better people. You’ll be hard pressed to find any of your favorite players or coaches who in some way weren’t indirectly affected by some of Dean Smith’s caching innovations.

Smith popularized the run and jump trapping defense, the fist as a tired signal, the four corners offense, timeouts after baskets (in the college game), pointing at the player who gave the scorer an assist, and believe it or not, wrist bands. The reason we see players huddling up during dead balls, is because Coach Smith wanted his players to discuss the next defensive play call. Smith’s basketball philosophy was that basketball was a team sport and that if a player wanted individual recognition then he “should play golf, tennis, or run track.” Sometimes he would make players play 1 on 5 during practice just to prove his point.

Coach Smith was the ultimate coach’s son. His father was his high school basketball coach, and his mother was a teacher. Smith lettered in high school as a catcher, a point guard, and a quarterback, which seemed to only groom him to be a leader someday.

Although Dean Smith reached 11 Final Fours, including 2 national titles, 23 straight NCAA appearances, and 13 straight Sweet Sixteen visits, Smith is most proud of his players’ accomplishments, saying that “Players win games and coaches lose them.”

Smith was more invested in building relationships and molding men than his win-loss record. His memoir made me consider what it really means to have a successful season as there are three seasons in college basketball: the regular season including conference play, the conference tournament, and the national tournaments (NIT,NCAA). Considering that Smith’s initial post season runs intersected with Coach John Wooden and UCLA, it lends some serious perspective–not everyone can be the national champion, and each victory must be appreciated on its own merits.

While he was a coach, the UNC basketball team had a 95 % graduation rate, and 26 of his former players went on to be first round NBA selections in the draft (one of them being some guy named Michael Jordan).  Even the players who went on to do other things in life besides play basketball, managed to become winners in life because of the time they spent learning from Dean Smith–becoming doctors, lawyers, and senators.

I checked out A Coach’s Life from the library, read it, returned it, and then went online an ordered a copy for my personal book collection. The book is an essential to anyone who one day wants to coach, or to anyone who just loves basketball. It is unquestionably a Who’s Who for the game, as anyone who was a student of the sport came across Dean Smith in some way or another. This book is easily an A +

 

 

BM

 

profile pic b mick  Bobby Mickey is the alter ego of writer and poet Edward Austin Robertson. When he isn’t involved in some basketball related activity, actively looking for parties to deejay or venues to perform comedy, he can be found recording podcasts with Craig Stein at Fullsass Studios. For booking inquiries, send contact info to thisagoodassgame@gmail.com

 

Book Review Of Hard Work

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For many Kansas Jayhawks fans in April of 2003, Roy Williams leaving KU to replace Matt Doherty at North Carolina felt like insult to injury. The Jayhawks had just ended a beautiful 2 year run of Final Four finishes, but had failed to finish the job on both trips. Bad shot selection and a costly time out violation cost them in a heated game against the Juan Dixon–led Maryland Terrapins in the 2002 tournament. It was a disappointing way to end the season; especially being the first team to go undefeated in Big 12 conference play.

Despite losing two critical big men the following year (Drew Gooden to the NBA draft and Wayne Simien to a shoulder injury), the Jayhawks got back to the Final Four and almost overcame a poor first half and poor free throw shooting (they shot 11-31 from the charity stripe) only to come up short. Not only did they lose the National Championship by a mere 3 points, but they lost two of their storied players to graduation in Nick Collison and Kirk Hinrich, and on top of that they lost their head coach. It was a tender time for the KU faithful.

Hard Work puts this time period–and Roy Williams as a whole–in perspective. It is a touching and honest tale that gives us insight into what makes him tick. Williams discusses his family background growing up in Asheville, North Carolina and we follow him to his decision (inspired by his own high school coach Buddy Baldwin) to pursue a career in coaching during his junior year in high school. From there, he goes on to attend the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, where he plays on the junior varsity team and watches the Dean Smith run practices during his free time; sitting high in the bleachers while taking notes.

Through hard work and determination Williams pays his way through school by taking odd jobs until he finally graduates and finds a job coaching high school, while maintaining his connection at UNC–a connection that pays in dividends as he takes a pay cut to become an assistant coach for Dean Smith. It is Roy Williams who has a hand in recruiting such notable players as Rick Fox, Sam Perkins, and the GOAT himself, Michael Jordan.

After ten years of hard work for coach Dean Smith (a KU alum), that Williams leaves for Lawrence, Kansas (not without a great deal of hand wringing) after another UNC alum, Larry Brown leaves for an NBA job.

I picked up this book hoping to get some insight into the Lawrence to Chapel Hill parallel, and the coaching pipeline that started with Dean Smith. Unfortunately, Williams does little romanticizing about his time in Lawrence. It almost feels like he left Chapel Hill only for the sake of building his resume for when it was time to take over for Coach Smith. There are very little off the court details to his time in Lawrence, and I couldn’t help but wonder if taking the KU job helped him feel closer to Dean Smith and Larry Brown, having understood the culture surrounding both basketball programs.

Most of the details about his time in Lawrence involve recruiting and learning the ropes as the head coach of a major program. Although Roy Williams is a coaching legend, Hall of Famer, and one of the most decorated men to ever pick up a clipboard, there was a time when he faced a great deal of scrutiny. Despite going to two Final Fours in his first four years of coaching (Kansas was ineligible for post season play due to violations during the Larry Brown era), the media loved floating around the narrative that Roy couldn’t win the big one. No matter how talented the team, each season ended with Williams at a press conference crying into the microphone. It was an image I got used to seeing as a teenager in middle and high school.

Considering how tough it was at the time to get big time players to come to Lawrence to play basketball (players like Jason Kidd, Tayshaun Prince, Harold Minor, Thomas Hill, and Jimmy King all passed on coming to Kansas for various reasons–Larry Brown almost left the program in 1987 because he was afraid he couldn’t get big time recruits to come play there), one has to consider how well Williams performed his job as head coach at Kansas. Despite some good recruiting eras, the only Williams recruited player to come out of KU and go on to be a stud in the NBA was future Hall of Famer Paul Pierce. At their professional best, Scot Pollard, Raef LaFrentz, Jacque Vaughn, Gooden, Hinrich, and Collison (who almost went to Duke which means Carlos Boozer might have been a Jayhawk, YUK!) were really good role players. Even now as the coach of UNC, despite already having won 3 national titles (narrowly missing out on a fourth because of a Villanova buzzer beater two seasons ago), San Antonio Spur, Danny Green happens to be the best NBA player to ever play for Roy at Chapel Hill.

Before picking up this book, I wasn’t sure what to think about Roy Williams. As a kid, I couldn’t tell if his  “aw shucks” demeanor and Huckleberry Hound accent was corny or earnest. I always found his emotional press conferences endearing. Most of the time, he talked about how badly he felt for his players, and often spoke of the disappointment that he couldn’t win them a championship.  Hard Work was a revealing read however, and there is a simplicity and self awareness about Roy Williams that you don’t find with many coaches of big time programs. Many high profile coaches come off as smug, pompous and self righteous, or at their worst, fast talking hucksters and pimps.

As for his coaching, there is no doubt what kind of legacy he will leave when he finally decides to hang it up. He is not even 70 yet, but I don’t get the sense he is ready to rest on his laurels. UNC is the kind of basketball program that sells itself, and he doesn’t have to work as hard to get big time recruits to come to Chapel Hill. Years ago, I was wondering if he was close to retire from the stress of running a big time program. Now I understand that Coach Williams enjoys the challenge and its part of his competitive nature to scream and yell on the sideline as if every possession were the last. It took lots of hard work, but it feels like Roy has cracked the code, and he may win another four or five titles when its all said and done.

And for those Jayhawks fans who were upset back in 2003, it looks as if things worked out for both parties. Williams’ replacement, Bill Self has created his own legacy in Lawrence, winning 14 straight conference titles, and took KU took a title by his fifth year of coaching (defeating a talented North Carolina team in the Final Four on the way to that championship). Kansas fans can hang their hat on jump-starting the UNC program by giving them their storied coach in Dean Smith. Coach Smith returned the favor by sending pupils Larry Brown and Roy Williams back to Lawrence to keep the winning tradition alive. But if you think about it, Williams grew up in Asheville, married his wife while being a student at North Carolina, cut his teeth as a coach at Carolina, and even though his son and daughter both went to Lawrence High School; they also both attended school in Chapel Hill (his son Scott won a state title at Lawrence High and went on to play for Bill Gutheridge, while his daughter was on the UNC dance team). KU fans should have seen the move coming a mile away. Coach Williams was always a Tar Heel; he was just on loan to Kansas until the program needed him again.

 

BM

 

profile pic b mick  Bobby Mickey is the alter ego of writer and poet Edward Austin Robertson. When he isn’t involved in some basketball related activity, actively looking for parties to deejay or venues to perform comedy, he can be found recording podcasts with Craig Stein at Fullsass Studios. For booking inquiries, send contact info to thisagoodassgame@gmail.com