When asked about the significance of win No. 903 and moving past his former coach and mentor Bobby Knight in to first place on the all-time wins list, Duke Blue Devils’ head coach Mike Krzyzewski talked down the actual number in terms of importance and alluded to the journey as being what brings him satisfaction. But while coach K made for some interesting language in that response, the truth is that the journey may never have been what it was if it wasn’t for the fact that he had been so successful. In any sport, the bottom line for a head coach is to produce wins, and everything else that comes with it beyond the ultimate results are just secondary objectives. At Duke, they want to win always. As long as coach K is overseeing the Blue Devils, there is no reason to think that they won’t even though many are projecting they won’t be the same sportsbook reviews force they were a year ago as ACC champions.
When you get to the level that Krzyzewski has hit, it is no longer about the negatives, the problems encountered along the way, the bad decisions that were few and far between. In 35 years as a head coach, Krzyzewski has had just four losing seasons. If you asked him he would tell you that he is more about avoiding losses than he is about just winning, and we can understand his terminology when we look back on those four losing seasons in comparison to 11 final fours and an incredible four Final Four appearances. The fact that a head coach has been to a March Madness Final Four as many times as he has had a losing season is almost surreal, and yet another pay head reason why there is promise for this coming year.
Heading in to this season, all of the talk in the ACC has been about Tyler Zeller and a veteran North Carolina Tar Heels’ team that has only gotten better since it pushed the Blue Devils to the sports betting brink last year. But considering the kind of talent turnover a program like Duke experiences every year, and even more importantly how the coach has handled the talent he has over that time, there really doesn’t appear any reason to doubt the Blue Devils. Coach K will look to work his magic once again with the No. 1 prospect of all high school students in Austin Rivers, as well as freshman Quinn Cook and Marshall Plumlee. Duke retained several key scorers including Seth Curry and Andre Dawkins as well as Josh Hairston, and if the scoring gels this team could be downright dangerous. Unlike in professional sports where a big part of success is on the superstar, the game at the college level is more about coaching than in any other sport. Coach K is a winner, and he will continue to win per head games this season.
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