Mike Krzyzewski passes Bob Knight as the all-time leader in wins in Division 1 basketball with 903 win
By JOSHUA NATOLI
Staff Writer
PUBLISHED NOVEMBER 22, 2011
Duke basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski found himself on top of the college basketball world after his win against Michigan State last Tuesday night.
A place he is very familiar with.
This victory put Krzyzewski past his former mentor Bob Knight as the all-time leader in NCAA Division 1 basketball with 903 wins. Not only does this win certify Krzyzewski as the current all-time wins leader, but it also makes him the greatest college basketball coach of all-time, possibly the greatest coach in any sport.
The now 64 year old, Krzyzewski started coaching at Duke in 1980 and since has won four NCAA Championships, taken the Blue Devils to eleven Final Fours, twelve ACC regular season titles, and thirteen ACC Championships.
He also coached the United States men’s basketball team to a gold medal in the 2008 Olympics and the 2010 FIBA World Championship, proving his coaching abilities go beyond that of college basketball. Because of this success, he has been offered many lucrative deals from NBA teams to coach their clubs.
Nobody has taken a team and made it as successful as Krzyzewski has with Duke Basketball. Everyone knows about Duke and Coach K. They are synonymous with winning. Krzyzewski’s win percentage at Duke is absolutely mind-bowing. With a record of 903-284, that puts his win percentage at 76 percent. That is about as efficient as you can get.
In all of Krzyzewski’s 31 years at Duke, he has only two losing seasons to his name. Some coaches only have two winning seasons to their name. The things this man has done for the school since his arrival have been immeasurable. The amount of money Duke has gained I’m sure has been a lot. The publicity Duke has received and their reputation have all skyrocketed because of Krzyzewski’s success.
Nobody has taken the reigns of a team and made them successful quite like Krzyzewski, and I’m not taking about just college basketball, I mean any sport. Take a look at Krzyzewski’s coaching record. Sure the 903 wins stick out the most but you will also see lots of 25 or more win seasons and more NCAA Tournament appearances then you can shake a stick at. The success is in plain sight, to disagree that the man isn’t made to win would be ignorance.
You can say that he learned from the best when he was Bob Knight’s mentee at Army, where Krzyzewski began his coaching career. It was only destiny that Krzyzewski would pass Knight for the all-time wins record on that fateful Tuesday night.
Immediately after the victory, Krzyzewski crossed the court to embrace his former mentor with tears in his eyes. After Krzyzewski turned back, Knight pulled him back and put his hands on his shoulders. Krzyzewski knew that if it wasn’t for Knight, he would never be in the position he is now. That is love and respect beyond all measure.
Knowing Krzyzewski, he will put this behind him and focus on increasing that win record more and getting his Blue Devils another national title this year.
