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During a Duke/Carolina basketball game in 2003, then-Tar Heel coach Matt Doherty got into a shouting match with a Blue Devil assistant, Chris Collins, late in a closely contested contest. UNC went on to win the game but talk afterwards swirled more abut the altercation than the actual final outcome.
A year ago, Duke’s Gerald Henderson leveled Carolina’s Tyler Hansbrough with a forearm shiver that left UNC’s star licking up his own blood as it streamed from his nose. The Blue Devil’s Mike Krzyzewski and the Tar Heel’s Roy Williams, who took over for Doherty just weeks after the 2003 incident, exchanged words at midcourt with most thinking the conversation was anything but friendly. One could only imagine the differing view points on that ordeal.
That should’ve surprised no one as these two have had their unpleasant moments over the years, dating back the 2000 tournament when Duke beat the Williams-led Kansas Jayhawks. Something was said during that game that caused such a stir the coaches had to be pulled apart. I think it’s safe to say that while there may be mutual respect between Coach K and Williams, no Valentine’s Day cards willbe exchanged any time soon.
It only gets better. This week, the two most successful coaches in the ACC got into a war of words once again when Coach K made a comment following the Blue Devils’ loss to Wake Forest Sunday night. When asked about an injury to one of his players, Krzyzewski said “..unlike other schools we don’t release our injuries.” Being that the Tar Heels have suffered through a miserable stretch of injuries over the past two months, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to correlate the two. This comment was directed at UNC and the Heels.
To no surprise, coach Williams fired back, saying “They can coach their own damned team and I’ll coach my team — in case anyone had heard some statements about that. It’s impossible for me to have any more respect for Mike, but I felt like that comment was aimed toward us.”
In the immortal words of Borat, “Very nice.”
Having a great rivalry on the basketball court is one thing, but when opposing coaches put their own dog in the hunt, it becomes priceless. First of all, reporting injuries shouldn’t be this big secret that some teams want to make it. If a player is injured and can’t play, especially one like Heels’ point guard Ty Lawson, then that is newsworthy. If a flu bug rips through a locker room and several players get sick and can’t play, it’s news. Trying to hide an injury to keep another team guessing is somewhat bush-league to me.
Coach K is no dummy by any stretch of the imagination, and he should appreciate a season like Carolina is having. Injuries are never cool, but they are part of the game. I can’t recall anyone busting Krzyzewski’s chops when Elton Brand broke his foot in 1998 or when the Blue Devils’ Demarcus Nelson couldn’t stay healthy. Coach K went about doing his job with what he had and never asked for sympathy. I mean, UNC lost freshman Sean May for basically the entire 2003 season, costing Doherty his job. Surely Coach K can sympathize with that scenario.
Injuries can change the balance of power in a conference and can make or break seasons. Coach K knows that, but I feel he’s just tired of hearing about all of Carolina’s problems from the media. I think he feels Duke didn’t get the credit it deserved for beating UNC in Chapel Hill all because Lawson didn’t play. Krzyzewski may be sticking up for his team, but taking a jab at a team for listing injuries is very much beneath him.
Everyone can throw another log on this fire come March 8th when the two get together in the ACC finale in Durham. Hopefully everyone will be healthy so the latest chapter is written on the court and not off it.
Staff Writer Eliot Duke can be reached at 472-9500, ext. 233, or at eliotduke@hotmail.com.