Even Coach K Evolves and Adapts With The Times

Coach K is coming off of his 5th National Championship, and if he hasn't done so already, he is really starting to create and even larger gap between his legacy and those of even his most successful peers, and he's done so in large part because of his willingness to buy-into adapting to his players and the changes in the sport in general

Bucky Gleason at Buckyandsully.buffalonews.com wrote a great article on Coach K's ability to adapt, and even recived some words from two of college basketball's all-time greats, Christian Laettner and Bobby Hurley to comment on just how much Coach K has evolved.

I have listed some key takeaways that I have found useful below.  You can read the full article here.

Christian Laettner On Coach K Evolution
Over the past quarter-century, Laettner has realized that Coach K didn’t compromise his ideals when it came to Hurley. Krzyzewski was evolving into the greatest coach in the past 40 years. Laettner came away with even more respect for Krzyzewski because he was willing to change with the times. 


“I saw an interview that he did the other day where he said that he, himself, is still learning and still adjusting and still evolving,” Laettner said Thursday by telephone. “He’s learning how to coach these kids. He’s coaching them differently today than he did me 23 years ago. Coach K is still learning.

“They say, ‘You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.’ He’s breaking that cliché. He’s an old dog for sure, but he looks young on the sideline. He has a lot of passion and intensity, but he’s not so rigid that he doesn’t evolve and change with the way kids are today and the way the game is played today.”

“I’m sure he’s still stubborn about some deep-rooted, hard-core philosophies that he has,” Laettner said. “I’m sure he delivers those messages to the kids very strictly and very stubbornly. In other ways, he has to be willing to change, be willing to give in and relent, and relate with these young players today.”

On Changes In Recruiting
In another era, Krzyzewski turned away from recruits who considered playing for a year or two in college before jumping to the NBA. He wanted them to stay for all four years and grow with the program. Although Corey Maggette left after one season in 1998-99 and Luol Deng split after one season five years later, most stayed at Duke. 

Krzyzewski made a philosophical U-turn after a rule was implemented in 2006 that called for NBA players to be 19 years old. Rather than resist a national trend, he kept an open mind. He embraced players who helped his program even if they stayed for one season. He realized it would encourage top recruits to choose Duke.
Bobby Hurley On Coach K's Evolution
“He has adapted in more ways than this,” Hurley said. “His style of play year-to-year is based on his personnel and the players he has in the program. He’s always done that whether it’s tweaking his style of coaching or now, with this.”