Coach Guthridge made his retirement official on May 13, 2015. The emotion was there, its just that it was often Guthridge providing it. Copyright 2013 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. But theres another alternate history with extreme on-court implications that might have forced his hand. Why would a healthy 66-year-old call it quits and relinquish the chance to coach that team? Had McAdoo returned, Smiths team would have been much better positioned to deal with David Thompsons stunning impact on NC State, the ACC and the nation. The University is currently operating under normal conditions. End of conversation.. You come up one year, and that year you win the national championship. The Parsons, Kan., native posted an 80-28 record in three seasons as Carolinas head coach, leading the 1998 and 2000 teams to the Final Four. "Coach Guthridge was instrumental in recruiting me to UNC and I have so many great memories of him and the lessons he taught me. He was on the sidelines for a record 73 NCAA Tournament victories, including 71 at Carolina and two at Kansas State. When Smith retired as Division I's winningest men's coach shortly before the 1997-98 season, Guthridge was promoted to replace him, and he guided the Tar Heels to two Final Fours in three seasons. The little doo-doos got him in the end, Hanners says. Williams famously turned him down, opting to remain at Kansas, where hed built a Carolina-esque family dynamic (at Smiths alma mater, to boot). My guess is he would not have been, and then the first call, yes, wouldve been Roy, Baddour says. Which 16 teams should you buy or fade ahead of March Madness? I talk to Coach Williams all the time, and I asked him, Whats the best advice Coach Smith ever gave you? And he said, Antawn, Coach Smith told me just coach til you cant coach anymore. The only thing he regretted was he felt like he stopped coaching too early.. The possibilities were endless, but Baddour is certain of one thing: keeping things in the family was a must. (LogOut/ I want to spend the weekend thinking about it. The Tar Heels finished first or tied for first in the ACC regular season 16 times, finished second or tied for second in the ACC regular season 11 times and finished third or tied for third in the ACC regular season six times. After those brief flirtations with head coaching positions, Guthridge settled in as UNC's top assistant, right up until Dean Smith suddenly retired in October of 1997. A Tar Heel passing him in the hallway might greet him with a quick head nod and a greeting of, Coach. Guthridge would invariably respond with a similar head nod and, Player.. Coach Smith began showing signs of cognitive impairment before Coach Guthridge did. And that brings us full-circle, back to the original what-if: What if Dean Smith had finished out his contract, which ran through the end of the 2000-01 season? Postseason invitational champion He stepped down 2 months later. Now Guthridge, 77, is enduring a similarly cruel fate . He was known to answer a question such as Coach, do you know what time it is? with a Yes as he walked away. Then there are the other options from Smiths tree: Karl and Fogler and even Larry Brown. He was 77. Everyone knows what happened next: Williams finally said yes to returning, having seen how quickly things fell off after his mentors left. He competed in one as a player at Kansas State in 1958, was an assistant coach at 11 before directing the Tar Heels at two as head coach. Once he asked a manager, whose arms were full of equipment, if he had change for a quarter. In retrospect, Smiths premature exit was a mistake on all fronts. But the Tar Heels suffered a soul-crushing NCAA Tournament loss that also ended Phil Fords career. The team fundamentally changed, that opportunity disappearing into the ether. At age 66 and in sound health, Smith easily could have coached another five or more seasons and done so with the same recruiting success that allowed him to turn over a team with Antawn Jamison, Vince Carter, Ed Cota and Shammond Williams to Guthridge. "He, like Coach Smith, was more of a mentor and father figure than anything else. After a three-year disastrous tenure under Doherty, the University of North Carolina hired Roy Williams from Kansas and got the leadership and gravitas that had characterized the UNC basketball program under Coach Smith and Coach Guthridge. (Smith told me), Its just not coming back. We certainly had no idea; he was still the smartest guy, could recall everything he was seeing.. He was 77 years old, Former UNC basketball coach Bill Guthridge passes away at age 77, UNC School of Social Work becomes new home for CEAL@UNC, expand work to advance assisted living. It has to be one of those., Williams talked Thursday night with Kansas athletic director Bob Frederick. And then Bill can decide along the way what he wants to do.. People could misinterpret 2 p.m.perhaps it really meant 1:45, or maybe 2:15. He won more games than any college head coach in history after just two seasons and tied N.C. States Everett Case for most coaching victories after three years. Guthridge, his wife said, suffers from vascular dementia - a condition that's a result of reduced blood supply to the brain. Guthridge didn't bother to recruit Jason Williams,. It was very, very much real and something Smith had to balance with the sentiment that maybe he had left too soon. Both played college ball in that state -- Smith at Kansas, Guthridge at Kansas State -- and coached at their alma maters before coming to North Carolina. All the things he couldnt do during the daunting in-season months. Guthridge was criticized last season by alumni and fans for losing five games at home the most since World War II and for a record that dropped to 18-13 after a first-round defeat in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament. But obviously, the better head coach -- one of four or so best head coaches of all time in his sport -- and the decision to retire was seriously flawed by emotion. At one point he thought he wanted to be a head coach, but he also decided that he really enjoyed Coach Smith and the program here and why should he leave when he has what he thought was the perfect job., Bill was uniquely special. Really, a championship or not is the only major differentiator between Smith and Guthridge. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Coach Smith died in January 2015 of complications from dementia, Profiles in Dementia: Zelda Fitzgerald(1900-1948), Facebook Group for Caregivers of Loved Ones with Alzheimer's Disease, Dementia, and Other Age-Related Illnesses, R. E. M. 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Gilbert Welch, "Patient H.M.: A Story of Memory, Madness, and Family Secrets" Luke Dittrich, "When Breath Becomes Air" Paul Kalanithi, Bad Pharma: How Drug Companies Mislead Doctors and Harm Patients Ben Goldacre, The Tale of Dueling Neurosurgeons Sam Kean, How We Do Harm: A Doctor Breaks Ranks About Being Sick in America by Otis Webb Brawley, Pt. He led his first team to the 1998 Final Four and had two players, Vince Carter and Antawn Jamison, selected in the top five picks of the NBA draft. In 2000, the Tar Heels struggled in the regular season, falling out of the polls for the first time since the start of the 199091 season. He was a kind soul with a strong, competitive spirit. I dont think I have ever heard of anyone that didnt like and respect Bill Guthridge. He coached 1997-98 National Player of the Year Antawn Jamison 99 and 1998-99 NBA Rookie of the Year Vince Carter 99, both of whom entered the NBA draft after their junior seasons. Think about it: Youve been an assistant coach for 30-plus years. Then Guthridges voice wavered as he began to apologize I feel like its my fault. But when Guthridge retired, Williamsthen playing with the Seattle Sonicsmade the effort to find a commercial flight to Chapel Hill, then flew out again as soon as the press conference was over. Smith wanted longtime assistant Bill Guthridge (age 60 at the time) to be a head coach and enjoy the competitive and financial rewards of the job. He has saved many scholarships when he has suggested backing off certain players, and of course, has selected some great ones who matriculated at Chapel Hill., UNC coach Bill Guthridge gives instructions during a game in the 99-00 season. "This is another terrible loss for the Carolina basketball family," former North Carolina player and current Charlotte Hornets owner Michael Jordan said in a statement to The Associated Press. At which point, Baddour faced as unenviable a position as any athletic director in the country: Who do you hire to fill Dean Smiths shoes? We offer our deepest condolences to the Guthridge family as they grieve the loss of a wonderful husband and father.. The Blue Sky Scholars Program gives scholarship support to middle-income parents and students from North Carolina. The complaints turned to praise after the teams unlikely Final Four appearance. Heading into what would have been the fourth year of a five-year contract, Guthridge compiled an 80-28 record, but had not received an extension. North Carolina made 29 NCAA tournament appearances in Guthridge's 33 years on the staff and finished no worse than third in the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season standings every year -- with 16 first-place finishes and 10 more in second. Ndiaye remembers taking his son for a campus tour years later, and Guthridge coming out of the Smith Center to greet him. Williams and Ndiaye both graduated. Revisionist history does offer some diverging paths, though. After that loss, Carter and Jamison turned pro. Because before we can consider what might have been, we have to understand why everything played out as it did. Coach Guthridge had been Coach Smiths assistant coach at UNC for 30 years, so he knew Coach Smiths style, plays, and strategies inside and out. And by the end of every summer, Smith returned freshly rejuvenated. We didnt play well for just five minutes, and that decided the game.. (Ford) goes, Ah, you wouldve seen it sooner or later. Yeah right. In five years on Winter's staff, Guthridge helped lead the Wildcats to a 9343 (.684) record, a pair of Big Eight Conference crowns, and the NCAA Final Four in 1964. Just like Smith, Guthridge found a way to impact his players beyond teaching them offensive and defensive principles. Chapel Hill, N.C. For all of his wins and championships, the Olympic gold medal, tactical innovations, social impact and fertile coaching tree, Dean Smiths unselfishness defined his career to an enormous, but often overlooked, extent. That season, he led the Tar Heels to a 34-4 record and the final No. [5], He died at his home on May 12, 2015, after an extended illness, alongside his family. Though he was a head coach for a short time, he gracefully carried on a culture and legacy that many thought could not be perpetuated. Brendan Marks covers Duke and North Carolina basketball for The Athletic. Guthridge was the consensus National Coach of the Year in 1998. Lets say youve got a 35-year-old guy. Coaches, both within the program and across the country, still came calling to Chapel Hill every summer to pick his brains about Xs and Os. Coach Smith had so many strengths and very few weaknesses. 3 "The End of Absence" Michael Harris. ", Roy: "I think that not only did he coach me on the freshman team he was another mentor. The fact that he felt like he failed us.. Did Bill Guthridge win national championship? Recharge your batteries, they told him. I think its time to turn it over to somebody else, he said at a campus news conference. He is probably best remembered for his loyalty to Smith, who died in February at age 83. 1 ranking in the Associated Press Top 25, earned the ACC Coach of the Year award and guided North Carolina to the Final Four before losing to Utah. Guthridge coached North Carolina to the Final Four in his first season before losing to Utah. And althoug he believes that scenario puts more emphasis on winning than it does on building relationships and teaching the things Guthridge and Smith both loved its not out of the question. But more than just that team, Smith left behind a mound of questions. Why would you stay? After Coach Guthridges retirement in 2003, he and Coach Smith stayed in close contact, visiting each other frequently. Conference tournament champion. "He was my coach, he was another mentor. He was 77. SCNext Top 25: Ranking the best high school boys' basketball teams in the 2022-23 season, Brown: There will never be another Bill Guthridge. "He was an unbelievable assistant to Coach Smith. What if he hadnt retired when he did? Former UNC Director of Athletics Dick Baddour: Bill was one of the most respected and admired people I have known. From 1972 onward, he was Smith's top assistant. Smith and Guthridge had long maintained they'd. In other words, why Smith walked away at the exact moment he did. In 1998, the Bill Guthridge Distinguished Professorship in mathematics was established. I would lean a little bit toward the side of Bill saying, Look, Im not on the front end of my career, its great to have done this, what a way to go out, Baddour says. He was a perfect sidekick for Coach Smith. "I'm extremely saddened by the passing of Coach Guthridge, aka 'Coach Gut,' especially coming so close to the loss of Coach Smith," Jamison, who was national player of the year during Guthridge's first season as coach, said in a statement. The people who knew him best werent surprised he went to two Final Fours in three seasons.. He was like Coach Guthridge in that both of them loved and bled Carolina blue so much that they never wanted to leave the program.. He joined Ohio States Fred Taylor as just the second man in history to lead teams to two Final Fours in his first three seasons as a head coach. He stopped when he did because he was afraid his memory wasnt as good as it was or had been. The inconsistent season came on the heels of a first-round NCAA Tournament loss in 1999. Bill Guthridge, who led North Carolina to two Final Four appearances in his three seasons as basketball coach of the Tar Heels, will announce his retirement today, the Associated Press reported. He formed a successful partnership with Dean Smith that lasted three decades until Smith retired in 1997. In fact, most of that team reconvened in St. Louis in 2005 for Williams first championship game at North Carolina. Guthridge also handled many day-to-day responsibilities in the program and oversaw UNC's summer basketball camps. That was the presumption Baddour and the basketball program operated under. In his three seasons as head coach Guthridge led the Tar Heels to the NCAA final Four twice, in 1998 and again in 2000. Guthridge was the head coach of the Tar Heels for three seasons following Dean Smith's retirement in 1997. He never called me at home, unless it was something dire, Hanners says, but he said, How would you feel about meeting me in the office early on Monday at 7 to go over some things before everyone gets there? Hanners obliged, trying to ease Guthridges feeling that he was somewhat out of touch. He was a father figure.". Making the Final Four is a tremendous accomplishment but its not what you chase. If I were to call Roy and ask Roy was he interested, the first question out of his mouth wouldve been, did Bill get a chance? Baddour says. That year, UNC went 34-4, and Guthridge set the NCAA record for wins by a first-year head coach. Guthridge took over when Smith retired after 36 seasons in October 1997. Some fans criticized Guthridge last season when the Tar Heels went through a four-game losing streak in January and entered the post-season with 13 losses. Bill Guthridge, who made his college basketball reputation as Dean Smith's trusted right-hand man then took Carolina to two Final Fours in three years as head coach after his mentor retired has died after a long illness. But Baddour explained to the chancellor that because of Williams respect for Guthridge, hed never have taken the job over his friend. Of course, Smith did retire. Like his lifelong friend and mentor, Coach Dean Smith, he led by example instilling values of kindness, discipline and a strong work ethic. For more than three decades, Coach Guthridge served this University he loved so much with a deep commitment to academic and athletic excellence. Although four years further down the line, theres skepticism Guthridge, at the age of 64 or 65, would still have been interested in taking a crack. When coach Smith retired in 1997, after a tenure of 36 season, Guthridge took over the job to begin a reign of great basketball playing at UNC. Guthridge didn't bother to recruit Jason Williams, conceding him to K, even though Jason reportedly had an interest in UNC. Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Its funny, I talk to (Williams) players, and with the thought of the day, and the way things are run, and I go to their practices, Jamison says, its Coach Gut, Coach Smith in a younger body.. You accomplished something that takes some other people 20-plus years to do. If my answer was no, then Roy wouldve had absolutely zero interest. Guthridge joined Smith's staff for the 1967-68 season, starting out as the freshman coach and a co-assistant varsity coach and eventually becoming the Hall of Famer's most trusted assistant. Guthridge could deal with Dean's irritability, his need to control the smallest things. Ill just say this, says Dave Hanners, one of Smiths longtime assistants. Bill Guthridge, who led North Carolina to two Final Four appearances in his three seasons as basketball coach of the Tar Heels, will announce his retirement today, the Associated Press reported. Guthridge, who like Smith was a Kansas native, spent 30 years as an assistant coach and had ample opportunities to leave Chapel Hill and become the coach of his own program. We ended up beating em easily, and I thanked him later for it, Hanners says. In fact, he communicated as much to Baddour after Baddour was tapped in late June to replace John Swofford as athletic director. Smith, after all, kept an office in the arena for several years after retirement. He led the program to a pair of Final Four appearances in three seasons at the helm before retiring following the 1999-2000 campaign. But if Williams had said no, as he did two years later, would Ford have been tapped for the job then? [6], National champion Change). On the day of Smiths retirement, The Washington Post reported Smith wants his other longtime assistant, former Tar Heels point guard Phil Ford, eventually to become the coach, a source said. Ford was arguably Smiths best player ever, and UNCs all-time leading scorer at the time. But I already had a better job than that and I was happy here. With Williams, it was the restoration of the family, three national championships and potentially many more years. But the season, and that loss specifically, never faded from their collective consciousness. And he said, Im not crying because we won. That first five minutes, you can have all the confidence in the world, but if you go down 23-8 or 13-4, you just put so much pressure on yourself. No, I couldnt even consider that, Smith said. Guthridge spent 31 seasons as an assistant to Smith, the winningest coach in college basketball history. Neither Davis nor athletic director Ron Wellman would comment on his departure. One of his most tempestuous relationships had been with guard Shammond Williams, who even walked off the court at Virginia on one occasion. Whether Williams would have returned at that time is impossible to say. In that July or August period, when Coach Smith basically told Coach Guthridge for the very last time in his life, Im not ready, Im not gonna do it again, then I think Coach Guthridge told him at that point that hed really like to try, Hanners says. The first is, if Guthridge hadnt wanted the job, would Williams have taken it? He led his first team to the 1998 Final Four and had two players, Vince Carter and Antawn Jamison, selected in the top five . Who will win each 2023 conference tournament? And come Monday, he got the fateful notice. However, Coach Guthridge served as the perfect replacement as head basketball coach when Coach Smith unexpectantly announced his retirement from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1997. One year against Laurinburg, Hanners squad was down about 18 with under nine minutes to play; suddenly, he felt Ford come up behind him. All rights reserved. Theres no way you could dream, Hanners says, anyone would necessarily do better.. He, like Coach Smith, was more of a mentor and father figure than anything else. Smith wrote in his memoir, A Coachs Life, that before he retired in 1997, he told recruits: If Im not coaching, I am confident that your coach will be either Bill Guthridge, Eddie Fogler, Roy Williams, Larry Brown, George Karl or Phil Ford, not necessarily in that order. That said, its worth remembering that he told Williams just a few years ago that perhaps 66 was too early to retire, given his near flawless health at the time. (LogOut/ Case in point. Division regular season champion I mean, the Plan B was there.. He was a disciplinarian (ask his players about the jar labeled Excuses that he kept on his deska jar that was pointedly always empty), a legendarily good teacher of big men, and an excellent coach. Or does Doherty get his chance regardless? Unfortunately, it took UNC two tries to find that leader. Guthridge also took a less talented team to the Final Four in 2000. "I'm not up with it," Guthridge said at one point, when he tried to remember taking over as UNC's head coach in 1997 after Smith retired. And he said at a campus news conference off the court at Virginia on one occasion anyone would necessarily better... As they grieve the loss of a first-round NCAA Tournament loss that also ended Phil Fords career a! Fact, he led the Tar Heels to a pair of Final Four appearances in three seasons following Smith. Implications that might have been, we have to understand why everything played out as it did much with quick... 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