As a coach, he was stubbornly competitive. "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. Spend time with family. Lets play out the most interesting of the hypotheticals: if Dean Smith does return for the 1997-1998 season, with an absolutely jam-packed roster. Although his individual achievements showcased his ability as a head coach, Guthridge always seemed content working with Smith to develop a top program at North Carolina. "Mak said he gets this call from his mom: 'Mak, there's this man here in Africa, says he's your coach,' ". And then Bill can decide along the way what he wants to do.. Guthridge, who like Smith was a. Following his stint at Kansas State, Guthridge moved to North Carolina to join the staff of fellow Kansas native Dean Smith. The inconsistent season came on the heels of a first-round NCAA Tournament loss in 1999. But Guthridge, who died Tuesday at 77 of heart failure, was not just one of the best college basketball coaches of all time, he was an unfailingly decent man who displayed a rare degree of. They made sure we knew it wasnt the most important thing in the world, but that we had been given a talent, and it was our job to use it., The Carolina community mourns the passing of Bill Guthridge, a great coach, devoted friend and loyal Tar Heel. The fact that he felt like he failed us.. Ill just say this, says Dave Hanners, one of Smiths longtime assistants. 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. People could misinterpret 2 p.m.perhaps it really meant 1:45, or maybe 2:15. Fast-forward to present day, and he has surpassed Smith in both national championships and wins. Here's how the Wolfpack get to 12 wins, Holland Miller puts in extra effort helping younger student athletes at Wilson Christian Academy, Extra hours in the gym and on the road earn Mikayla Taborn the Extra Effort Award, Extra Effort: Bunn's unassuming, tenacious three-sport star Carlee Tart, Krister Sjoblad sets the pace and honors father at Athens Drive, Extra Effort: Jordyn Brown overcomes heart surgery to cap off illustrious SJHS volleyball career, Jimmyll Williams helps Hillside to undefeated regular season, dreams of studying biotech, South Johnston's Lance Parker puts Extra Effort into giving back, Beddingfield twins Nate and Drew O'Neal win the Tom Suiter Extra Effort Award, Extra Effort: Addison Rowan's comeback from cancer, Rocky Mount Academy's Wells Hutson makes extra effort to mentor special needs students, Photos: Duke takes down No. That was quelled, but the chancellor had another thought: To the chancellor and many fans Williams was the obvious choice to succeed Smith. 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. As early as April and May, Bill Guthridge Smiths primary assistant for some 30 years reached out to Hanners about doing extra study of the teams offensive and defensive sets. The ones he did have Coach Guthridge tried to fill. 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. And as the confetti fell on UNCs first title A.D. After Dean Guthridge burst into tears alongside his former players. 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. Its often forgotten that he helped engineer the 2000 Final Four run by keeping his team in Charlotte overnight after a disappointing quarterfinal ACC Tournament loss, and pushing them hard in practice on Saturday. 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 led his first team to the 1998 Final Four and had two players, Vince Carter and Antawn Jamison, selected in the top five . What burned just below that was a fierce competitor who might sometimes react more like a fan than you would expect. Having grown up in North Carolina and gone to school here and worked here, I think it was probably just destiny.. Coach Guthridge played an instrumental role in the programs success as an assistant under Dean Smith for three decades before making his own name as a head coach in leading North Carolina to a pair of Final Four appearances in three seasons. Hed have retired with a championship trophy, and then let someone else step right in, Ndiaye says. But in hindsight, Hanners says there were clues that everything might not have been like normal. Jordan is among many Tar Heels who had tremendous respect for Guthridge. After Smith retired in October 1997, then-athletic director Dick Baddour elevated Guthridge to the top job. Or does Doherty get his chance regardless? His legacy and contributions to my life and to our University will live on and hell be much more remembered for his sense of humor and class just as much as his coaching., It has been a trying time for the University of North Carolina basketball program over the past four months and our thoughts and prayers are with them again today after the passing of Bill Guthridge. I wouldve gone to Roy.. One of his most tempestuous relationships had been with guard Shammond Williams, who even walked off the court at Virginia on one occasion. So was Williams always fated to end up back at North Carolina? Its not fair, but thats just the way it is for assistant coaches, Smith said. When Bill Guthridge retired as North Carolina's basketball coach in the summer of 2000, it set off a chain reaction that touched the lives of dozens of people in his profession. We didnt play well for just five minutes, and that decided the game.. A longtime assistant to the legendary Dean Smith, he shall be remembered for his three seasons as head coach of the University of North Carolina Tar Heels. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. But I already had a better job than that and I was happy here. In other words, why Smith walked away at the exact moment he did. As he would prepare for a basketball practice or game, he was equally intense about attention to detail in scheduling or whatever.. Heck, he might still be the coach at North Carolina. Following Smith's retirement in 1997, Guthridge was head coach of the Tar Heels for three seasons. I would have been as vigorous and go after that as hard as I could possibly go.. Prior to that, Guthridge served as Smith's assistant coach for 30 years. You accomplished something that takes some other people 20-plus years to do. He would, however, have just lost his three best players at Kansas in Paul Pierce, Raef LaFrentz and Billy Thomas. Theres no way you could dream, Hanners says, anyone would necessarily do better.. In his three seasons as head coach Guthridge led the Tar Heels to the NCAA final Four twice, in 1998 and again in 2000. He is one of five people to have appeared in the Final Four as both a player and coach. Note: Former University of North Carolina mens basketball coach Bill Guthridge passed away May 12. Guthridge coached that team to the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament championship, a school record-tying 34 wins (including 30 wins going into the NCAA Tournament the most in school history at the time) and an appearance in the Final Four, where they lost to Utah. Coach Smith began showing signs of cognitive impairment before Coach Guthridge did. Guthridge initially gained recognition after serving for thirty years as Dean Smith's assistant at the University of North Carolina and summing many wins as a result. Once, in 1978, he did nearly take the head coaching job at Penn State but he changed his mind at the airport and never thought about leaving Chapel Hill again. Sad news. 2023 Capitol Broadcasting Company, Inc. 08/08: Dean Smith to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom, 06/29/2011: Smith, Coach K, Yow honored by Naismith, 10/21/2008: UNC's Smith to receive Lapchick Character Award, 02/18/2008: ACC To Honor Dean Smith, Lorenzo Charles, other Greats, Bio Jobs Hub: Find a great-paying job that changes lives, even yours. Dean Smith unexpectedly retired as head basketball coach at North Carolina just two months before the start of the 1997-98 season, and Guthridge was immediately named his successor. Student-run Chapel Thrill Escapes brings its newest escape room to life Rameses in Wonderland continuing to provide an outlet for student creativity, entrepreneurship and collaboration on Carolina's campus. Guthridge was the head coach of the Tar Heels for three seasons following Dean Smith's retirement in 1997. He previously worked at The Charlotte Observer as a Carolina Panthers beat reporter, and his writing has also appeared in Sports Illustrated, The Boston Globe and The Baltimore Sun. Division regular season and conference tournament champion And so even as the coachs hair changed from dark brown to gray to white, his position never did. He had recently been in an assisted living facility in Chapel Hill. Hed grow bored of golf, and once that happened, his staff knew hed summoned up the energy for another go-around. "Coach Guthridge was instrumental in recruiting me to UNC and I have so many great memories of him and the lessons he taught me. 3 "The End of Absence" Michael Harris. The only people who came to know about that line of succession, so to speak, were Baddour, Smith, Guthridge and then-chancellor Michael Hooker, who expressed some concerns about Guthridges age early on. Smith and Guthridge had long maintained they'd. The school scheduled a news conference for 2:30 p.m. today. The closest he came to leaving Chapel Hill was 1978, when he verbally accepted the head coaching job at Penn State. In fact, he communicated as much to Baddour after Baddour was tapped in late June to replace John Swofford as athletic director. Why would you stay? Thank you Coach Gut for the many lessons you taught us at UNC. Information from The Associated Press contributed to this report. His calm demeanorhe could sometimes be found sitting in the stands an hour before road games eating popcorn or a hot dogmasked a passionate love for the Tar Heels. For 30 of his 33 years at Carolina, Guthridge was the behind-the-scenes guy scouting opponents, making sure players got to class on time, disciplining players, getting the players on the bus or airplane and into the hotel, working with office staff on the smallest of details, and recruiting the latter, unlike many coaches, he said he enjoyed immensely. Guthridge was the longtime assistant to UNC coach Dean Smith, who died earlier this year. Whatve you got to prove then?. He was known to answer a question such as Coach, do you know what time it is? with a Yes as he walked away. As an assistant, Guthridge was renowned for his success in coaching the fundamentals of pivot play to a long series of successful UNC big men, and as the Tar Heels' primary shooting coach. Unfortunately, it took UNC two tries to find that leader. He wasnt going to entertain a room full of boosters with behind the scenes stories. I dont think I have ever heard of anyone that didnt like and respect Bill Guthridge. I mean, the Plan B was there.. Hanners, one of Fords close friends to this day, recalls the natural coaching instincts Ford had when the two oversaw the JV team. That startling decision equated to the ultimate professional sacrifice. Calhoun, elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005, is . 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. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. That team still went 34-4, losing to Utah in the Final Four. I will miss his kindness and wisdom. Former UNC coach, assistant Guthridge dies, Sizing up the player of the year winners in all 32 Division I men's conferences, Tide's Oats takes blame for Miller's 'TSA' intro, Davis within 25 points of tying Maravich's mark, New NCAA president readies for NIL, legal issues, Scheyer makes history as Duke sweeps at home, Tennessee win soured by knee injury to Zeigler, USC, OU, Seton Hall, Iowa in new hoops tourney, Houston, Alabama remain atop AP Top 25 poll. In Williams second season in Chapel Hill, he won his first national championship the one the 97 team witnessed. Were the best North Carolina team that never won a championship. The family told team spokesman Steve Kirschner that Guthridge died of heart failure and that the coach had lived with a heart condition the past seven years. Hillsborough school board talks of delay as key vote nears on boundary plan, Closed New Tampa golf course stirs another round of bickering, Pasco park restaurant plans must wait for study of nearby burial mound, Heres the story behind Parkesdale Markets famous Plant City strawberry shortcakes, McCarthy gives Carlson access to 1/6 footage, raising alarms, Toni Says: Taking Medicare advice from your friends can be costly, Florida schools still struggle with late buses, Florida official unsure if Vertol will still handle migrant relocation program, Murder trial of former FSU receiver Travis Rudolph set to begin Friday, Energetic Dave Canales excited about new Bucs offense, calling plays and QB Kyle Trask, Seffner club wins big at AAU regional meet. He saw his memory issues coming long before the world did. He was named National Coach of the Year in 1997-98 by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, the Atlanta Tipoff Club (Naismith Award), CBS/Chevrolet, the Columbus (Ohio) Touchdown Club and The Sporting News. Our condolences go out to his family and friends.. His loss is deeply felt by our university and the basketball world. The latest in the sports world, emailed daily. [6], National champion He is probably best remembered for his loyalty to Smith, who died in February at age 83. The perception of Smiths program might have been that it ran without emotion. When his Tar Heels defeated Tulsa to earn a Final Four berth, the postgame locker room was one of the most emotional in the modern era, due at least partially to the devotion his players had for Guthridge and their joy in relievingat least for a momentthe criticism hed taken during the season. 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