R.I.P Dean Smith
- Thread starter NYCRedmen
- Start date
RIP Dean. One of the classiest guys in any sport.
Great coach , great person. Rip coach Smith.
beast of the east
Active member
Severe dementia. He wasn't able to recognize any of his former players for at least a few years now.
RIP. a great one
RIP. a great one
Avon Barksdale
Member
As a young kid I was at the UNC/Arkansas sweet 16 game in 1993 at the Meadowlands. After the game I met Coach Smith and he signed my ticket (it was before everyone had a camera on them all the time). He was a nice man and one of the all time great coaches in college basketball.
As beast said, he suffered from dementia, so it is good that he and his family are no longer suffering.
UNC family loses Stuart Scott and now Dean Smith in a month. terrible.
As beast said, he suffered from dementia, so it is good that he and his family are no longer suffering.
UNC family loses Stuart Scott and now Dean Smith in a month. terrible.
jerseyshorejohnny
Well-known member
A great man.
He lived an admirable life both on and off the court.
An agent of social change, for the better.
R.I.P.
He lived an admirable life both on and off the court.
An agent of social change, for the better.
R.I.P.
beast of the east
Active member
Frank , not Al. Frank was a Xavier HS grad as well
One of the most endearing things about Dean Smith is that he wasn't above hurling profanities at
The Rat across the sideline when Duke battled UNC A measure of a great man is knowing when not to take any garbage from a rat
beast of the east
Active member
Smith led the Tar Heels to 13 Atlantic Coast Conference tournament championships, appearances in 11 Final Fours, five national title games, and NCAA championships in 1982 and 1993. North Carolina won at least 20 games in each of his final 27 seasons, and made 23 consecutive appearances in the NCAA tournament.
That, my friends, is a legendary program. At our best, we were merely very good. UNC under Dean Smith, with success of the highest level before and after, is a legendary program. Not every one can be the best, and merely competing to be the best you can be is often sufficient for success in life. We can only hope to be very good once again.
That, my friends, is a legendary program. At our best, we were merely very good. UNC under Dean Smith, with success of the highest level before and after, is a legendary program. Not every one can be the best, and merely competing to be the best you can be is often sufficient for success in life. We can only hope to be very good once again.
Class of 72
Active member
Ironically that legend began with St. John's Frank McGuire deciding to leave the parochial approach to college basketball and move to a much higher salaried State job at UNC. In an era when Jews were one step below Blacks in the south McGuire began an underground railroad of Jewish and Catholic players from New York. Frank continued that tradition at South Carolina usually beating Lou Carnesecca to the areas best recruits who did not realize what a shit hole Columbia was back then.
Dean Smith also was lucky a New York kid named Charles Scott decided to transfer to Laurinburg Prep in NC, effectively falling into Smith's lap 3 years after the 1964 civil rights act when UNC failed to recruit one single black athlete. The ability to recruit many great southern black basketball players gave Smith the resources he needed to become a legend. Prior to that, like McGuire, he was content to be employed by a racist institution supported by some of the most staunch segregationists of the time. In short, great basketball coaches have a history of being opportunists whose success is measured by the risks they were willing to take. Lavin has 20 years to approach Smith's success since he is a master opportunist.
