Guthridge said a few weeks ago he planned to stay another five or six years despite intense criticism from fans and alumni after the teams worst regular-season record in decades. That possibility isnt one Baddour had previously considered. The next season, North Carolina earned a #3 seed in the West regional of the NCAA tournament, but was upset in the first round by Weber State in a late game in Seattle. Guthridge could deal with Dean's irritability, his need to control the smallest things. All the things he couldnt do during the daunting in-season months. He got his taste. The spring of 1997, it seemed, was no different. The University of North Carolina has lost a dear friend, as haveI, andIknow that we will all miss him greatly., Im extremely saddened by the passing of Coach Guthridge, aka Coach Gut, especially coming so close to the loss of Coach Smith. Subscribe to The Athletic for in-depth coverage of your favorite players, teams, leagues and clubs. That was quelled, but the chancellor had another thought: To the chancellor and many fans Williams was the obvious choice to succeed Smith. Guthridge didnt need the change, just wanted to know if he had it. After Coach Guthridge's retirement in 2003, he and Coach Smith stayed in close contact, visiting each other frequently. But theres also the fact that Dean did it his way, which was entirely predictable. Guthridge took over when Smith retired after 36 seasons in October 1997. Bill Guthridge was a gentleman coach, but a fierce competitor, and an incredibly loyal member of Dean Smiths staff for three decades, said UNC Director of Athletics Bubba Cunningham. That stemmed not from the coaching aspect of his job, but from everything else. He always knew what he was doing.. Everyone knows what happened next: Williams finally said yes to returning, having seen how quickly things fell off after his mentors left. Ill just say this, says Dave Hanners, one of Smiths longtime assistants. "Because I knew Coach Guthridge had the best interest for you and wanted to see you succeed.". It wasnt until Oct. 3, 1997 a Friday about a week before the first practice of the season that Baddour got an indication that Smith wouldnt return. Or does Doherty get his chance regardless? A tremendously loyal person with an ego that was seemingly non-existent. I really liked the attitude of the team, the way they worked hard and how they were rewarded finally. He was even more important to me. Buffalo Brothers - 1/2 Price Appetizers 4:30pm-6:00pm Monday - Friday, Holliday: State and Carolina headed in different directions for the final two weeks, Brownlow: Angst will be at an all-time high as NC State hosts hated rival UNC, Holliday: Miami puts the Heels back on the bubble, Brownlow: NC State, Duke and UNC all seek to avoid two losses in a row as crunch time hits, Holliday: Pivotal road trips for NC State and Duke, Brownlow: Saturday's matchup marks the beginning of a new Carolina-Duke era, Holliday: Could this be Keatts' best ACC season? He set NCAA records for most wins by a first-year head coach with 34, and for wins in his first two years with 58. 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? And with Guthridge having gotten his shot, there would have been no issues of whose turn it was. When Coach Smith announced he was retiring and that Coach Guthridge was taking over, then it all clicked into place for me, Hanners says. North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball head coaches, North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball 198182 NCAA champions, North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball 199293 NCAA champions, Atlantic Coast Conference men's basketball Coach of the Year, Learn how and when to remove this template message, List of NCAA Division I Men's Final Four appearances by coach, http://static.espn.go.com/ncb/news/2000/0630/612432.html, http://www.heraldsun.com/sports/colleges/x383678526/Guthridge-again-reluctantly-takes-spotlight, "Former UNC Chapel Hill Coach Bill Guthridge Has Died", "Former UNC coach, assistant Bill Guthridge dies at 77", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bill_Guthridge&oldid=1115268631, College men's basketball head coaches in the United States, Kansas State Wildcats men's basketball coaches, Kansas State Wildcats men's basketball players, North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball coaches, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faculty, Articles with dead external links from February 2018, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles needing cleanup from September 2022, Articles with bare URLs for citations from September 2022, All articles with bare URLs for citations, Articles covered by WikiProject Wikify from September 2022, All articles covered by WikiProject Wikify, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 10 October 2022, at 16:39. Smith, who attended Guthridges retirement announcement, called the day a celebration of a fantastic career. 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. He held tight. He handed out handwritten notes instead. As he would prepare for a basketball practice or game, he was equally intense about attention to detail in scheduling or whatever.. 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. Or perhaps someone else from Smiths coaching tree, such as George Karl or Eddie Fogler? He was a perfect sidekick for Coach Smith. Once he asked a manager, whose arms were full of equipment, if he had change for a quarter. In his 33 seasons at Carolina, the Tar Heels won two NCAA championships, in 1982 and 1993; played in 12 Final Fours; won the ACC Tournament championship 13 times; and played in the ACC Tournament championship game a total of 22 times. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Hed grown up in North Carolina, graduated from the university, won a championship as an assistant under Smith and had built a successful program as the coach at Kansas. In 1976, he also served as an assistant coach to Smith as the United States won the gold medal in men's basketball at the Summer Olympics in Montreal. Guthridge was an assistant coach along with Hall of Famer John Thompson under Smith in 1976 when the U.S. won the Olympic gold medal in Montreal. Guthridge was Smiths assistant for 30 years. But the Tar Heels suffered a soul-crushing NCAA Tournament loss that also ended Phil Fords career. The manager put down his stuff and rifled through his pockets. The 1971-72 Tar Heels had finished 26-5 but were upset by Florida State (not an ACC member at the time) in the NCAA Final Four semifinals. And by the end of every summer, Smith returned freshly rejuvenated. Penn State was a good situation, he said in an interview in 2010. He directed UNC to the 1998 Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament championship and was named the ACC Coach of the Year. Its not what gets remembered for the rest of your life, at least not at a place like North Carolina. 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. Baddour says he never got that far down the line because of Guthridges interest. 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 was a lifetime assistant coach for whom Dean did a solid. He was 77. Because that was supposed to be something that we accomplished together.. But he was also one of the most passionate members of the Carolina basketball family in the last 50 years, and was completely devoted to the Tar Heels, to Smith, and to the University of North Carolina. Later during that conversation, I suggested to Smith that he still had a lot of quality coaching mileage left and that maybe he should consider returning for an encore. When Roy Williams declined the opportunity to be Carolinas head coach in 2000, he had to mend more hurt feelings with Guthridge than with Smith. It was more a series of passing conversations, regular updates about the coachs state of mind. That's exactly what they did. In 1998, Guthridge inherited a team that had been to the 1997 Final Four the previous year under Smith. Elizabeth A. Davis, Associated Press Writer, Call 1 (785) 843-1000 to contact any staff member. Division regular season champion You accomplished something that takes some other people 20-plus years to do. 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. Then Guthridges voice wavered as he began to apologize I feel like its my fault. Revisionist history does offer some diverging paths, though. He wouldve been gone. Im like, Coach, we won it, congrats! Jamison remembers. After waiting an uncharacteristically long time to respond, he smiled and thanked me. 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. But more than just that team, Smith left behind a mound of questions. 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. The Tar Heels then went 24-10 in 1998-99 but were upset by Weber State in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Together, they taught us basketball is secondary. Other opportunities had arisen over time, and yet Guthridge always remained as Smiths assistant. I dont think I have ever heard of anyone that didnt like and respect Bill Guthridge. But in hindsight, Hanners says there were clues that everything might not have been like normal. We didnt play well for just five minutes, and that decided the game.. North Carolina athletic director Dick Baddour has refused to comment directly on Guthridge's contract, saying the school's board of trustees discourages him from talking publicly about such personnel issues. Baddour was scheduled to travel with the football program that day for a game at TCU, but before leaving he spoke to Smith on the phone. He was an unbelievable assistant to Coach Smith. He would, however, have just lost his three best players at Kansas in Paul Pierce, Raef LaFrentz and Billy Thomas. We offer our deepest condolences to the Guthridge family as they grieve the loss of a wonderful husband and father.. He was a friend. "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.". Only in Chapel Hill would a two-time Final Four coach, an Atlantic Coast Conference champion, and a consensus National Coach of the Year award winner be best known as an assistant. "He was my coach, he was another mentor. The Kansas native took over the role of head coach following Smith's departure. 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. Carolina Jump Rope is making their fellow Tar Heel rethink what it means to jump rope. Guthridge spent 31 seasons as an assistant to Smith, the winningest coach in college basketball history. While a student at Kansas State, Guthridge played guard under head coach Fred "Tex" Winter, and helped the team advance to the 1958 Final Four. Were the best North Carolina team that never won a championship. That team reached the Final Four and almost reached the title game even though Jamison and Williams missed 22 field-goal attempts in a 65-59 semifinal loss to Utah. . Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun announced his retirement Thursday. We offer our deepest sympathies to Bills family, friends and the entire North Carolina basketball community.. College Basketball Coach. 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.. Why bring those up? 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. At that point, Baddour turned to Matt Doherty, who had been the coach at Notre Dame for just one season. He said to me, I have felt this way before, but in the early fall, Ive always gotten the energy back, and I expect that thats gonna happen, but I do want to alert you to the possibility that it might not. Whether or not deep down inside he thought that energy wouldnt come back, I dont know the answer to that. Did Bill Guthridge win national championship? But I already had a better job than that and I was happy here. 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. Showdown in Durham: NC State and Duke battle for ACC, NCAA seeding, Brownlow: NC State, Duke and Carolina all look to avenge ACC losses on busy basketball Saturday, Welter: I'm not mad, Carolina, just disappointed, AP source: Panthers to meet with QB Derek Carr at combine. Certainly, what a marvelous run of three years.. Of Smiths longtime assistants players, teams, leagues and clubs got that down. Eddie Fogler Carolina basketball community.. college basketball Coach or not deep down he! 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