Sam Smith

I had my doubts about Coach K and USA Basketball and the NBA's attempted resurrection of its international basketball reputation.

After all, what if Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski asked his players to spell "Krzyzewski?" LeBron James, Dwight Howard and Amare Stoudemire, the latter since having gone home to study, didn't go to college. Carmelo Anthony and Chris Bosh just made cameo appearances. This all could prove very embarrassing.

But after watching the team and spending a week with it in Las Vegas, I'm convinced Krzyzewski is a terrific choice.

I probably would have gone with San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich. He served his apprenticeship well. Not because the U.S. team won a bronze medal in the 2004 Olympics when he was an assistant. But can you imagine how many balconies he had to check every night to make sure Larry Brown wasn't going to jump off one?

The Spurs have been the best in the NBA at scouting international talent; Popovich worked in the military overseas after graduating from the Air Force Academy; and when I was in Vegas I saw a show headlined by a Gregg Popovich who did some phenomenal juggling and trained house cats. I'm not certain, but they could have been the same man. Anyway, the NBA Gregg Popovich is also a heck of a coach and well respected.

But I'll defer to Team USA managing director Jerry Colangelo, who opted for Krzyzewski. Both are from Chicago, though I don't think that's the complete reason since Colangelo didn't select Isiah Thomas.

The conventional wisdom is that college-trained and experienced coaches do not have success in the NBA. This doesn't come directly from Rick Pitino, Tim Floyd, Lon Kruger and John Calipari, but you could ask them.

The notion is they don't have the clout, can't deal with the egos and keep asking where the student union is.

So, I wasn't quite sure whether Colangelo was making the right choice. And this was a big one. Third in 2004. Sixth in 2002. Heck, we were becoming Angola.

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But I think Krzyzewski has taken just the right approach and he can, in large part, because he is not beholden to the NBA.

One thing about NBA coaches is that many become awfully inflexible. It was the downfall of the teams with George Karl in 2002, though that one was out of control with Paul Pierce and Baron Davis leading an almost daily mutiny on the court, and then Brown in 2004.

Both are good coaches and Brown has been considered terrific. But they do things their way. They have systems of play and insisted on forcing the players into theirs. And why not? They've had success almost everywhere they've been. But in such a short period of time to prepare, it's difficult.

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So I like what Krzyzewski did and said. He's going to play defense because everyone can. I know, every coach says that. But he has the biggest advantage the NBA coaches didn't have: He's not going to face these guys for the next seven months.

Say Brown is coaching and he decides to sit James and James feels embarrassed. Oh, that's right. Brown did and James was. James takes it out on Brown's team, and, at least, it becomes a media issue.

No such problem for Krzyzewski.

He gets to go back to Durham and yell at 18-year-olds and threaten to withhold their scholarships. I don't know if he really does that, but Krzyzewski doesn't have to deal with the aftermath of the tournament all year.

So he can ask everyone to play hard and defend. He has depth, so he can rotate a dozen players in and out. You don't defend, you sit. What's Krzyzewski got to lose? These players, which would have benefited any new coach, asked to be on the team. They're not a marketing ploy like much of the 2004 team was when James, Anthony and Stoudemire were babies, but good for selling t-shirts and sneakers.

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This team has serious flaws. It's small, so rebounding will be a problem, as it already was against Brazil Tuesday. They don't have classic perimeter shooters, and if they lose no one will blame Michael Redd, but, geez, Michael, you couldn't hold off the wedding a month for this?

To win, they'll have to work, and they seem to have a sense of pride. So Krzyzewski didn't show up with some brilliant offensive game plan. The team has Suns coach Mike D'Antoni, the Paul Westhead of the 2000's, and they're shooting. That NBA players are ready to do. They run the ball up court and take the first best shot. Krzyzewski also hasn't been the know-it-all, deferring to D'antoni on offense, Nate McMillan on defense and Jim Boeheim for video advice for Carmelo Anthony. Actually, it's a different Anthony than in 2004 and he's been a deserving team member.

It's a little more complex than all that, though you don't need a ph.d to coach basketball.

Yes, Dr. Naismith.

I've heard from great coaches that one man scores, but five can defend.

It's the theory and strategy Krzyzewski has taken with him. And this team will have to in order to succeed. No, you can't do it over an NBA season. And sometimes not even in one of these tournaments. But Krzyzewski does understand the best basketball is played unselfishly at a high speed with a common goal. He doesn't have much time with these players, so he's not making it too confusing.

He's emphasizing equal parts sweat and pride. I believe it will work. And he's the right guy to put the pieces together.

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