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. After Coach Guthridge's retirement in 2003, he and Coach Smith stayed in close contact, visiting each other frequently. He also was head golf coach for the Wildcats. But when Guthridge retired, Williamsthen playing with the Seattle Sonicsmade the effort to find a commercial flight to Chapel . If he had, then thats where the what-ifs really go wild. 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. Heck, he might still be the coach at North Carolina. In fact, most of that team reconvened in St. Louis in 2005 for Williams first championship game at North Carolina. The careers and lives of the two coaches from Kansas were solidly intertwined. But there was no questioning the depth of their relationship. Postseason invitational champion I dont think I have ever heard of anyone that didnt like and respect Bill Guthridge. That's exactly what they did. Baddour and Smith never had a lengthy sitdown to discuss the future. Following Smith's retirement in 1997, Guthridge was head coach of the Tar Heels for three seasons. Guthridge took over when Smith retired after 36 seasons in October 1997. Perhaps, at last, somewhere in his mind, Coach Guthridge finally made the decision it was time for him to retire from this physical life. 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. Guthridge also took a less talented team to the Final Four in 2000. But if Smith was selfless in his handling of McAdoo, it was nothing compared to Smiths shocking retirement on Oct. 9, 1997. 3 "The End of Absence" Michael Harris. Fords reputation was growing fast as a star recruiter, having single-handedly delivered Rasheed Wallace to UNC and playing a major role in Carters eventual commitment. In Williams second season in Chapel Hill, he won his first national championship the one the 97 team witnessed. (Robert Willett / Tribune News Service via Getty). 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. 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. Penn State was a good situation, he said in an interview in 2010. Guthridge, who like Smith was a. 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. In our prayers. The announcement came nearly two months after the 6-10 center led the Boston . Former UNC Director of Athletics Dick Baddour: Bill was one of the most respected and admired people I have known. He also was an assistant to Smith on the 1976 U.S. Olympic team that won the gold medal in Montreal. The protege was named Naismith College Coach of the Year in his first season as Smith's replacement. Guthridge was a player and then an assistant coach at Kansas State . 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? Guthridge coached North Carolina to the Final Four in his first season before losing to Utah. The possibilities were endless, but Baddour is certain of one thing: keeping things in the family was a must. 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. He got his taste. They shot just 39.1 percent from the floor and made only 3-of-23 attempts from 3. Williams famously turned him down, opting to remain at Kansas, where hed built a Carolina-esque family dynamic (at Smiths alma mater, to boot). He wasnt going to entertain a room full of boosters with behind the scenes stories. Following the 199798 season, several organizations named him National Coach of the Year and he received the Naismith College Coach of the Year award. At that point, Baddour turned to Matt Doherty, who had been the coach at Notre Dame for just one season. The spring of 1997, it seemed, was no different. 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. 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. When Coach Smith died, Coach Guthridge knew that his friend was gone, but he quickly moved back to their time together when they were younger and dementia had not knocked on their doors yet. 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. Guthridge took over when Smith retired after 36 seasons in October 1997. 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. (An aside: if Doherty stays, does Mike Brey, succeeded him and still remains in South Bend, get that job, or is he elsewhere too?). "When Coach Smith announced he was retiring and that Coach Guthridge was taking over, then it all clicked into place for me," Hanners says. 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. Hed have been a lifer, Hanners says. But theres another alternate history with extreme on-court implications that might have forced his hand. He took the team to the NCAA final Four twice and was named national coach of the year in 1998, before retiring in 2000.[1]. He led his first team to the 1998 Final Four and had two players, Vince Carter and Antawn Jamison, selected in the top five . He said that although he was impressed with the athletic department personnel and basketball program, withdrawing his name was "in the best interest of myself and my family.". The picture most Tar Heel fans will have of him is sitting slightly behind Dean Smith, perhaps leaning over to make a point to the head coach. 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. 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. And so those players, all of them, kick around the questions to this day. On Oct. 9, 1997, Smith called it quits. In other words, why Smith walked away at the exact moment he did. Not only did he coach me on the freshman team, he was my coach, another mentor, a friend, a father figure, a big brother for me just like he was for so many players. Before their first-round exit in 2021, this was the only time that the Tar Heels failed to win a game in the tournament since it expanded to 64 teams (and dropped first-round byes) in 1985. Guthridge didn't bother to recruit Jason Williams,. Bill was a great coach, but he never got enough credit during most of those years. Following his stint at Kansas State, Guthridge moved to North Carolina to join the staff of fellow Kansas native Dean Smith. Peterson -- who roomed with Jordan on those early 1980s teams -- said Guthridge kept the program going off the court, with the assistant making him run the school's golf course at 6 a.m. as punishment for once being late. But if Williams had said no, as he did two years later, would Ford have been tapped for the job then? In public, he was never going to be the center of attention. 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. And so even as the coachs hair changed from dark brown to gray to white, his position never did. The Tar Heels either won the ACC tournament or finished atop the league standings -- or did both -- in 23 of those seasons. 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. 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.. Guthridge took over when Smith retired after 36 seasons in October 1997. 1 team in America. We didnt play well for just five minutes, and that decided the game.. On one occasion, he actually accepted the head coaching post at Penn State, but stepped down from the post a few days later.[3]. It didnt bother me that I was a lousy coach, and when we started winning I was a better coach. But if Williams had declined the opportunity, as he initially did a year prior? 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. 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 was 77. Ill just say this, says Dave Hanners, one of Smiths longtime assistants. As he famously said at Smiths retirement news conference, I always thought we would ride off into the sun together.. Then he retired, too. It left at 1:57 p.m. His reasoning? In Guthridge's final season, he went 18-13 -- at the time, the program's worst finish in decades -- but bounced back in the postseason to reach North Carolina's 15th Final Four before losing in the national semifinals to Florida. The emotion was there, its just that it was often Guthridge providing it. The Kansas native took over the role of head coach following Smith's departure. 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