Mike Krzyzewski |
Wiki |
Michael William "Mike" Krzyzewski (pronounced /ʃɨˈʒɛvski/; Polish: Krzyżewski ) (born February 13, 1947) is an American basketball coach. He is currently the coach of the United States men's national basketball team leading them to a gold medal at the the 2008 Summer Olympics, and is also the coach of the Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team.
Nicknamed "Coach K," Krzyzewski has led the Blue Devils to 3 NCAA Championships, 10 Final Fours (third most in history), and 11 ACC Championships over 28 seasons at Duke. Krzyzewski has amassed an NCAA-record 71 NCAA tournament victories, while averaging more than 25 wins per season. On March 1, 2008, Krzyzewski became the sixth men's basketball coach in NCAA history to reach the 800-win plateau. He was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame following the 2001 season.
Krzyzewski, the son of Polish immigrants, has roots from Western Pennsylvania, as his grandparents on his mother's side emigrated from Poland to Keisterville, Pennsylvania. Up until he was 10 or 12, he used to go there every summer. Krzyzewski suspects the purpose of such trips was to "teach you to know where you came from and to be proud of it."