Guthridge, who like Smith was a Kansas native, spent 30 years as an assistant coach and had ample opportunities to leave Chapel Hill and become the coach of his own program. Hed have been a lifer, Hanners says. His calm demeanorhe could sometimes be found sitting in the stands an hour before road games eating popcorn or a hot dogmasked a passionate love for the Tar Heels. 2023 Capitol Broadcasting Company, Inc. 08/08: Dean Smith to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom, 06/29/2011: Smith, Coach K, Yow honored by Naismith, 10/21/2008: UNC's Smith to receive Lapchick Character Award, 02/18/2008: ACC To Honor Dean Smith, Lorenzo Charles, other Greats, Bio Jobs Hub: Find a great-paying job that changes lives, even yours. Guthridge was Smiths assistant for 30 years. Theres no way you could dream, Hanners says, anyone would necessarily do better.. No, I couldnt even consider that, Smith said. William Wallace Guthridge (July 27, 1937 May 12, 2015) was an American college basketball coach. 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. Perhaps, at last, somewhere in his mind, Coach Guthridge finally made the decision it was time for him to retire from this physical life. When Smith retired as Division I's winningest men's coach shortly before the 1997-98 season, Guthridge was promoted to replace him, and he guided the Tar Heels to two Final Fours in three seasons. At the time, their run of 172 consecutive weeks in the AP Poll was the second-longest in college basketball history. (Jed Jacobsohn / ALLSPORT via Getty), Theres a world where Ford got his chance to be UNCs head coach, and maybe still would be in that position. Kansas coach Roy Williams, a former North Carolina assistant under Smith, will succeed Guthridge, a source close to the university told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. [5], He died at his home on May 12, 2015, after an extended illness, alongside his family. Hed have been two years into a rebuild at Notre Dame, and perhaps less reluctant to leave. He couldnt generate enough energy to get through all of that., Some background: In the years leading up to his retirement specifically every spring after the conclusion of the NCAA Tournament Smith expressed a sense of exhaustion to the people around him. 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 it was all as a team, no one mans fault or wrongdoing for the groups shortcoming. But if Smith was selfless in his handling of McAdoo, it was nothing compared to Smiths shocking retirement on Oct. 9, 1997. Guthridge also took a less talented team to the Final Four in 2000. He also coached 66 players who were selected in the NBA and/or ABA drafts. When it was announced last week that Smith would receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom award, I could not help but think back to that interview in 2000 while also thinking about what might have been. Once he asked a manager, whose arms were full of equipment, if he had change for a quarter. 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. 3 "The End of Absence" Michael Harris. Guthridge . document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Coach Smith died in January 2015 of complications from dementia, Profiles in Dementia: Zelda Fitzgerald(1900-1948), Facebook Group for Caregivers of Loved Ones with Alzheimer's Disease, Dementia, and Other Age-Related Illnesses, R. E. M. Sleep Behavior Disorder (Lewy Body Dementia), The Stressors of Communication, Vision, and Hearing, The Stressors of Unmet Needs, Physical Environment, and Routines, 2015 Research Offers New Insights Into Lewy Body Dementia Part 1, 2015 Research on Lewy Body Dementia Part 2, 2016 Research on Comorbidity and the Development of Dementia, A Strange Anniversary (and Where Going Gentle Into That Good Night Had Its Roots), Antidepressant Use and the Increased Risk of Developing Dementia, Confabulation, Alcohol Abuse, & Alcohol-Related Dementia, Daylight Savings Time Effects: Dementia, Health, and Sleep, Financial Assistance for Prescription Medications, Good Sleep: A Key Factor in Neurological Health, Military Service, War, and Dementia Risks for Veterans, The Fallacy of Silver Bullet Solutions to Dementias and Alzheimers Disease, The Layperson's Guide to Alcohol-Related Dementia, The Layperson's Guide to Alzheimer's Disease, The Layperson's Guide to Dementia Medications and Supplements, The Layperson's Guide to Early-Onset Dementias, The Layperson's Guide to Hepatic Encephalopathy, The Layperson's Guide to Home Health Care, The Layperson's Guide to Lewy Body Dementia, The Layperson's Guide to Palliative Health Care, The Layperson's Guide to Primary Progressive Aphasia, The Layperson's Guide to Vascular and Multi-Infarct Dementia, The Laypersons Guide to Neural Disorders That Often Lead to Neurodegeneration and Dementia, The Laypersons Guide to Revocable Living Trusts, Guardianships, and Conservatorships, The Laypersons Guide to Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), The Link Between Brain Injuries & Neurological Disease, The Rare Dementias: Corticobasal Degeneration (CBD), The Rare Dementias: Fatal Familial Insomnia, The Rare Dementias: Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, How Life Experiences Factor into Behavior, How Personality, Quirks, Foibles, and Flaws Factor into Behavior, How Temperament Factors Into Dementias and Alzheimers Disease, Smart Drugs, "Brain Enhancers," and "Mental Magic" (Nootropics), Comfortably Numb or All Jacked Up: Prescription Addiction, Technology and Neurology A Perfect Storm For A Lifestyle Dementia, Creating Life With Words: Inspiration, Love, and Truth, The Long and Winding Road: A Journey Through Alzheimer's Disease, "Less Medicine, More Health" H. Gilbert Welch, "Patient H.M.: A Story of Memory, Madness, and Family Secrets" Luke Dittrich, "When Breath Becomes Air" Paul Kalanithi, Bad Pharma: How Drug Companies Mislead Doctors and Harm Patients Ben Goldacre, The Tale of Dueling Neurosurgeons Sam Kean, How We Do Harm: A Doctor Breaks Ranks About Being Sick in America by Otis Webb Brawley, Pt. He led his first team to the 1998 Final Four and had two players, Vince Carter and Antawn Jamison, selected in the top five . The people who knew him best werent surprised he went to two Final Fours in three seasons.. If I were to call Roy and ask Roy was he interested, the first question out of his mouth wouldve been, did Bill get a chance? Baddour says. After graduating from Kansas State, he coached at Scott City High School in Kansas for two seasons before returning to his alma mater as an assistant coach for Tex Winter from 19621967. The announcement came nearly two months after the 6-10 center led the Boston . He bought into everything. In that scenario, Williams never leaves Kansas and Ford probably never leaves North Carolina. 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. Guthridge didn't bother to recruit Jason Williams,. It was the 14th time Guthridge participated in the Final Four. 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. What you saw was the quiet assistant sitting on the bench. 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. In our prayers. Guthridge was a player and then an assistant coach at Kansas State . And I think he probably had second thoughts, because at what point was it really a danger? He is probably best remembered for his loyalty to Smith, who died in February at age 83. 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. Born in Parsons, Kansas,[2] Guthridge attended Kansas State University in Manhattan, and graduated with a B.S. (LogOut/ Current coach Roy Williams referenced Smith's death, which occurred on Feb. 7 of this year, when commenting onGuthridge, via Andrew Carter of theCharlotte Observer: Here's Roy. "I'm not up with it," Guthridge said at one point, when he tried to remember taking over as UNC's head coach in 1997 after Smith retired. 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. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. But I know thats something that bothered him to his death, Ndiaye says. Coach Smith had so many strengths and very few weaknesses, and the weaknesses that he did have Coach Guthridge tried to fill. (Scott Sharpe/News & Observer), Standing Together With Our Black Community, Assistant Schall Named Head Volleyball Coach, After 33 Years, Volleyball Coach Sagula Retires, In Memoriam: Elizabeth B. Morgan (19302022). The University is currently operating under normal conditions. The little doo-doos, Smith called them, the administrative tasks just within the purview of his job responsibilities. End of conversation.. The next day, Kenny Smith said, assistant coach Bill Guthridge wasn't at practice. 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 had interviewed for the Texas job, which went to Rick Barnes, after the 1998 season, after all. The only people who came to know about that line of succession, so to speak, were Baddour, Smith, Guthridge and then-chancellor Michael Hooker, who expressed some concerns about Guthridges age early on. 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. (Ford) goes, Ah, you wouldve seen it sooner or later. Yeah right. Former UNC Coach Bill Guthridge passed away last night at age 77 w/ family at his side. Assistant coach Phil Ford is at right. And that brings us full-circle, back to the original what-if: What if Dean Smith had finished out his contract, which ran through the end of the 2000-01 season? The careers and lives of the two coaches from Kansas were solidly intertwined. I remember telling the chancellor that, Baddour says. 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. 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. Smith, after all, kept an office in the arena for several years after retirement. Guthridge also gave to the University away from basketball. In his first year as head coach, he led the the team . Lets play out the most interesting of the hypotheticals: if Dean Smith does return for the 1997-1998 season, with an absolutely jam-packed roster. Calhoun, elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005, is . Jamisons teammates and Hanners and Baddour all agree. Ironically, both coaches developed dementia along the way (Coach Smith died in January 2015 of complications from dementia). That was quelled, but the chancellor had another thought: To the chancellor and many fans Williams was the obvious choice to succeed Smith. He came up with the idea that Dean Smith, having . After Coach Guthridges retirement in 2003, he and Coach Smith stayed in close contact, visiting each other frequently. Spend time with family. But the Tar Heels suffered a soul-crushing NCAA Tournament loss that also ended Phil Fords career. In his tenure at UNC, Guthridge coached five National Players of the Year, six ACC Players of the Year, five ACC Rookies of the Year and 28 first-team All-ACC players. If you previously used a social network to login to WRALSportsFan.com, click the Forgot your password link to reset your password. What Smith left behind was arguably the most talented team hed ever assembled: a pair of future NBA All-Stars, Vince Carter and Antawn Jamison; the programs all-time assists leader, point guard Ed Cota; a lights-out shooter, Shammond Williams; a frontcourt enforcer, Makhtar Ndiaye; and much more. Student-run Chapel Thrill Escapes brings its newest escape room to life Rameses in Wonderland continuing to provide an outlet for student creativity, entrepreneurship and collaboration on Carolina's campus. A longtime assistant to the legendary Dean Smith, he shall be remembered for his three seasons as head coach of the University of North Carolina Tar Heels. "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.". Bill Guthridge was consistently portrayed as a quiet gentleman. 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. But I already had a better job than that and I was happy here. Bill Guthridge is best known in Chapel Hill as an assistant coach to Dean Smith, but that isn't the complete picture of the legendary coach. That was probably six or seven years later where somebody else might recognize it. In public, he was never going to be the center of attention. Carolina Basketball confirmed the news on Twitter: Sad news. Guthridge, his wife said, suffers from vascular dementia - a condition that's a result of reduced blood supply to the brain. To combat that fatigue, every summer, Smiths assistant coaches urged him to get out and enjoy life. But theres also the fact that Dean did it his way, which was entirely predictable. And so even as the coachs hair changed from dark brown to gray to white, his position never did. Go play golf. WAKE FOREST: Former basketball standout Charlie Davis quit his job in the athletic department, reportedly for not being considered for advancement. "My sympathies go out to his wife, Leesie, and their kids and family.". Hed grow bored of golf, and once that happened, his staff knew hed summoned up the energy for another go-around. 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. In retrospect, Smiths premature exit was a mistake on all fronts. I was just happy that the team had success. "When Coach Smith announced he was retiring and that Coach Guthridge was taking over, then it all clicked into place for me," Hanners says. He wasnt going to entertain a room full of boosters with behind the scenes stories. We certainly had no idea; he was still the smartest guy, could recall everything he was seeing.. 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