UNC Basketball: Gregg Popovich pays tribute to Dean Smith
During his Hall of Fame Enshrinement weekend, long-time coach Gregg Popovich paid tribute to legendary UNC basketball coach Dean Smith.
This past weekend, Gregg Popovich was among the 12 people inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Popovich has put together a legendary career, one that is still going, as he’s put himself in the conversation as one of the best coaches the sport has ever seen.
This weekend, Popovich had some time to reflect on his career as he paid tribute to legendary UNC basketball coach Dean Smith while speaking to the media.
Popovich told the story of how he took a sabbatical from coaching in his late 20s. The objective was to spend a year alongside Smith at North Carolina and Larry Brown (another former Tar Heel) at Kansas to learn from two of the game’s best coaches.
Based on how he described his time with both coaches, you can tell that his experience with them was quite special:
"“The whole year with those two guys was like serendipity x10. They were purists. They would teach from morning until night.”"
Although Smith taught Popovich a lot about the game of basketball, his biggest takeaway was the importance of building relationships with those around him and continuing to foster them as time went on.
One year Gregg Popovich took a sabbatical and he spent time at North Carolina shadowing Dean Smith. He said Smith is who influenced him to become a diligent leader and investing in your players on and off the court #UNC @wral pic.twitter.com/DIMxAUauu6
— Kacy Hintz (@KacyHintz) August 13, 2023
"“That (North Carolina) is where I learned how to keep in touch with people. Anyone who has coached for a while knows those stories about Coach Smith. He kept track of everybody: players, friends, acquaintances. He’d write handwritten notes to everybody. He wanted to find out how they are doing and how their kids are. He had lists of those certain things. He kept track of those things so that he would be aware of everybody that had gone through the program. I picked that up from him.”"
Dean Smith cared about his players, even well after their college playing days were over. We’ve heard plenty of stories about how Smith made an effort to keep in contact with as many former players as possible, and the tale of him leaving money to each former player upon his passing for a complimentary dinner meal is a testament to the type of man he was.
Popovich’s stories about his time in Chapel Hill just go to show the profound impact that Dean Smith continues to have on the sport of basketball. Although he is no longer with us, his legacy is one that will truly last forever.
Next. Sylvia Hatchell honored at Hall of Fame. dark
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