Miami Heat

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) &mdash; Jordan Miller took 20 shots in the regional final for Miami and made them all, helping the Hurricanes rally their way into the Final Four. The personification of clutch.
Fitting.
A guy named Clutch is why he&rsquo;s at Miami, why Miller has become one of the stars of March Madness &mdash; and why the Hurricanes are one of the four men&rsquo;s teams lucky enough to head to Houston this weekend and see their season stretch into April.
It was around this time two years ago when Miami then-assistant coach Bill Courtney&rsquo;s phone rang with news that Miller had entered the transfer portal and was leaving George Mason. Courtney dove into some tape and began looking into Miller&rsquo;s background. Turns out, one of Courtney&rsquo;s old pickup-game buddies from Virginia &mdash; Clutch, real name Gary Collins &mdash; was Miller&rsquo;s AAU coach.
&ldquo;The recruitment got pretty simple from there,&rdquo; said Courtney, now the Hurricanes&rsquo; associate head coach.
Good thing that recruitment went the way it did, because Miami has needed Miller this season &mdash; never more than it did on Sunday. Miller was 7 for 7 from the field and 13 for 13 from the foul line in Miami&rsquo;s 88-81 win over Texas, a victory that sent the Hurricanes (29-7) into Saturday&rsquo;s national semifinals against UConn (29-8). For the season, Miller is averaging 15.4 points and 6.1 rebounds per game, second-most for Miami in both categories.
He helped the Hurricans get to the Elite Eight last season &mdash; and at least one step further this season.
&ldquo;That loss sat with me for a really, really long time,&rdquo; Miller said of the defeat to eventual national champion Kansas in last year&rsquo;s tournament. &ldquo;I had to put it in the past because it was a new season, but having the opportunity to kind of right your wrongs almost and get past something that stumped you previously is a great feeling.&rdquo;
The 20-for-20 combined shooting effort from the field and the line against Texas matched Christian Laettner&rsquo;s historic game for Duke against Kentucky in a regional final in 1992. Laettner &mdash; who went 10 for 10 from both the field and the line in that game &mdash; tweeted congratulations to Miller on Monday; Miller responded with &ldquo;Appreciate you! Glad to join some elite company.&rdquo;
There is rich irony in that Miller came to Miami from George Mason &mdash; as did Hurricanes coach Jim Larra&ntilde;aga, who took that school to the Final Four in 2006 and got Miami to the Final Four on exactly the 17th anniversary of that win.
&ldquo;I just asked Jordan to ask the people at George Mason who know what kind of coach I am if he&rsquo;d fit in my program,&rdquo; Larra&ntilde;aga said. &ldquo;And a lot of them told him, &lsquo;Yeah, you should go play for Coach L.&rsquo; I was so impressed with him as an individual. You know, the basketball ability is one thing but his personality, his work ethic, his basketball IQ made me feel like &lsquo;OK, this kid will fit in really, really well.&rsquo; I had no idea he was this good.&rdquo;
The Hurricanes were even talking to other players &mdash; frankly, with better numbers &mdash; than Miller had when he entered the portal. Had it not been for Clutch, it&rsquo;s extremely likely that Miami would have gone in a different direction. And then who knows how this season would have turned out for Miller or the Hurricanes.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know if anyone expected this,&rdquo; Courtney said. &ldquo;Clutch was the only one who told me he could be this.&rdquo;
Larra&ntilde;aga doesn&rsquo;t think many people know how good Miller is. He calls the 6-foot-7, 195-pound wing &ldquo;the most underrated player in the country.&rdquo;
That moniker might not hold up anymore, especially not after the show Miller put on on Sunday. The 27 points might be a breakout of sorts; it was the second-best scoring effort of his 141-game collegiate career, and by far the most points he&rsquo;s managed in a postseason game at either George Mason or Miami.
Larra&ntilde;aga essentially challenged Miller when last season ended to be this guy.
&ldquo;I sat down and talked to Jordan before this season began. I just said to him: &lsquo;Your role is going to completely change. We&rsquo;re going to expand it,&rsquo;&rdquo; Larra&ntilde;aga said. &ldquo;He asked me one question: &lsquo;Hey, if I get a defensive rebound, can I push it in transition, dribble it up the court?&rsquo; I asked him one question: &lsquo;Are you going to turn the ball over?&rsquo; And he said &lsquo;No.&rsquo; I said, &lsquo;Then you can do it.&rsquo;&rdquo;
They chart everything in every practice at Miami, as is the case at many schools, and Larra&ntilde;aga quickly became enthralled by the idea of Miller getting his way &mdash; grabbing a rebound like a big guy, then heading downcourt like a guard. For every turnover he had in scrimmages, he had seven assists. Such a ratio is absurd for point guards; for wings and combo players like Miller, it&rsquo;s unheard of. During the season, it&rsquo;s still a very respectable 2:1.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s underrated because he&rsquo;s under been under the radar,&rdquo; Larra&ntilde;aga said. &ldquo;People just haven&rsquo;t seen him to understand how good he is. I think he showed the country how good he is these past two weeks.&rdquo;
Indeed, thanks to Clutch, he&rsquo;s been clutch. And Clutch is heading to Houston this weekend, to see if Miller and Miami can grab a national championship. The underrated kid might end up standing tallest of all.

A guy named Clutch is why Jordan Miller is at Miami, and is a big reason why he has become one of the stars of March Madness.

A ‘Clutch’ tip helps Miller, Miami reach first Final Four

College basketball is full of excitement and drama. While winning a national championship is the ultimate goal for every team, there have been many loaded squads that came up short.&nbsp;
While the teams on this list didn&rsquo;t win a title, they are still often mentioned among the best teams in the history of college basketball. Here are the best college-basketball teams that failed to win it all.&nbsp;
11. 1965-66 Kentucky Wildcats
The 1965-66 Kentucky Wildcats were coached by Adolph Rupp and their talented roster included future NBA stars Pat Riley and Louie Dampier. The Wildcats finished the season with a record of 27-2 and advanced to the national championship game, where they faced the Texas Western Miners. In a game that would later be immortalized in the movie "Glory Road," the Miners upset the Wildcats, 72-65.
10. 2006-07 Ohio State Buckeyes
Led by future No. 1 overall draft pick Greg Oden and longtime NBA point guard Mike Conley, the Buckeyes were hoping to win their second national championship in program history. Ohio State, traditionally a football school, finished the season 35-4 and ranked No. 1 in the AP poll. The Buckeyes advanced to the national championship game, where they faced a loaded Florida Gators squad that was led by future NBA All-Stars Joakim Noah and Al Horford.&nbsp;
In the national championship game, Oden avoided the foul trouble that had plagued him earlier in the tournament and put up a dominant 25 points and 12 rebounds. However, it wasn&rsquo;t enough, as the Gators defeated the Buckeyes 84-75 behind Horford's 18 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks. Four players from the Buckeyes' roster would go on to play in the NBA: Conley, Oden, Daequan Cook and Othello Hunter.
9. 2004-05 Illinois Fighting Illini
The 2004-05 Illinois Fighting Illini were a dominant force in college basketball. Coached by Bruce Weber and led by Dee Brown and Deron Williams, the Illini won their first 29 games of the season and finished with a 37-2 record.&nbsp;
Illinois advanced to the national championship game, where they faced the North Carolina Tar Heels (who were led by Raymond Felton, Sean May, Rashad McCants and Marvin Williams). Despite a valiant effort, the Illini fell just short, losing 75-70. Five of their players would go on to play in the NBA: Williams, Brown, Luther Head, Roger Powell and James Augustine.
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8. 2007-08 Memphis Tigers
Yes, John Calipari has back-to-back teams on this list. Coach Cal&rsquo;s 2007-08 Memphis Tigers were absolutely loaded and they were led by Derrick Rose, who would go on to be the No. 1 pick in the 2008 NBA Draft and the youngest MVP in NBA history in 2011. Chris Douglas-Roberts, Joey Dorsey and Antonio Anderson were also key contributors who eventually had stints in the NBA.
The Tigers finished the season with a record of 38-2 and they advanced to the national championship game, where they faced the Kansas Jayhawks. Despite a strong effort, the Tigers were unable to overcome the Jayhawks. Memphis missed a number of late free throws, which opened the door for Mario Chalmers to hit <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/march-madness-ranking-the-top11-ncaa-tournament-buzzerbeaters" target="_blank" rel="noopener">one of the most memorable buzzer-beaters in modern NCAA Tournament history</a> and force overtime. Kansas would go on to win, 75-68.
7. 1974-75 Indiana Hoosiers
Led by head coach Bob Knight, the 1974-75 Indiana Hoosiers finished the season with a record of 31-1 and advanced to the Final Four, where they faced the Kentucky Wildcats. Despite a strong effort, the Hoosiers were upset by the Wildcats, 92-90.&nbsp;
The Hoosiers would have eight players who would go on to play in the NBA: Scott May, Steve Green, Kent Benson, Quinn Buckner, John Laskowski, Bob Wilkerson, Tom Abernethy and Wayne Radford.
6. 1996-97 Kansas Jayhawks
The 1996-97 Kansas Jayhawks featured a pair of future NBA stars (Paul Pierce and Raef LaFrentz) and one of the best coaches in college-basketball history (Roy Williams). The Jayhawks finished the season with a record of 34-2 and advanced to the Final Four, where they faced the&nbsp; Arizona Wildcats.&nbsp;
Pierce put together a monster performance &mdash; 27 points, 11 rebounds, 3 threes, 2 blocks and 2 steals on 69.2/60/100 shooting splits &mdash; but it wasn't enough to defeat Mike Bibby&rsquo;s Wildcats. The Jayhawks lost 85-82 in overtime. In addition to Pierce and LaFrentz, Kansas had four other players go on to the NBA: Scot Pollard, Billy Thomas, Jacque Vaughn and Ryan Robertson.
5. 2014-15 Kentucky Wildcats
The 2014-15 Kentucky Wildcats, coached by John Calipari, featured quite the collection of young, high-upside talent. Led by future NBA superstars Karl-Anthony Towns and Devin Booker, the Wildcats finished the season with a perfect record of 38-0.
Kentucky advanced to the Final Four, where they faced the Wisconsin Badgers and were ultimately upset 71-64. In total, a whopping nine Wildcats would go on to play in the NBA: Towns, Booker, Trey Lyles, Willie Cauley-Stein, Aaron Harrison, Andrew Harrison, Tyler Ulis, Dakari Johnson and Alex Poythress.
4. 1984-85 Georgetown Hoyas
The 1984-85 Georgetown Hoyas, coached by John Thompson, were a powerhouse team that featured future NBA star Patrick Ewing. The Hoyas finished the season with a record of 35-3 and advanced to the national championship game, where they faced the Villanova Wildcats.&nbsp;
In one of the biggest upsets in college-basketball history, the Wildcats defeated the Hoyas 66-64. In addition to Ewing, Georgetown had four other players who went on to play in the NBA: Reggie Williams, Bill Martin, David Wingate and Michael Jackson.
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3. 1992-93 Michigan Wolverines
The prior season, the Fab Five took college basketball by storm, with bald heads and baggy shorts. They started five true freshmen and had a great season, making it all the way to the national championship game, where they were handled by a veteran Duke squad that was led by Christian Laettner, Grant Hill and Bobby Hurley, losing 71-51.
In the 1992-93 season, the Wolverines were widely regarded as the most talented team in the country and they were the favorites to win it all. Unfortunately, they fell short to North Carolina in the national championship game in one of the most memorable endings in sports history. Future No. 1 pick Chris Webber called a timeout that Michigan didn&rsquo;t have, as they lost 77-71. Michigan had five players who would later play in the NBA: Webber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King and Eric Riley (plus Rob Pelinka would go on to run the Los Angeles Lakers' front office).
2. 1982-83 Houston Cougars
Led by future Hall-of-Famers Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler, the 1982-83 Houston Cougars were known as "Phi Slama Jama" for their high-flying style of play. The Cougars were a dominant force on both ends of the court. They advanced to the Final Four, where they faced the N.C. State Wolfpack. Despite a 20-point lead in the second half, the Cougars were upset by the Wolfpack, 54-52. In addition to the superstar pairing of Olajuwon and Drexler, Houston also had two other players who would go on to play in the NBA: Michael Young and Larry Micheaux.
1. 1990-91 UNLV Runnin' Rebels
The 1990-91 UNLV Runnin' Rebels are one of the greatest college basketball teams of all-time, despite not winning the national championship. Coached by Jerry Tarkanian, the Rebels had an incredible season, finishing with a record of 34-1.&nbsp;
Led by Larry Johnson, Stacey Augmon and Greg Anthony, the Rebels played an up-tempo style of basketball that was both thrilling and effective. In the Final Four, they lost a close game to the Duke Blue Devils, who would go on to win the national championship. Johnson, Augmon and Anthony would go on to thrive in the NBA, and two other Rebels would also make it to the league (Elmore Spencer and Eyric Gray).
Would you rank these teams differently? Who is missing from this list? <a href="https://twitter.com/basketbllnews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tweet us your thoughts now</a>!

Jamal Shakespeare looks back on 11 all-time great college basketball teams that failed to win a championship.

Revisiting 11 loaded NCAA-basketball teams that failed to win it all

The madness of March: It&rsquo;s as exhilarating as it is exhausting, as mesmerizing as it is memorable. The abrupt ending of an entire career, a legacy defined in two to three seconds. It almost seems unfair, but that&rsquo;s the beauty of the win-or-go-home tournament.&nbsp;
Every game is a Game 7. The unpredictability, the passion, the tears, the celebration. The NCAA Tournament is one of the few sporting events that&rsquo;s more defined by the incomparable upsets than the eventual champion.
Even non-basketball fans get in on the fun each year, with office pools and bracket challenges. While college sports and amateurism are under a drastic transformation, &ldquo;The Tournament&rdquo; still has a nostalgic feel to it. The incredible buzzer-beaters are one of the many reasons why.
Narrowing this list down was a tall task, so before we get started, it&rsquo;s important that we establish the criteria:
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">It has to be a game-winning or game-tying shot in the final seconds.&nbsp;</li>
<li aria-level="1">It has to be in the &ldquo;modern era&rdquo; (i.e. since the three-point line and shot clock).&nbsp;</li>
<li aria-level="1">The later in the tournament, the higher the stakes, the more the shot means.</li>
</ul>
With that being said, here are the 11 most memorable buzzer-beaters in modern men's NCAA Tournament history.
11. Michigan State vs. Maryland, Korie Lucious (2010 Second Round)
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In one of the rare times Tom Izzo didn&rsquo;t call timeout in the waning seconds of a game, it paid off for him big time. You might recognize that big fella bringing the ball up the court; that&rsquo;s a slightly heavier Draymond Green, doing what he&rsquo;s been doing for the last decade in the Bay, pushing the tempo, drawing attention and then getting the ball to a knockdown shooter.&nbsp;
Maryland never properly matched up, and Korie Lucious only needed one rhythm dribble to send the Spartans to the Sweet Sixteen.
10. Wisconsin vs. Xavier, Bronson Koenig (2016 Second Round)
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The Musketeers had the ball in a tie game but turned it over, which led to one of the smoothest walk-off game-winners you will ever see.&nbsp;
Looking like he was in the gym shooting all by himself, All-Big-Ten guard Bronson Koenig caught the ball on the sideline, smartly took an escape dribble and hit the corner three that sent the Badgers to the Sweet Sixteen.
9. Connecticut vs. Washington, Richard Hamilton (1998 Sweet Sixteen)
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This entire sequence was amazing. I love how the refs swallowed their whistle on the first two attempts. Those may have been foul calls earlier in the game, but not with the championship on the line. Washington had a huge frontline that year, but ultimately ended up one rebound short.&nbsp;
Also, this is good coaching by Hall-of-Famer Jim Calhoun. In college, you have to go early because the opposing team cannot advance the ball to halfcourt with a timeout, so there&rsquo;s no point in waiting too long and eliminating the chance of getting an offensive rebound.&nbsp;
Rip Hamilton would go on to win both an NCAA championship and NBA championship with the Detroit Pistons.&nbsp;
&nbsp;8.Valparaiso vs. Ole Miss, Bryce Drew (1998 First Round)
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This is definitely the most schematic of any buzzer-beaters on this list. The son of the coach coming through in the clutch seems perfectly scripted for a Disney movie.
As with most of these incredible shots, it involves missed free throws and an underrated pass. The defense on this play was phenomenal (which can&rsquo;t be said for another historic shot that we&rsquo;ll get to in a bit).
7. Michigan vs. Houston, Jordan Poole (2018 Second Round)
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Long before he was a spark plug off the bench for the world-champion Golden State Warriors, Jordan Poole was hitting big shots in Ann Arbor. He drove Coach John Beilein crazy with his shot selection, but one of the reasons he earned such a long leash was his uncanny ability to hit shots from anywhere and at any angle.&nbsp;
6. UCLA vs. Mizzou, Tyus Edney (1995 Second Round)
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Every national champion has one of &ldquo;those&rdquo; games where despite having the superior roster, they probably should have lost. The Bruins were loaded! This roster featured eight guys who eventually played in the NBA. But the longer the game stays close, the more the pressure shifts to the No. 1 seed.&nbsp;&nbsp;
5. Michigan vs. Kansas, Trey Burke (2013 Sweet Sixteen)
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In 2013, Trey Burke was named the National Player of the Year and he carried the Wolverines all season long. The debate of whether to foul when up three points is for another column, but this was a Damian-Lillard-range three, and no one wants to risk a foul that far from the basket.&nbsp;
4. Kansas vs. Memphis, Mario Chalmers (2008 NCAA Championship Game)
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Mario Chalmers is a legend in Lawrence for as long as he lives. The Memphis Tigers were led by soon-to-be-first-overall-pick Derrick Rose and the silky smooth Chris Douglas-Roberts, and they had the game won until &ndash; and stop me if you have read this before &ndash; crucial free-throw misses opened the door for Kansas. This allowed Chalmers to force overtime, and the rest is history.&nbsp;
Coach Cal has gone on to win a national championship at Kentucky, but I bet if you caught him in a hotel bar on a recruiting trip, he would admit that he should have fouled Kansas before Chalmers even had the opportunity to hoist up this miracle three-point attempt.&nbsp;
3. Gonzaga vs. UCLA, Jalen Suggs (2021 Final Four)
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Gonzaga truly seemed like a team of destiny after Jalen Suggs hit the running bank shot against UCLA to remain undefeated and advance to the national championship game. While they would ultimately fall to Baylor two days later, the shot was ridiculous.&nbsp;
And unlike many of the plays on this list, UCLA didn&rsquo;t really do anything wrong. They didn&rsquo;t miss a free throw or look confused on defense. They lost on a straight-in bank from half-court, which even seemed to cause Gonzaga head coach Mark Few to feel a bit guilty.
2. Duke vs. Kentucky, Christian Laettner (1992 Elite Eight)
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Kentucky fans, look away. Hate him or really hate him, Christian Laettner was one of the greatest college players of all-time.&nbsp;
This game was one for the ages. Duke was the defending national champion. They were led by the aforementioned Laettner, All-American pest/point guard Bobby Hurley and budding superstar/future Hall-of-Famer Grant HIll.&nbsp;
Somewhat lost in the dramatic ending is the fact that Laettner was literally perfect on the night. He shot 10-of-10 from the field and 10-of-10 from the free-throw line, and he finished with a state line of 31 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.
1. Villanova vs. UNC, Kris Jenkins (2016 NCAA Championship Game)
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The dream of all dreams. This is the scenario that every boy or girl who has ever played basketball at any level has imagined hundreds of times. A few seconds left. The ball in your hands. A title on the line. Three, two, one&hellip; You drill the game-winner and become a champion.&nbsp;
On April 4, 2016, Kris Jenkins turned this dream into reality. The timing is an underrated aspect of this play. The pass was right on time, and right on target &ndash; soft and chest-high. This let Jenkins shoot in rhythm &ndash; a shot that he had made thousands of times before. You gotta love how Jay Wright showed the emotion of John Wick as he walked to shake Roy Williams&rsquo; hand.&nbsp;
HONORABLE MENTION
Connecticut vs. Clemson, Tate George (1990 Sweet Sixteen)
Duke vs. Connecticut, Christian Laettner (1990 Elite Eight)

With March Madness upon us, Basketball News revisits 11 of the most memorable buzzer-beaters in NCAA Tournament history.

March Madness: Ranking the top-11 men's NCAA Tournament buzzer-beaters

Basketball News highlights the reporting, analysis and podcasts that defined a year of basketball in 2022.

Best of Basketball News: Spotlighting our top content from 2022

On the latest episode of The Rex Chapman Show with Josh Hopkins, the guys are joined by the legendary Mike Krzyzewski a.k.a. Coach K.
During the show, Coach K revisits his incredible tenure at Duke and watching the team play under Jon Scheyer now, the Redeem Team, his coaching philosophy and much more. Watch the full episode below:
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Time Stamps
5:30 - Should Christian Laettner have been ejected in 1992?
7:00 - After a storied career, what is Coach K up to these days? What's life after coaching like for him? There's still plenty of basketball.
9:15 - Is it difficult watching Duke basketball from a different capacity? Are there any regrets after leaving the bench, and now watching Jon Scheyer take over as head coach?
11:30 - What did Coach K see in Scheyer in his playing days at Duke that made him the perfect archetype to be a great coach?
18:30 - Where did Coach K gain his unparalleled work ethic? He goes back to his childhood and what he learned at West Point, and discusses what he continues to use to this day.
22:30 - At West Point, it wasn't just learning from Coach Bobby Knight on the basketball court, but there were so many facets of leadership and life skills he learned at the academy.
24:00 - Coach K's philosophy to "be worthy of winning"&nbsp;
28:00 - On the recruiting trail, Coach K always made it a point of emphasis to understand what a player's relationship was with their mother, and you could learn even more if they had an older sister.
31:30 - With the success Coach K has had, especially in the NCAA Tournament, he describes how several of his teams may have been worthy of a national championship, but may have fallen short because the one thing you can't fast-track is experience.
42:00 - Where coaching USA Basketball ranks among the accomplishments of Coach K's career. To him, there's no greater honor than representing your country on the world stage.
45:30 - What was so special about The Redeem Team of 2008 under the leadership of Kobe Bryant? It was about winning a gold medal, but more so about winning the respect of their country.
48:00 - Kobe Bryant approached Coach K in 2008 and asked to guard the best player on the opposing team: "Most people don't dream of moments."
52:00 - Coach K says Rex Chapman was one of the players Coach K always wanted to coach because he had a spirit and passion for the game.
54:00 - Coach K recalls "The Shot" and gives the guys his view of those final seconds in that incredible victory over the Kentucky Wildcats. It was at that moment he recognized he had to say something to the team he had just beaten.
59:00 - What Coach K's expectations are for Kentucky this season, and how hard it must be for John Calipari to have to go out and win every game for the fans.

On The Rex Chapman Show, the iconic "Coach K" Mike Krzyzewski discusses the Blue Devils, his philosophies and much more.

Legendary 'Coach K' Mike Krzyzewski talks Duke, USA Basketball, more

Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski recently announced that he will <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/mike-krzyzewski-retires-from-coaching-jon-scheyer-to-take-over-at-duke" target="_blank" rel="noopener">retire following the 2021-22 season</a>, going out on top as the winningest coach in Division I men's basketball history.&nbsp;
Over his 46 years as a head coach, Coach K lead Duke to five NCAA championships and accumulated a 1170-361 record (giving him a winning percentage of .764). He&rsquo;s also coached Team USA to five Olympic gold medals -- three as the head coach and two as an assistant. He&rsquo;ll undoubtedly go down as one of the greatest coaches in the history of the game.&nbsp;
Coach K will hand the program&rsquo;s reins to Jon Scheyer, who played for Duke from 2006-2010 and has been an assistant coach under Krzyzewski since 2014 (and he&rsquo;s been the Blue Devils&rsquo; associate head coach for the last four years). Scheyer is known as a terrific recruiter, and he&rsquo;s reportedly a big reason why Duke landed Jayson Tatum, Cam Reddish, Luke Kennard and incoming five-star recruit Paolo Banchero, among others.
Scheyer, who has never been a head coach before, will obviously have big shoes to fill. Fortunately, he&rsquo;ll have a good support system around him, including Duke&rsquo;s current assistant coaches, Nolan Smith and Chris Carrawell.
Like Scheyer, Smith spent four years playing for Krzyzewski (from 2007-2011), leading Duke to an NCAA championship in 2011 and becoming a consensus First Team All-American. After a five-year playing career in the NBA and overseas, Smith joined Coach K&rsquo;s staff as a special assistant in 2016. Then, he became Duke&rsquo;s director of basketball operations and player development in 2018. The 32-year-old was promoted to assistant coach in April of 2021.
Carrawell also played under Krzyzewski for four seasons, then he played overseas from 2000-2007. In 2011, he got his start as a coach with the Springfield Armor of the NBA D-League, then spent four years at Marquette before ultimately joining Coach K's staff in 2018.
BasketballNews.com caught up with Nolan Smith to discuss Coach K&rsquo;s decision to retire, his legacy, the succession plan, what fans can expect from Scheyer, expectations for the upcoming season and much more.
Take me behind the scenes of how this all went down. Was this decision and succession plan something that Coach K had been discussing for a while?
Nolan Smith: &ldquo;Yeah. It definitely wasn&rsquo;t a quick thing. Coach obviously had to come to the decision that he ended up coming to and that took time. For him, he has such a passion and love for this game; it&rsquo;s something that he&rsquo;s been doing for 40-plus years, so it wasn&rsquo;t a quick decision. It&rsquo;s something that he had to talk over with his wife and family. And then, he brought it to our attention that this was going to be his last year. Obviously, we were all in great support of that. When a legend says &lsquo;it&rsquo;s time,&rsquo; then it&rsquo;s time. Going from there, we just sat down and started having many conversations about who Coach felt should become the next head coach. Obviously there were a lot of candidates, but we were talking and trying to figure out what would be the smoothest and easiest transition for the program, and ultimately Coach ended up going with Coach Jon Scheyer. Obviously, myself and Chris Carrawell were really excited about that, and we knew that we were going to be a part of all this as well, so we were like, &lsquo;Let&rsquo;s go!&rsquo;&rdquo;
When did you guys start talking about this possibility?
Smith: &ldquo;It started right around when our season ended, probably right around March. But then it probably started [to get] for real in about April.&rdquo;
How would you describe Coach K&rsquo;s legacy and how he&rsquo;ll be remembered as a coach?&nbsp;
Smith: &ldquo;His legacy comes down to winning. He consistently won in four different decades; that right there is unheard of. There are so many big-time coaches that have been in this game, but a lot of them most likely [won] in one or two decades. Not many have gotten to four decades and had the continued success that he&rsquo;s had. I think another part of that legacy is that he&rsquo;s created these relationships with players over and over again, so players continually wanted to play with Coach K. A lot of coaches get old; he never got old, he&rsquo;s still not old. Even heading into his last season, he stays up-to-date, he&rsquo;s adjusted to the times and he&rsquo;s adjusted to the game. I think that right there is part of his legacy, the fact that he&rsquo;s been able to change with the times of this game and not let it pass him up.&rdquo;
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You played for Coach K and now you&rsquo;ve spent a lot of time with him as a member of his coaching. What kind of impact has Coach K had on you?
Smith: &ldquo;He&rsquo;s helped me tremendously in so many different ways. First, I&rsquo;ll start with basketball; he helped me be the best basketball player that I could be. The way he challenged me every day, the way he taught me to prepare every single day, how to approach the game every single day -- those were all lessons that helped me as a player. A lot of those lessons ended up helping me when I transitioned into my coaching career, too. All of those lessons that he was teaching are things that he does as a coach: he prepares better than anybody, he puts the time in, he watches film and he dedicates himself fully to his craft as a coach. That&rsquo;s probably something that a lot of people don&rsquo;t know about coaches: you put that same time in. And Coach puts in more time than anybody when it comes to his craft. Just being able to watch him and take notes... I&rsquo;ve made sure to have a notepad and a pen in every single meeting with him because he&rsquo;s always going to give you some kind of gem, some kind of lesson, that I can take with me and use in my coaching career when I deal with my players and, one day, have my own program.&rdquo;
This will be Krzyzewski&rsquo;s final season, so what will this upcoming year look like? Will he gradually pass the torch to Coach Scheyer? What can he do throughout this upcoming season to make sure Coach Scheyer is prepared?
Smith: &ldquo;No, I think this year, he&rsquo;s going to go out in the only way that he knows how to, and that&rsquo;s running this program like it&rsquo;s his first year -- not like it&rsquo;s his last. (laughs) I think he&rsquo;s gonna be so fired up, especially coming out of COVID since he&rsquo;s coming off of a year where he couldn&rsquo;t really be close to our guys. Because of his age and COVID, he couldn&rsquo;t really build those relationships like he&rsquo;s used to doing, so I think he&rsquo;s going to be very hands-on; he might even try to break out a crossover or two this year. (laughs) I think that&rsquo;s how excited he&rsquo;s going to be heading into this season. But every year, he gives us assistants -- and obviously Coach Scheyer -- so much power to speak up when we need to speak up and run a certain drill&hellip; I mean, we&rsquo;ve been doing that, so nothing like that will change. But Coach K is going to be Coach K all year long.&rdquo;
For people who may not be as familiar with Coach Jon Scheyer, how would you describe who he is as a coach?&nbsp;
Smith: &ldquo;First of all, as a coach, he&rsquo;s a competitor. He&rsquo;s a great competitor and he wants to win. Secondly, offensively, he&rsquo;s a genius when it comes to offensive sets. I&rsquo;ve sat in his offense [meetings] many days and gone over offense, and I&rsquo;ve just sat there in awe of stuff that he comes up with. He studies it all the time, so he&rsquo;s going to have an offensive playbook that&rsquo;s masterful. I think that&rsquo;s going to be an area where people are gonna be like, &lsquo;Wow, he&rsquo;s pretty good.&rsquo; (laughs) The third thing is relationships. I think he&rsquo;s really good at creating relationships with players and keeping them, and making sure that players are going to want to play hard for him. I think in today&rsquo;s college-basketball landscape, that&rsquo;s almost half the battle. And I think he&rsquo;s going to be able to do that, getting guys to want to play hard for him and stick around.&rdquo;
Duke has been so good at keeping alumni involved and maintaining strong relationships with former players. It&rsquo;s sort of like a fraternity of guys who have played for Coach K. How will you ensure that continues even after Coach K is gone?
Smith: &ldquo;I think we&rsquo;ll continue to do some of the things that we&rsquo;ve always done. I hope K Academy -- Coach K&rsquo;s fantasy camps -- keep going because those are obviously like family reunions for us. All of us are young: I&rsquo;m 32, Coach Scheyer is 33 and Coach Carrawell is 43, so we&rsquo;re a very young staff and we&rsquo;re going to have to get creative in how we do things. We might have to do some retreats and invite guys from the brotherhood out and just have a nice little hang-out session with all of the generations of the brotherhood. We already all have great relationships -- from Gene Banks to Grant Hill to Christian Laettner. We have really good relationships with all of those guys, so we&rsquo;ll continue to build those and make sure they know that we need them more than ever now, to make sure this thing stays strong and stays exactly where we&rsquo;re at. We don&rsquo;t want to take a dip, by any means; we want to keep this thing rolling strong right away.&rdquo;
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Are there certain advantages that come with being a younger coaching staff? Coach K has been able to do an amazing job as an older head coach, but when you have a staff that&rsquo;s much closer in age to the players, could that give you an edge?
Smith: &ldquo;I think the advantage is really simple: A lot of these guys that are coming up that want to get into the college game want to be NBA players, and they just finished watching Coach Scheyer and myself doing it (in 2010 and 2011). They probably didn&rsquo;t see Coach C-Well, but he&rsquo;s still young enough that you can probably pull some clips of him and they can see that he can do it too. This generation loves to see what you&rsquo;ve done, so I think that&rsquo;s the beauty of it. And we can still get out there and show them every now and then, too. I think that&rsquo;s always a good thing. Using that youth to our advantage and showing our guys more so then we tell them, I think that&rsquo;s definitely an advantage that we have and that we&rsquo;ve gotta utilize.&rdquo;&nbsp;
If you&rsquo;re able to win a championship and help Coach K go out on top, what would that mean to you guys?
Smith: &ldquo;Oh man, that would be a storybook ending. If you look at the history of sports, that&rsquo;s rare. You look at Kobe&rsquo;s last game, but even that wasn&rsquo;t in the Finals. If Michael Jordan had ended it with &lsquo;The Shot&rsquo; over Utah, he would&rsquo;ve had the storybook ending, but he decided to come back and therefore, he didn&rsquo;t have the storybook ending. We&rsquo;re now in position to do that; we&rsquo;re excited about it, we&rsquo;re really fired up about it. Our players are going to [be aware] of that, and I think it puts us in a very unique position to work toward that goal. We know it&rsquo;s not going to be easy, we&rsquo;re going to get every team&rsquo;s greatest shot -- not even just their best shot, we&rsquo;re going to get every team&rsquo;s greatest shot every single night. Night-in and night-out, we&rsquo;ll be prepared for that. If we are able to send Coach out on that note, that&rsquo;s going to be legendary.&rdquo;
What are your thoughts on the 2021-22 team? What do Duke fans have to look forward to this season?
Smith: &ldquo;I think this year, we have a great mix. We have guys back from last year -- Jeremy Roach, Joey Baker, Wendell Moore, Mark Williams... Having those guys returning, two of those guys (Joey and Wendell) haven&rsquo;t been to the tournament two years in a row due to COVID, and then Jeremy and Mark also haven&rsquo;t been to the tournament because of COVID. Those four guys right there should be very fired up about this season. So, you have those returning guys who are mixed in with the young group of [incoming] guys that are very talented like Paolo Banchero, Trevor Keels, AJ Griffin, Jaylen Blakes and that class. And then we added [transfers] Theo John and Bates Jones, some older guys to bring some leadership to our squad. I think we have the perfect mix of ingredients to put us where we want to be come April. That&rsquo;s definitely what excites us.&rdquo;
This was a difficult year for everyone. But dealing with COVID and having to make some hard decisions, how tough was this past season for the program?&nbsp;
Smith: &ldquo;It was very tough. I think the main thing was that we didn&rsquo;t have any fans all year long, so it put all of us in a position -- especially our players -- where every game almost didn&rsquo;t feel real. When we were on the road, obviously we had fans. But at home, every single game felt like a scrimmage -- and a closed scrimmage at that. On top of that, our players couldn&rsquo;t even see their parents all year long, and they had no interaction with the student body or really anybody other than the team. From just a mental standpoint for our guys, I feel for them. I can&rsquo;t imagine if that&rsquo;s how my senior year went, when I was back in school in 2011. If that was the case, would I have accomplished what I accomplished during my senior year? I salute all of the student-athletes this year who had to go through it because it was different. But next year, Cameron Indoor Stadium, with the Cameron Crazies, [will be back]. We&rsquo;re hearing that it&rsquo;s going to be back to normal by then, so we&rsquo;re excited to have our fans back and have that place back rocking for Coach K&rsquo;s last year.&rdquo;

Duke assistant coach Nolan Smith opens up about Mike Krzyzewski's retirement, Coach K's legacy, Jon Scheyer taking the reins and more.

Duke's Nolan Smith talks Coach K retiring: "When a legend says 'it's time,' it's time"

If your game warrants the spotlight early in your career, chances are the lights will gleam brighter, and with that comes expectations. Some college players lived up to the hype that surrounded them at the next level, but there are quite a few whose success didn't translate to the NBA.
In our latest Roundtable, we asked our BasketballNews.com writers the following question:
Who is the best college player that never became a star in the NBA?
Alex Kennedy: Jimmer Fredette became a household name while at BYU, averaging 28.9 points and 4.3 assists. In 2011, he was the Consensus National College Player of the Year and led the nation in scoring. His games were must-watch TV due to his seemingly unlimited three-point range. He even transcended the sports world and briefly became part of the pop culture lexicon; for example, at the height of Jimmer Mania, Lil Wayne name-dropped him in a song (&ldquo;I got a chopper and a trimmer shootin&rsquo; like Jimmer&rdquo;). He was the 10th pick in the 2011 NBA Draft (ahead of Kawhi Leonard, Klay Thompson, Nikola Vucevic, Jimmy Butler, etc.), but he never averaged more than 7.6 points in the NBA. Fortunately for Jimmer, he&rsquo;s thriving in China, where he&rsquo;s dropped 75 points, averaged 37.6 points and made three All-Star appearances.
Spencer Davies: In my lifetime, I&rsquo;m picking two: Michael Beasley and Emeka Okafor. People have to understand just how dominant Beasley was in his lone season at Kansas State, collecting accolade after accolade as a freshman for the Wildcats, as he averaged over 26 points and 12 rebounds per game on 53% from the field! He showed flashes of greatness in the NBA early in his career, but not the kind of superstardom that followed him in the NCAA. As for my other pick, it&rsquo;s crazy remembering how the big question in 2004 was who would be the No. 1 pick: Okafor or Dwight Howard? While the latter was a high-school phenom, the former outworked every big man on the national stage for Jim Calhoun&rsquo;s UConn Huskies en route to an NCAA championship in his junior year prior to entering the draft. Okafor had imposing size and was a walking double-double who blocked every freaking shot in sight. In the NBA, he had his moments; none like Howard, though, who now has an NBA championship on his laundry list of achievements and just passed Walt Bellamy to move up to No. 11 on the league's all-time rebounding list.
Chris Sheridan: The best college player who never became a star in the league was Hank Gathers, who died while playing for Loyola Marymount. He was the No. 1 draft prospect and one of just three players in NCAA history to lead the nation in scoring and rebounding in the same season (the others were Xavier McDaniel and Kurt Thomas). He averaged 32.7 points and 13.7 rebounds. He once had 48 points and 13 rebounds against LSU&rsquo;s Shaquille O'Neal and Stanley Roberts. He collapsed after dunking in a game and passed away due to a heart issue.&nbsp;
Jannelle Moore: The best college player who never became a star in the NBA is, tragically, Len Bias. He had the athleticism and skill. He gave Michael Jordan fits in college and would have been his biggest rival in the pros.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/usatsi_2079728_lg.jpg" alt="" />
Imman Adan: Compared to Larry Bird entering the league and described as a &ldquo;very good scorer with [a] complete offensive repertoire,&rdquo; Adam Morrison was none of that in the NBA. In college, the 6-foot-8 forward out of Gonzaga was a star, averaging 28 points on 43% from three in his final year, making him a finalist for the Naismith Trophy. The NBA did not come as easily to the slow-footed Morrison, who struggled to adapt to the speed of the league. The effortless shooting stroke he had in college seemed to dissipate as well, as he never averaged more than 11 points or shot better than 34% from deep. After tearing his ACL in his left knee and missing his entire sophomore year, what little burst of athleticism he did have vanished, making his NBA career a short (but eventful) one, winning two rings while riding the Lakers&rsquo; bench before retiring at 28.
Ethan Fuller: I'm going to play with a looser definition of "star" for this one and rule out guys like Christian Laettner and Marcus Camby, who did win NBA league awards. Instead, let's go with Joe Smith, who won Naismith Player of the Year at Maryland in 1995. The 6-foot-10 Smith obliterated teams, averaging 20.8 points, 10.6 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game as a sophomore. He then went first overall to the Golden State Warriors in the 1995 NBA Draft. But Smith never found his footing and ended up playing for 11 NBA teams.
Jonathan Concool: Adam Morrison. Morrison averaged over 28 points per game as a junior at Gonzaga University, and led the Bulldogs to the Sweet 16 before suffering a heartbreaking loss to the Bruins in the final seconds. Morrison took home five awards that season with Gonzaga, including WCC Player of the Year, but that&rsquo;s just about where the positives stop for Morrison&rsquo;s basketball career. He went on to get drafted third overall by the Charlotte Bobcats in 2006 and was out of the league by 2010, with career averages of 7.5 points per game on 37.3% shooting from the field.
Nekias Duncan: I&rsquo;d go with Jimmer Fredette. He absolutely lit it up for BYU &mdash; Mormon Steph, if you will &mdash; and almost none of it translated to the NBA across multiple stints.
Kelsea O&rsquo;Brien: People forget just how small the NBA is, and how good the end-of-bench players were in college and high school. These guys were monsters. They still are! Their only downfall is that they are playing against and alongside even bigger monsters. I&rsquo;m going to go in a different direction here, though, and choose Cheryl Miller. One of the greatest women&rsquo;s basketball players of all-time, and because of ACL injuries, she never got the chance to go pro. Her professional career will always be one of the biggest &ldquo;what ifs&rdquo; in sports history.

Who is the best college player that never became a star in the NBA? We asked our BasketballNews.com staff to weigh in.

Roundtable: Who's the best college player that never became a star in the NBA?

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Zion Williamson scored nine of his 37 points in overtime and the New Orleans Pelicans came back to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 140-136 on Saturday.
Lonzo Ball had a career-high 33 points, tying a career best with eight 3-pointers, and grabbed 11 rebounds. Willy Hernangomez added 12 points and 12 rebounds. His follow shot with 21 seconds left completed New Orleans’ comeback from down 10 in the fourth quarter to force overtime.
Anthony Edwards scored 29 points for Minnesota, which had its four-game winning streak snapped. Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points and 14 rebounds, and D’Angelo Russell finished with 17 points and 11 assists.
The Timberwolves were trying for their longest winning streak since January 2018 in Jimmy Butler’s first season with the team.
The Pelicans closed the fourth on a 14-4 run to force overtime and then Williamson went to work in the extra session. Williamson added nine rebounds and eight assists. 
Ball was two assists away from a triple-double, but he made his mark from 3-point territory. With Ball leading the way, New Orleans finished 14 of 36 from beyond the arc.
Minnesota started the day with 20 wins, the second-fewest in the Western Conference, but has started to show growth with Edwards’ continued development, along with health from Russell and Towns.
Edwards scored 14 points in the second quarter to help erase a 13-point deficit.
TIP-INS
Pelicans: New Orleans entered play 27th in the NBA with an average of 10.7 made 3s a game. Its average of 30.5 attempts per game ranked 25th while shooting 35%. … C Steven Adams missed his second straight game and third overall with a sprained toe on his right foot. … Coach Stan Van Gundy said Jason Hart (right thumb surgery) and Nickeil Alexander-Walker continue to work out, but he wasn’t sure about their status to return before the end of the season. Van Gundy called Alexander-Walker day to day and said Hart could still meet his timetable of returning for the season’s final week.
Timberwolves: Minnesota opened the day allowing opponents to shoot 39.2% from 3 this season, the highest mark in the league. … Edwards leads all rookies with 30 games of at least 20 points and he became the fifth rookie in team history with at least 30 such games. The team record is 33 by Christian Laettner in 1993.
UP NEXT
Pelicans: Host Golden State on Sunday.
Timberwolves: Minnesota has a short break before resuming play on May 5 at home against Memphis.
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Zion Williamson scored 37 points in overtime and the Pelicans came back to beat the Timberwolves 140-136 on Saturday.

Zion Williamson scores 37; Pelicans beat Wolves 140-136 in OT

Not long ago, a ruptured Achilles was considered a death sentence for an NBA player&rsquo;s career. 
There was a long list of players who were never the same following their Achilles injury: Elton Brand, Kobe Bryant, Mehmet Okur, Chauncey Billups, Brandon Jennings, Christian Laettner, Jonas Jerebko, Anderson Varejao and so on.&nbsp;
Dominique Wilkins was the lone example of a player who returned and continued producing at a superstar level (as he averaged 29.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.0 steal per game).
That&rsquo;s why the basketball world was devastated when Kevin Durant ruptured his Achilles on basketball&rsquo;s biggest stage during the 2019 NBA Finals. Durant is one of the greatest scorers in NBA history and nobody wanted to see his name added to the list above.
Fortunately, Durant hasn&rsquo;t missed a beat since returning from his Achilles injury. Somehow, in his first nine games back, he looks like the exact same player. The 32-year-old is averaging 30.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 2.9 threes, 1.0 block and .9 steal (while shooting a ridiculous 54.8 percent from the field, 48.3 percent from three and 86.7 percent from the free-throw line).
He's posting career-highs in assists per game, threes per game, field goal percentage, three-point percentage, True Shooting Percentage and assist percentage. His 30.7 points would be the second-highest mark of his career (which says something considering he's a four-time scoring champ). And he&rsquo;s doing this while getting acclimated on the Brooklyn Nets and adjusting to new coaches and teammates.&nbsp;
&ldquo;Just trying to be the best I can each possession and each rep,&rdquo; Durant said recently. &ldquo;I've been always trying to take that approach as a pro, and then you got guys around you who have that same approach and love for the game. It's making me better and hopefully rubbing off on my teammates as well. &rdquo;
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Many fans take Durant's greatness for granted since he has consistently posted jaw-dropping numbers for over a decade and he makes the game look incredibly easy, but it's important to note that we're witnessing something special right now.
Among all players, Durant currently ranks second in points per game (30.7), third in PER (27.9), fourth in Offensive Box Plus/Minus (6.6), fifth in Box Plus/Minus (7.3), eighth in Offensive Win Shares (1.2), ninth in Net Rating (14.7), ninth in True Shooting Percentage (.675), ninth in Value Over Replacement Player (.7) and 13th in Win Shares (1.6).&nbsp;
If Durant is performing this well out of the gate, how will he look once he shakes off the rust and gets used to his new situation?
&ldquo;He continues to find his rhythm,&rdquo; Nets head coach Steve Nash said. &ldquo;He looks great and he&rsquo;s going to continue to feel more and more comfortable.&rdquo;
Nash is confident that Durant can return to his MVP form, but he has repeatedly said that Durant should give himself 15-to-20 games before judging himself and expecting to be back at 100 percent. And after nine games, Nash is revising that timetable a bit,
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a pleasure to coach him; he&rsquo;s so talented and loves the game,&rdquo; Nash said. &ldquo;Part of the process of him coming back to playing is that it&rsquo;s not going to be smooth off the bat. I said early on [that it&rsquo;ll take] 15-to-20 games and I think that&rsquo;s even... maybe I need to be more conservative with that number, just because it&rsquo;s such a lot thrown at him [during] the climb he&rsquo;s had back here.&rdquo;
When Wilkins came back from his ruptured Achilles, he said the first few games were the toughest.&nbsp;
&ldquo;The thing you keep thinking about is, &lsquo;What if I tear this thing again? What if I hear that pop?&rsquo; You think those sort of things, but you must get those things out of your head,&rdquo; Wilkins <a href="https://hoopshype.com/2019/01/17/nba-rumor-warriors-demarcus-cousins-achilles-dominique-wilkins-kobe/">told me in 2019</a>. &ldquo;You can&rsquo;t even think about that stuff. The moment I realized I was back to being myself came during our training camp. I hit the ground really hard, and I immediately grabbed my ankle. But I didn&rsquo;t feel any pain. That&rsquo;s when I said, &lsquo;You know what? If this thing is going to pop or tear, it&rsquo;s happening on my terms. I&rsquo;m going all out.&rsquo; I just had to think like that to get that [fear] out of my head.
&ldquo;We played two really great teams in a back-to-back when I first returned (the Knicks and Bulls). I had two great games, which did wonders for my confidence. I knew, at that point, &lsquo;Hey, I&rsquo;m back in rare form.&rsquo; That&rsquo;s when I realized, &lsquo;Only you know how tough you are. Nobody else knows.&rsquo; That confidence and toughness helped me get over my fear of hurting myself again.&rdquo;
Durant&rsquo;s monster numbers have to be good for his confidence, and the fact that he&rsquo;s already playing in back-to-backs suggests that he&rsquo;s pain-free and blocking out that fear of re-injury.&nbsp;
Also, Wilkins told me that he stayed motivated by listening to his doubters.
&ldquo;Well, I looked at all of the criticism,&rdquo; Wilkins <a href="https://hoopshype.com/2019/01/17/nba-rumor-warriors-demarcus-cousins-achilles-dominique-wilkins-kobe/">said</a>. &ldquo;I looked at all of the guys who were saying I wouldn&rsquo;t come back. I looked at all of the guys who were saying that if I did come back, I couldn&rsquo;t be that good because I was already 32 years old. I looked at everyone saying my best days were behind me because, at that time, it was a very difficult injury to come back from. 
"I just used it as fuel to prove everyone wrong. I worked twice-a-day, every day, for nine months. I was working hard. My inspiration came from all of those negative articles that talked about how old I was and how difficult it would be to return. I kept all of those articles and I put them on my bathroom mirror, so that I&rsquo;d have to see them every day. That was my inspiration.&rdquo;
Sound familiar?
As if the Nets weren't already under the microscope, all eyes will be on them going forward now that they&rsquo;ve assembled a Big Three of Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving.
Brooklyn is now 7-6, which is the fifth-best record in the East. The Nets currently have the NBA&rsquo;s fourth-best offense (scoring 112.9 points per 100 possessions) and 10th-best defense (allowing 106.5 points per 100 possessions), although this team will look very different following the trade for Harden.
The Nets face the Orlando Magic tonight at 6 p.m. ET and while Irving is out, Harden may make his Brooklyn debut.

Kevin Durant is absolutely dominating in his first nine games back since rupturing his Achilles, writes Alex Kennedy.