O, say, can you see...

Granted, this aint no "Star Spangled Banner" we're singing here, but we should certainly be treating it as such. And by "we" ,I mean we Oregonians.

The success of U of O football this season has made them competitiors on the national level. Everywhere you go, and everything you watch, they're there. Aside from all the national exposure , and from the mere fact that U of O is now the team to beat in all college football throughout the country, this is something Oregonians have waited for, for a very long time. Yes, U of O is quickly becoming a household name throughout the country. And yes, I'm sure people everywhere feel they know all about the Ducks now. And maybe to some degree they do, but not the way we do.

Now before I get too ahead of myself, let me clear the air on what I mean by "Oregonians". The term means ALL people who grew up and/or are living in Oregon. That being said, this obviously includes OSU fans as well. Although there is a deep, cold-blooded (so bloody, we call it "The Civil War") rivalry between the two universities, this is truly a victory for everyone. Oregon football (UofO & OSU) has always been heard, but not really seen. Obviously, schools have had on and off success in football since the schools' inceptions. Even so, neither school has really gone to the top and stayed there. Because of this, Oregon football, as a whole, has contantly been looked over. Even as OSU and UofO made bowl games, nobody really gave them a fighting chance in comparison to other teams in the nation.

U of O even made it to the Rose Bowl last year, having finished a very promising regular season, only to get dismantled by Ohio State. Now while the score didn't look all that terrible, you could see the obvious differences in overall competitiveness. Nonetheless, it was a step up from the typical M.O. of the Ducks. It's fair to speculate, at this point, that this recent success be attributed to the promotion of Head coach Chip Kelly.

Originally the offensive coordinator for the team, He became head coach when Mike Bellotti stepped down on March 30th, 2009. As much as the nation has quickly come to know the football team, they've quickly come to know this team's coach as well. Vocal. Passionate. Disciplined. This man knows what he wants, and he knows how he wants it. As a team that, in the past, would have almost fallen through the cracks by the end of the season, is now in charge of their own destiny. Perhaps one of the greatest advantages in having Kelly as the coach of this young team, is that he believes in playing "your game". Living and dying by the motto "Win the Day"; it's a reminder to all players and coaches to never forget what YOU learned, never forget how YOU play, and never forget YOUR style.

The idea of keeping a grip on your own style, is especially crucial in the Ducks' case. For example, I'm sure evryone has seen those call signs on the sideline with all kinds of random pictures plastered on it. Very confusing, and extremely frustrating for other teams to see and de-code, it's a simple stint of U of O's style. Most noteably, you've probably heard every single opposing team talk about "slowing this team down". These Ducks play fast, and they move very, very quickly. This is partly to throw teams off-guard, and partly to just make them really tired really fast.

Details aside, the University of Oregon is officially ranked #1 in the BCS.

.....

Let me repeat that: the University of Oregon is officially ranked #1 in the BCS.

It's been a long time since any of us Oregonian's have been able to hear those words for either of our football teams. I don't want anyone to jump on any badnwagon at all, because I think we've all been watching enough of that from the rest of the nation to be honest. All I'm saying is whether you're OSU Beaver fan, PSU Vikings fan, U of O Ducks fan, or a fan of "could care less either way", this time, this moment, is a victory for not just one school, but for one entire state.

Most of you know that I am a Ducks fan, so there's on obvious bias. Knowing that, you might be saying "It's easy for you to say Harguth, you already like the Ducks!". Point taken, however irrelevent. As a Duck fan, I can honestly say that I can appreciate what every other football team has done in this state. Admittedly, I was watching when OSU was hitting it big in the past couple years. You'd have to be kind of stupid to not be watching Jacquizz Rodgers. Mike Riley is an extremely underrated coach, and have the utmost respect for that man's coaching philosophies.

The point is, I have biases, you have biases, we all have biases. Especially when it comes to our sports teams, this is understandably very tough to get past. But the reality is that at the end of the day, it's football, and it's Oregon's football. This is a special treat for all of us to winess, and it's in our best interest to relish in it while it's here. As proud as weare of our Oregon football teams, we can all admit that this doesn't happen very often. When was the last time you heard ESPN actually highlighting an Oregon footbal team? So today I submit a temporary truse to all Oregon football team fans. This is now bigger than any Civil War game or any other bug matchup we may have had.

You say "Go Vikings!"
Dude across the way says "Go Beavers!"
Some random over there says "Go Bruins!"
Another guy says "Go Ducks!"

...I say "Go Oregon!"

Decisions, decisions...

...So what should we do?

We should go ahead and bypass the obvious today, because the fact of the matter is that if you're reading this right now, you already had an opinion before you even opened this. This is okay, because this particular post is specifically for you guys.

As much as we all may say we hate it, the drama of sports is half of sports. How boring would they be if there was no story, no hype? We all know full well that fans and analysts alike absolutely love adding fuel to the fire whenever possible. But these days, the athletes themselves, have become the ultimate fuel .

Personally, I absolutely love conflict. I love it because no matter what anyone says, everyone ALWAYS pays more attention when there is. Conflict creates motivation. Motivation in turn, creates stiffer competition. Stiffer competition ultimately brings out the best in all athletes. However, my love for conflict in sports ends when the conflict overwhelms the sport. And that, my Nosebleeders, is what we have here.

It's been a little over a week since LeBron and Nike aired their very blunt, and quite frankly very ballsy ad titled "What Should I do?" on national television. After airing "The Decision" in July, we all found it hard to believe that he could out-do himslef anymore. We were obviously mistaken.

I hate writers who take advantage of these situations just fill space in their columns. It's cheap writing, and it's cheap commentary. Writers like that, are what keep athletes like LeBron James famous. I'm not writing this post to add more fuel to fire, the way "King James" would like it; I speak about this now, because it has gotten to the point where we now need to question priorities. Question priorities not just of LeBron, but of ourselves as well. In order to do this analysis properly, I suppose it's only fair that we take a page out of the "Nike-LeBron Romance", and ask ourselves retorical questions...

Are we mad? Should we be mad? Is this a problem? Who's problem is it? How much is for show? How much is real? Who's playing who? Is it worth the attention? Is money talking more than a ring? Why do we watch? Why does he listen? Do we and LeBron look forward more to the press conferences more than the game?

You, personally, might of been able to answer those questions pretty quickly. They may of even seemed absured to you. But if most of us answered those honestly, I don't think it'd be so easy.

The ad was obviously straight-forward and possibly even offensive to some. But just days later, he publicly stated that he would of done "The Decision" differently. What do we make of that? Saying, not necessarily that the choice to leave Cleveland would be different, but how he went about making it. Does that mean he's excused? Apparantly not, because within days of the ad being launched, there were already spoofs going off right behind it. It started with ESPN's Michelle Beadle's light-hearted interpretation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksR2M0afC5c . Then Comedy Central's South Park just had to dip their hands in, using it as a platform to shoot at BP (quite a comparison) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xoLB1d47O0 . The clincher came earlier today when an actual "Cleveland Answer" was created in accordance with the ad. This one's not so light-hearted, and they actually respond to his questions. See for yourself... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8eFNcEFWSw .

While this is all entertaining, and honestly quite amusing, that's all it is anymore. This is nothing more than entertainment. To put it in perspective, I'm a fan of WWE wrestling. While they are athletes, they are primarily entertainers. LeBron James is turning the face of the NBA into entertainment. He no longer looks like the reigning MVP of the NBA, but more like the Don King of the NBA. I no longer think about basketball when I think about LeBron. He has now become better at hype and promotion than actual basketball. Everyone always questions my personal dislike for LeBron James, and this is precisely why. I'm absolutely tired of it. I understand business and I understand marketing, and advertsing as well. But when you go beyond publicly deciding to leave your hometown, to publicly calling out and antagonizing every critic and negative thought that's been made towards you, you dig your own grave.

I don't excuse Clevelands actions "post-decision", but this one is on LeBron, and I no longer have sympathy towards him in anyway whatsoever. He has now made it perfectly clear that he wants nothing more than to be the villain. Why? because we will all pay to watch the villain. Some actually swallowed the idea that he would do it differently now if he could go back; well that's cute, but it would mean a whole lot more if he hadn't already recieved his eight-digit check for doing the ad.

He wants to know what he should do?

...Shut up and play ball.

Day One Chills...

Extraordinary? No.
Intense? No.
Thrilling? No, that's not it.
Electric? No, that's not it either.

Sitting here two and a half hours removed from the end of game one of the Trailblazers '10-'11 win against the Phoenix Suns, I simply don't know what to say.

Tonight felt different.

Admittedly I got to the arena significantly late, as in "right before introductions" late (Parking in Portland blows!!!). Flying solo on this fall night, I was on my own agenda. I rushed through the Garden doors, and didn't even have time to take my annual stop to smell "the roses". Grabbed whatever souvenir they were bombing at my stomach. No circling around the concourse to enjoy the festivities. Paced frantically through the crowd to find an escalator up to...where else? The Nosebleed!!! Sec. 311 Row F Seat 3. Everything seemed to be going 100 mph. Never really stopped. Sat down, but quickly was brought back up to my feet by the emerging color guard. Lights dimmed, our nation's colors flourished, and in entered a man Blazer fans know all too well: Mike Phillips. With his glowing saxaphone in-hand, and a silent sold out crowd of 20,630, He began to belt our National Anthem. Suddenly everything slowed, and that 100 mph seemed like 5.

My Blazers hat over my heart, my eyes marveled at the court, and my ears humbled by those miraculous notes, I was moved.

When our announcer told everyone to finish the sentence: "This is..." And the arena of 20,630 bellowed "OUR HOUSE!!!" , I was anxious.

When they dropped those white sheets from the scoreboard, and displayed a Blazers highlight reel to Eminem's "I'm Not Afraid", I was speechless.

But thinking about it all now, more than anything else it simply gave me chills.

These moments seem so basic to most who are reading this, but to those who have actually experienced it, you know exactly what I'm talking about. The game, itself, was the same way. These new-look Blazers have a style like we've never seen. They are absolutely thriving off of energy. They don't seem to be the silent, strategic, "waiting to strike" kind of team. Granted it's game one, but to me they looked like the starving aggressors. They were fearless. Tonight they carried themselves with immense enthusiasm and focus. They're officially the "go-getters". They get it now. They understand they're responsibility and the weight that they all now carry in Portland. This atmosphere tonight was like a fever, extremely contagious. It's intangible.

The indescribable excitement of tonight brings me back to those chills. What I didn't previously explain in the beginning, was why exactly I was late tonight. While this may seem entirely irrelevent to you at this given time, it's actually the later cause of those chills I mentioned. You see, I actually arrived at the Rose Garden at about 6:50p; 10 minutes before tipoff. Before then, I had been in class most of the day. After that, I came home and cooked some quick top ramen. After that, I sped down to the gym. After that, I took a shower at home and had to stop by the bank for cash before I finally got downtown to the game. Okay? Cool? Maybe. But not to me.

By the time I got to the arena, I didn't even really care that I was actually at the arena. When I walked in, it just seemed like something else I had to do today. As you start to get busier and busier in your everyday routines, this becomes more common. And it's okay, because we know that as long as we get done what we need to get done, then what we know about what we did is doesn't matter, right? ...Why? See, I can't speak for all of you, but personally, a Blazer game is one of the last places I have left that I can go to and won't have to worry about anything else whatsoever. It was a wake up call to be rushing through the garden like that, running totally late, just hasseling to find my seat, to suddenly being overwhelmed with chills from the atmosphere of everything around me. Tonight I was reminded of why I love Blazer games, and why I go to Blazer games, and hopefuly why you go to Blazer games. Because for an hour and a half, we can forget the job, the homework, the sickness, the relationships, the money, the gym, or whatever you may have going on in your life to simply be fulfilled with chills from something amazing.

...I'll never be late again.

The 10 Days of Blazers

~On the 10th day before game one my Blazers gave to me, Przybilla is back from a bad knee.

On the 9th day before game one my Blazers gave to me, Oden's on his way, and Przybilla is back from a bad knee.

On the 8th day before game one my Blazers gave to me, Lamarcus is a beast, Oden's on his way, and Przybilla is back from a bad knee.

On the 7th day before game one my Blazers gave to me, Jerryd's growing up, Lamarcus is a beast, Oden's on his way, and Przybilla is back from a bad knee.

On the 6th day before game one my Blazers gave to me, Batum has much improved, Jerryd's growing up, Lamarcus is a beast, Oden's on his way, and Przybilla is back from a bad knee.

On the 5th day before game one my Blazers gave to me, #5 STAYED IN PORTLAAAND!!! Batum has much improved, Jerryd's growing up, Lamarcus is a beast, Oden's on his way, and Przybilla is back from a bad knee.

On the 4th day before game one my Blazers gave to me, Camby is still healthy, #5 STAYED IN PORTLAAAND!!! Batum has much improved, Jerryd's growing up, Lamarcus is a beast, Oden's on his way, and Przybilla is back from a bad knee.

On the 3rd day before game one my Blazers gave to me, Andre gets it now, Camby is still healthy, #5 STAYED IN PORTLAAAND!!! Batum has much improved, Jerryd's growing up, Lamarcus is a beast, Oden's on his way, and Przybilla is back from a bad knee.

On the 2nd day before game one my Blazers gave to me, Matthews is surprising, Andre gets it now, Camby is still healthy, #5 STAYED IN PORTLAAAND!!! Batum has much improved, Jerryd's growing up, Lamarcus is a beast, Oden's on his way, and Przybilla is back from a bad knee.

On the last day before game one my Blazers gave to me, B.Roy wants the ball more, Matthews is surprising, Andre gets it now, Camby is still healthy, #5 STAYED IN PORTLAAAND!!! Batum has much improved, Jerryd's growing up, Lamarcus is a beast, Oden's on his way, and Przybilla is back from a bad knee.~

For those of you who have not recently looked at your calendars, the Trailblazers 2010-2011 season begins in exactly 10 days now. Most of you are ecstatic, a few of you are anxious, and some of you could care less either way. But ecstatic, anxious, and careless are the same feelings the Blazers have right now going into this season. Ecstatic to do what they've set themselves up to do for years now. Anxious to find out exactly how good they are now. And careless, because whether you watch, show up, and cheer for them or not, they'll be walking through that dark tunnel on October 26 to play game one of the 2010-2011 season against The Phoenix Suns. You hear that name, and shriek, knowing what they did to the Blazers in the playoffs, the very thought of Phoenix is daunting. But because the Blazers are careless of what anyone else thinks, that also makes them fearless. Whether you're ready or not, they are.

...And on the day of game one my Blazers gave to me, a win that made everyone see.

The only L.A. we need to worry about this year, is the one in Portland...

Brutal isn't it?

For those of us who have ever tried driving the lane on a bohemeth Like Amare Stoudemire, it's difficult to land without without a bruise or a bloody nose. However, here it looks like Lamarcus Aldridge is experiencing both. But you know what else is brutal about this picture? That ball is still getting pounded through the hoop.

Growing up in a basketball family, it was inevitable that I started playing at an early age with my older brother already turning heads, and my dad as a coach. When it was finally time to play on an actual team, dad decided he wanted to start coaching me for awhile. It never ended. Even during seasons where he wasn't actually my coach, he was. I was never the largest kid on the court, but always enjoyed mixing it up with centers in the pit. But as much as I loved it, for a long time it wasn't effective. This is why my dad remained my coach for my entire basketball life. He discovered that when I got hit by larger guys, that I would get really irritated, frustrated, and more than anything, extremely pissed off. He made it his personal mission to force me to use that anger. Aggressive is the easiest way to describe it, but honestly it wasn't that nice. There were countless games where my dad would yell at me, whether he was on the bench or in the stands, to purposely make me mad. When I got mad, the caution was out the window, and I would almost become a different player. Not quite hulk status, but you get the idea. Whether I was good or not is a different sory, but the point is that I learned to use everything I have, to make everyone else use everything they have.

Now I told you that story because it's essential knowledge for the real story.

Since the year Lamarcus Aldridge got drafted to Portland, he looked like he could seriously be one of the missing links to The Blazers' success. Tall, athletic, lean, light on his feet, great shot. He looked like the ideal power forward. But he LOOKED like the ideal power forward. We all know that he still has yet to BE the ideal power forward. So when are we going to get him? I was reading Mike Barrett 's blog, a Trailblazers TV analyst, and he seems to believe that the time is now. He reported that Lamarcus had a trainer from the Blazers go to his hometown in Texas to work with him on what else? his aggressiveness. I wasn't sure if it was true, but it has been confirmed that Lamarcus has put on about 20 lbs. this offseason, mainly of pure muscle.

But why now? It's pretty rare for an athlete to simply decide he's going to make such a drastic change. Re-committments of this calibur don't normally happen overnight; it's typically something that eats away at you for awhile, before you lash out.

People always told me that I didn't belong trying to play against larger guys, because of my size. Constantly told I needed to be more aggressive, and to loosen up. My dad chewed my ass whenever I wasn't playing the way he had coached me, and the way I was capable of playing.

I don't believe Lamarcus' dad has been constantly on him to play up to parr and to get aggressive. But I do believe the people have. Coaches, family, friends can give all the suggestions they want to Lamarcus. But at the end of the day, the only thing he hears is the people. You, Portland, have finally pissed off Lamarcus Aldridge. The one thing that will always get to an athlete's head, is when their hometown fans begin to question their talent, their committment, and their heart. I think we've hit the spot. We saw a glimpse of it in last years playoffs against the Phoenix Suns. Lamarcus was, for the most part, timid in his quest to contain and out-play Amare Stoudemire. But in the game pictured above, Lamarcus had clearly had enough. It's the moment when a normal athlete is getting drilled by everyone around them, but still scores, that makes them an abnormal athlete.

This blog is noticeably late for a reason. I didn't want to post this until I was sure, for myself, that what was being said was true. Last night, I headed into Portland to watch the Blazer's annual Fan Fest. Not to necessarily enjoy the festivities, or autographs, or even to watch a good scrimmage. Personally, I was more interested to observe the players and their development after this last offseason. Specifically, I wanted to watch Lamarcus. I walked into the arena, took one look to the court, and spotted the guy in a second. He's huge. He will no longer be considered "Stretch" Aldridge. He has the size of a center. But again, couldn't be sold yet because as we've seen with him, looks just haven't proven anything. Obviously, this was just a scrimmage, but every Blazer out there was out to prove a point to everyone there. Aldridge has a big chip on his shoulder, and he showed it. He was everywhere on the court yesterday; did not-stop-moving!!! He was constantly shifting his weight on defenders, and attacking the hoop. What was most pleasing, was seeing him not only go inside, but mix it up with his shooting outside.

Portland, for what it's worth coming from me, Lamarcus Aldridge is hungry. Lamarcus aldridge is pissed off. And most of all, Lamarcus Aldridge is ready.

Well done, Portland.

...Uhh Did What?

"Ladies and gentlemen,I'm extremely honored to be presenting this trophy tonight, and to be standing among such talent as these young men. That being said, it gives me great pleasure to introduce to you your 2010-2011 NBA World Champions, THE MIAMI HEAT!!!"

You got to watch David Stern present the trophy the other night, right? I mean you couldn't miss it, it was a groundbreaking moment in NBA history. Well hopefully you at least got to watch them in the playoffs, they were unbelievable! They swept every-single-series they played! Every game was a lop-sided blowout, and it got to the point where teams were just bowing out after awhile. There's no other way around it, The Miami Heat of '10-'11 are the greatest team in NBA history, hands down. Boston and the "Big three" mere shells of what they used to be. Kobe and The Lakers are all missing a step. And Dwight's Magic can't even pull a rabbit out of the hat.

Sound familiar? If it doesn't, it certainly should. I mean the way conversations have been going in these past several months, I'd think that this would fit right in, does it not? Too premature? Well my bad, but I just thought that since everyone wanted to play "fortune teller", then I might as well throw on my wizard hat and twiddle my fingers around a cute little crystal ball, too! So there's mine! Hopefully it's not too extreme, because I did a lot of research and put a lot of analytical thought into this one. How can you seriously bet against these guys? Here's a team that has three of the most dominant basketball players in the world, including the reigning MVP. All three have played together for who knows how many years now. The other nine guys create an unrivaled supporting cast, as well as an unbelievable franchi...okay for the love of God, can someone please stop me before i hurl on this computer screen?

I don't like rants because it just sounds like random thought that makes no sense, so I try extremely hard to defend any opinion or anything I say with some kind of backing. But every once and awhile, the raw "fan-ness" kind of overwhelms any astute, well-constructed, or professional thought I may have had. As you might be able to tell by now, this is one of those moments.

I'll make this very short and sweet: Obviously, this team has never played a season together in their entire careers. Specifically, the new "Big Three" have only played together on the U.S.A. team, and other than that, have spent their careers struggling for championships. The only one who does have one is Dwyane Wade. But wait, isn't that the point of bringing the three of them together then, to have a greater opportunity at a ring? Yeah that's definitely the point. In fact, the idea that they could even think to pull off such a move, is pretty scary. So now you have these three incredible athletes on the same team; now what? At the time that LeBron James decided to team up with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, there were only seven players on the Heat's roster (three of which were rookies). Right now, they currently have 20 that they'll need to shrink down to about 12. Let's take a gander at the talent, shall we?

Miami Heat Roster
Joel Anthony
Carlos Arroyo
Patrick Beverley
Chris Bosh
Da'sean Butler
Mario Chalmers
Yakhouba Diawara
Kenny Hasbrouck
Udonis Haslem
Eddie House
Juwan Howard
Zydrunas Ilgauskas
LeBron James
James Jones
Jamaal Magloire
Mike Miller
Dexter Pittman
Shavlik Randolph
Jarvis Varnado
Dwyane Wade

Now, in all honesty, does that sound like an NBA Championship team to you at all? I recognize about 12 of those names. Three are all-stars, three or four have been respectable role-players, and the other five were even fill-ins on their other teams. I don't want to take away anything from The Miami Heat, because they have certainly thrown their name in the hat this off-season. But while I don't want to take away anything, I also don't want to give them more then they've earned. So what have they earned then? ..my point exactly. Here lies my problem.

All it took was one "decision" for people to start engraving "The Miami Heat" into the championship rings for this up-coming season. It's been almost four months since that day, and now you can't even watch ESPN or listen to any NBA analyst speak, without hearing about the Heat. It's pretty sad when Dwyane Wade, himself, has to come out and tell the press that "The Lakers are still the team to beat". He's absolutely right. This team has done NOTHING to be called "The team to beat" yet.

I've watched sports for far too long to believe that in one fell swoop, you can create a championship team. It doesn't work like that. Now when I say that, I'm sure you immediately start thinking about The Celtic's "Big Three" or the couple moves made by The Lakers in order for those teams to win championships. It's not rocket science people, there's a huge difference between those teams and this one. It's the fact that they were actually teams, and this is three guys who just picked up a couple others to try making a team.

On any given day, I will bet on a great team over a few great players.

The day after LeBron decided to join The Heat, my brother came flying into the room yelling "Okay, who thinks The Heat aren't taking it this year?!?! 100 bucks right now!!! It's over!!!"

...Umm me?

We've done this for the past two years now. The first year, I bet on the Boston Celtics while he bet on The Cleveland Cavaliers. Boston won. Last year, I bet on the Los Angeles Lakers while he bet on The Cleveland Cavaliers. Los Angeles won.

Are you catching on to the pattern? The Cavaliers had LeBron, Shaq, Mo Williams, and a team of spot-fillers. Boston and L.A. have great teams. They win and lose as a team. If you do not balance out the load and find a unique chemistry, you will lose every single time.

Team will always beat talent.

America's Koach

Need I say more?

To see the face of such a man, causes one's mind to fill with millions of thoughts. Sports fan or not, you dont even need a name to know who he is. I say this only because it's people like the one here, that sports become relevent to the world. Tournaments, championships, and medals become secondary. Our reasoning to play sports is suddenly for more than the hardware we are rewarded with. We can all attest to the unfortunate reality that the coaches of today, in any sport, are not always the coaches they truly should be. But for all of the negative encounters we may have had, the select few of postives far outweigh it. This is one of those positives. But don't get me wrong, this is not, in any way, casting a shadow over all of the incredible experiences we've all had in sports, because we all know those live forever. What I'm referring to is the few positive encounters in our lives, where sports has been responsible for changing us. A moment, or in this case, a person.

No coach in history has been more influential in the lives of his athletes and the people around him, than Coach Mike Krzyzewski. Object if you will, but it will all be for not. This is not a knock to any other great coach in history, it just means that he's the leader of the pack. "Coach K" has become the icon of what it means to be a coach. He has taken the role of a coach at Duke University, and turned it into the role of a mentor for people all over the world.

As the son of two Catholic polish immigrants, Krzyzewski quickly learned the value of pride and respect towards your fellow man and country. This upbringing then laid the groundwork for the man who would become "Coach K". He was once quoted saying "My ambition in high school was to be a high school coach and teacher, and that's still what I do: teach". From day one he made it very clear that he did not want to preach to anyone, he simply wanted to teach. But before being given the opportunity to coach at Duke in later years, he was living out his earlier ambitions of experiencing basketball for himself. He was fortunate enough to bond his love for basketball with his love for his country, as he attended the United States Military Academy to train to be an officer in the Army. He was then recruited by Army's basketball coach at the time, the legendary Bob Knight. After much success there, he graduated to serve three years in the military. Following his service, he began his coaching career for a military prep school in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. After a short stint there, "Coach K" started his storied journey at Duke University in 1980. From there, the rest is history. He has led Duke to postseason appearances in 27 of the 30 years he has coached there. Countless Coach of the Year awards, 12 ACC championships, 11 Final Four appearances, four NCAA national championships, and on February 13, 2010 coached his 1,000th game at Duke University. Believe me, there's plenty more where that came from. But like I said, it's never been about the hardware for "Coach K".

You would think that a man of his stature would strive only for the greatest of opportunities in his life. He has. We don't see this only because our definition of "great opportunity" and that of his, are extremely different. Through all of his incredible accomplishments, he remains walking with humble feet. He has been approached by the NBA four times now for a coaching position, all with a hefty contract to motivate. All four have been turned down. Krzyzewski has said for years and years that he would never leave Duke until he was absolutely done coaching. The latest and largest offer from the NBA came in the summer of '09 when New Jersey Nets' billionaire owner offered "Coach K" between $12-$15 million a year. K still walked away. It's commonly said that he's one coach who actually practices what he preaches. He believes heavily in loyalty, honor, and trust. Time and time again, he has proved this by showing it in his love for Duke. For 30 years he has bled royal blue during the greatest times, but especially during the worst. However, during this long relationship, he has commonly stepped off campus to offer his assistance in matters that only he could fix.

Now just because he hasn't coached in the NBA, does not mean he hasn't coached their players. Most notably, he was recently called upon to coach the Men's 2008 U.S. Olympic basketball team. Understand that before his arrival, their team had been droughting for several Olympics. Once known as the "Dream Team", they became known merely as just another team. After many years of frustration and disappointment, it was time to set things straight again. Basketball is America's sport. But when other countries start playing it too, it's kind of hard to continuously "walk to the podium". The team that had apparantly lost their way, were found by "Coach K". From this point it was no longer about being the "Dream Team" again; it was simply about being the "Redeem Team". As per his record, "Coach K" quickly made this about more than getting gold again. He was hired right after their 2004 Olympic embarrassment, and decided to start the 2008 Olympics right then. Before making a team, he made it very clear that anyone who was going to play for team U.S.A. was going to commit to a four-year preparation. This caught the attention of the most elite players in the NBA. The most dominant, athletic, and independent players became a team about their country. Through those four years, "Coach K" made these players not only bond together, but gain a sense of liberty and pride in what exactly it was that they were playing for. At a team photoshoot, Krzyzewski recalled seeing Kobe Bryant in the dressing room putting his jersey on, and seeing him break in to tears staring at his jersey. By the time the 2008 Olympic games came around, it was simply about fixing the reputation of the Unites States, on a basketball level, but on an internationally social level as well. They won the gold that year. And because of Coach Krzyzewski, won the respect and admiration of the world as well.

Through everything "Coach K" has done in his life, he has continued to constantly give grace and love to everyone around him. His biggest goal has never been to win countless championships, and countless medals, and countless Coach of the Year awards. The biggest goal in the life of Coach Mike Krzyzewski has simply been to teach.

...We're listening, coach.