 Smithc. 1973 | ||||||||||||
| Biographical details | ||||||||||||
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| Born | (1931-02-28)February 28, 1931 Emporia, Kansas, U.S. | |||||||||||
| Died | February 7, 2015(2015-02-07) (aged 83) Chapel Hill, North Carolina, U.S. | |||||||||||
| Playing career | ||||||||||||
| 1949–1953 | Kansas | |||||||||||
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | ||||||||||||
| 1953–1955 | Kansas (assistant) | |||||||||||
| 1955–1958 | Air Force (assistant) | |||||||||||
| 1958–1961 | North Carolina (assistant) | |||||||||||
| 1961–1997 | North Carolina | |||||||||||
| Head coaching record | ||||||||||||
| Overall | 879–254 (.776) | |||||||||||
| Accomplishments and honors | ||||||||||||
| Championships | ||||||||||||
| As player: As head coach:
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| Awards | ||||||||||||
As head coach:
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| Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 1983 (profile) | ||||||||||||
| College Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 2006 | ||||||||||||
Medal record
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Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men'scollege basketballhead coach. Called a "coaching legend" by theBasketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at theUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Smith coached from 1961 to 1997 and retired with 879 victories, which was theNCAA Division I men's basketball record at that time.[a] Smith had the ninth-highestwinning percentage of any men's college basketball coach (77.6%).[1] Smith's career total of 879 wins lasted until 2005 whenPat Summitt surpassed him with her 880th victory. During his tenure as head coach, North Carolina won two national championships and appeared in 11Final Fours.[2] Smith played college basketball at theUniversity of Kansas, where he won a national championship in1952 playing forHall of fame coachPhog Allen.
Smith was best known for running a clean program and having a high graduation rate, with 96.6% of his athletes receiving their degrees.[3][4] While at North Carolina, Smith helped promotedesegregation by recruiting the university's first African-American scholarship basketball player,Charlie Scott, and pushing for equal treatment for African Americans by local businesses.[5] Smith coached and worked with numerous people at North Carolina who achieved notable success in basketball, as players, coaches, or both. Smith retired in 1997, saying that he was not able to give the team the same level of enthusiasm that he had given it for years. After retiring, Smith used his influence to help various charitable ventures andliberal political activities, but in his later years he suffered from advanced dementia and ceased most public activities.[6]
Smith was born inEmporia, Kansas, on February 28, 1931.[7][8] Both of his parents were public school teachers.[7] Smith's father, Alfred, coached theEmporia High Spartans basketball team to the 1934 state title in Kansas.[7] This 1934 team was notable for having the firstAfrican American basketball player in Kansas tournament history.[7] While at Emporia High School for two years and then atTopeka High School, Smith lettered in basketball all four years and was named all-state in basketball as a senior.[7][9] Smith's interest in sports was not limited to basketball. Smith also played quarterback for his high school football team and catcher for the high schoolbaseball team.[9]
After graduating from high school, Smith attended theUniversity of Kansas on an academic scholarship. He majored inmathematics and joined thePhi Gamma Delta fraternity.[9][10] While at Kansas, Smith continued his interest in sports by playing varsity basketball, varsity baseball, and freshman football. He was also a member of theAir Force ROTC detachment. During his time on the varsity basketball team, Kansas won the national championship in 1952. In 1953, the team was an NCAA tournament finalist.[9][10] Smith's basketball coach during his time at Kansas wasPhog Allen, who had been coached at the University of Kansas by the inventor of basketball,James Naismith.[10] After graduation, Smith served as assistant coach at Kansas in the 1953–54 season.[11]
Smith was commissioned as a second lieutenant on June 7, 1954, in theU.S. Air Force and was stationed atFürstenfeldbruck Air Base in Germany where he was on a team that won the Air Force championship for Europe.[12] He later worked as a head coach ofUnited States Air Force Academy's baseball and golf teams.[11] Yet, Smith's big break would come in the United States. In 1958, North Carolina coachFrank McGuire asked Smith to join his staff as an assistant coach.[11] Smith served under McGuire for three years until 1961, when McGuire was forced to resign by ChancellorWilliam Aycock in the wake of a major recruiting scandal, and consequently, an NCAA mandated probation.
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Years later, Aycock recalled that McGuire came to his office on a Saturday and told him he was resigning. Smith was waiting in McGuire's car outside South Building (UNC's main administration building), so Aycock called him in and asked him if he wanted to take over as head coach. Smith accepted, and the hiring was formally announced the following Monday.[13] When Aycock named Smith as head coach, he told the 30-year-old Smith that wins and losses didn't matter as much as running a clean program and representing the university well.[14]
TheAtlantic Coast Conference (ACC) had canceled theDixie Classic, an annual basketball tournament in Raleigh, North Carolina, due to a national point-shaving scandal including a North Carolina player (Lou Brown).[15] As a result of the scandal, North Carolina de-emphasized basketball by cutting their regular-season schedule. In Smith's first season, North Carolina played only 17 games and went 8–9.[11][16] This was the only losing season he endured during his career.[17] In 1965, he was famously hanged in effigy on the university campus following a disappointing loss toWake Forest.[11] After that game, UNC would win nine of their last eleven games,[18] and Smith would subsequently go on to turn the program into a consistent success. From 1965 onward, Smith's teams never finished worse than tied for third in the ACC.[19] For the first 21 of those years, they did not finish worse than a tie for second. By comparison, during that time the ACC's other charter members each finished last at least once.
Smith's first major successes came in the late 1960s, when his teams won consecutive regular-season and ACC tournament championships, and went to three straightFinal Fours, going all the way to the national championship game in 1968. They would appear in either the NCAA or NIT in every one of Smith's final 31 years in Chapel Hill. However, this run occurred in the middle ofUCLA's stretch of 10 titles in 12 years, and in fact Smith lost to UCLA'sJohn Wooden in the 1968 title game.
Smith won his first national championship with his1981–82 team, which was composed of future NBA players such asMichael Jordan,James Worthy andSam Perkins.[20] After winning the NCAA tournament, North Carolina had a record of 32–2.[21] The other teams that advanced with North Carolina wereGeorgetown,Houston andLouisville. The Tar Heels actually finished in a tie for first in the ACC regular season with theRalph Sampson-ledVirginia Cavaliers. In the semifinals, North Carolina defeated Houston 68–63 inNew Orleans, while Georgetown defeated Louisville 50–46.
The national title game against Georgetown was evenly matched throughout. However, with 17 seconds left on the clock, and the Tar Heels behind by 1 point, Jordan made what ended up being the game-winning shot to put the Tar Heels up 63–62. On Georgetown's ensuing possession, Hoya guard Fred Brown inexplicably passed the ball directly to Worthy with no Georgetown player anywhere near the pass. Worthy attempted to dribble out the clock, but was fouled with 2 seconds left. He missed both free throws, but Georgetown had no timeouts left. The Hoyas missed a halfcourt shot as time expired, giving Smith his first national championship in his seventh appearance in the Final Four.
Dean Smith's1992–93 squad featuredGeorge Lynch,Eric Montross, Brian Reese,Donald Williams, andDerrick Phelps. The Tar Heels started out with an 8–0 record and were ranked #5 in the country when they met #6Michigan in the semi-finals of the Rainbow Classic. The Wolverines, led by theFab Five in their sophomore season, won 79–78 on a last-second shot. North Carolina bounced back with nine straight wins before losing back-to-back road games against unrankedWake Forest and #5Duke. After seven more straight wins, the Tar Heels were ranked #1 heading into the last week of the regular season (their first #1 ranking since the start of the 1987–88 season). North Carolina beat #14 Wake Forest and #6 Duke to close out the regular season and clinch the top seed in the ACC tournament. North Carolina reached the tournament final, but they lost 77–75 to Georgia Tech without Derrick Phelps, who was injured. Nonetheless, North Carolina was awarded the top seed in the east regional of the1993 NCAA tournament, defeating #16-seedEast Carolina (85–65), #8-seedRhode Island (112–67), #4-seedArkansas (80–74) and #2-seedCincinnati (75–68) to reach the Final Four inNew Orleans.
In the national semifinals, Smith's Tar Heels defeated his alma materKansas (coached by future North Carolina coachRoy Williams) 78–68. In 1991, the same two teams also met in the national semifinals with Kansas prevailing and Dean Smith being ejected. The 1993 victory for UNC set up a rematch from earlier that season with #3 ranked Michigan in the Finals.
The 1993 national title game was a see-saw battle throughout, but is remembered best forChris Webber calling a time-out while trapped against the sideline by two defenders. Michigan did not have any timeouts remaining and trailed by two points. Michigan was assessed a technical foul and North Carolina ended up winning 77–71, giving Smith his second national championship.[22] After a six-year investigation by the NCAA, Webber's association and financial dealings with Ed Martin determined that there had been a series of violations and direct payments to players and was termed "theUniversity of Michigan basketball scandal" and resulted in Michigan pulling down all of its banners and titles from that era.
Smith abruptly announced his retirement on October 9, 1997. He had said that if he ever felt he could not give his team the same enthusiasm he had given it for years, he would retire.[23] His announcement was unexpected, as he had given little warning that he was considering retirement.[24] With such short notice of Smith's retirement,Bill Guthridge, who had been his assistant for 30 years, succeeded him as head coach.
During his retirement, Smith had a large influence on the North Carolina basketball program. In 2003 Smith talked toRoy Williams regarding his decision about whether or not to replace a strugglingMatt Doherty as head coach.[25] Williams had previously declined the head coaching position three years earlier when Guthridge retired.[26]
In July 2010, journalistJohn Feinstein disclosed that he had planned to write a biography of Smith, but had to shelve it due to Smith's deteriorating memory.[27] Shortly after, Smith's family released a letter stating that he had a "progressive neurocognitive disorder", which had not been publicly disclosed asAlzheimer's or anything else. He had trouble remembering the names of some of his players, the letter said, but he could not forget what his relationships with those players meant. He also remembered words to hymns and jazz standards, but did not go to concerts. He had difficulty with traveling but continued to watch his former team on TV. Williams said, "He does have his good days and bad."[28]
Smith-coached teams varied in style, depending on the players Smith had available. But they generally featured a fast-break style, a half-court offense that emphasized the passing game, and an aggressive trapping defense that produced turnovers and easy baskets. From 1970 until his retirement, his teams featured a shooting percentage of over 50% in all but four years.
Smith was credited with creating or popularizing the following basketball techniques: The "tired signal", in which a player would use a hand signal (originally a raised fist) to indicate that he needed to come out for a rest,[29][30] huddling at the free throw line before a foul shot,[29][30] encouraging players who scored a basket to point a finger at the teammate who passed them the ball, in honor of the passer's selflessness,[29][30] instituting a variety of defensive sets in one game,[29][31] having the point guard call out the defense set for the team,[29][31] and creating a number of defensive sets, including the point zone, the run-and-jump, and double-teaming the screen-and-roll.[9]
Strategically, Smith was most associated with his implementation ofJohn McLendon'sfour corners offense, a strategy for stalling with a lead near the end of the game. Smith's teams executed the four corners set so effectively that in 1985 the NCAA instituted a shot clock to speed up play and minimize ball-control offense.[9][32] Although fellow Kansas alum McLendon actually invented the four corners offense, Smith got credit for utilizing it in games.[29] Smith was also the author ofBasketball: Multiple Offense and Defense, which is the best-selling technical basketball book in history.[2]
Smith also instituted the practice of starting all his team's seniors on the last home game of the season ("Senior Day") as a way of honoring the contributions of the substitutes as well as the stars.[33] In a season when the team included six seniors, he put all six on the floor at the beginning of the game – drawing atechnical foul – rather than leave one of them out.[34]
During the 1993 run for the national title, Smith used a method that was introduced to him at a conference in Switzerland. At the conference, Smith was presented a tape by a lecturer who used doctored images to achieve his goal of losing weight. The photos showed the lecturer what he would look like if he were thinner as motivation to reach his weight-loss goals. Smith took a picture of the scoreboard from the 1982 Championship, modified it to read 1993 and erased the name Georgetown, leaving that space blank. He proceeded to place copies of the doctored photo in all of the players' lockers.[22]
Student athletes under Smith achieved a graduation rate of 96.6% at North Carolina,[3][4] and he established a reputation for running a clean program.[35]
Smith married Ann Cleavinger in 1954, shortly before his deployment overseas with theUnited States Air Force. They had three children: daughters Sharon and Sandy, and son Scott. Smith and Cleavinger divorced in 1973. Smith marriedpsychiatrist Linnea Weblemoe Smith on May 21, 1976. They have two adult daughters, Kristen and Kelly.[36] Weblemoe Smith would battlePlayboy over college all-star teams, "campaigning for an end of all sports associations withPlayboy, to include all interviews as well as the regular picture-taking of top college basketball and football stars".[37]
Smith died on the evening of February 7, 2015, at age 83, at his Chapel Hill home surrounded by his family.[38] A private funeral was held on February 12 at Binkley Baptist Church in Chapel Hill, with burial following atOld Chapel Hill Cemetery on the UNC campus.[39] A public memorial service was held at the Dean Smith Center on February 22.[39]
Michael Jordan, who had played with theNorth Carolina Tar Heels with Dean Smith as coach, stated that Smith had been the most influential person in his life other than his parents and that he was "more than a coach — he was a mentor, my teacher, my second father."[40]
Smithwilled a $200 check to each of thelettermen he'd coached during his 36 years at North Carolina, which included the message "Enjoy a dinner out compliments of Coach Dean Smith.” The estate's trustee told ESPN that checks were sent out to about 180 ex-players.[41]
Among the accomplishments of Smith:
Smith received a number of personal honors during his coaching career. He was named the National Coach of the Year four[citation needed] times (1977, 1979, 1982, 1993) and ACC Coach of the Year eight times (1967, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1988, 1993). Smith was also inducted into theBasketball Hall of Fame on May 2, 1983, two years after being enshrined in the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame.
Smith was the first recipient of the Mentor Award for Lifetime Achievement, given by the University of North Carolina Committee on Teaching Awards for "a broader range of teaching beyond the classroom."[4] He has also been awarded honorary doctorates byEastern University andCatawba College.[42]
In 1982, Smith was the recipient of the Golden Plate Award of theAmerican Academy of Achievement presented by Awards Council member CoachTom Landry.[43]
The basketball arena at North Carolina, theDean Smith Center, was named for Smith. It is also widely referred to as the "Dean Dome." Smith coached the last 11.5 years of his career in the arena, making him one of the few college coaches to have coached in an arena or stadium named for him. In 1997, upon his retirement, Smith was namedSportsman of the Year by the magazineSports Illustrated. ESPN named Smith one of the five all-time greatest American coaches of any sport. In 1998, he won theArthur Ashe Courage Award, presented at the annual ESPY Awards hosted by ESPN.[44]
On November 17, 2006, Smith was recognized for his impact on college basketball as a member of the founding class of theNational Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. He was one of five, along withOscar Robertson,Bill Russell,John Wooden andDr. James Naismith, selected to represent the inaugural class.[45] In 2007, he was enshrined in theFIBA Hall of Fame.[46]
On November 20, 2013, PresidentBarack Obama awarded Smith thePresidential Medal of Freedom.[47]
On December 8, 2021, the North Carolina State Board of Transportation approved namingInterstate 40 betweenU.S. 15-501 andNorth Carolina Highway 54 "Dean Smith Highway".[48]
A longtimeDemocrat, Dean Smith was one of the most prominentliberals in North Carolina politics. Politically, he was best known for promotingdesegregation. In 1964, Smith joined a local pastor and a black North Carolina theology student to integrate The Pines, a Chapel Hill restaurant. He also integrated the Tar Heels basketball team by recruitingCharlie Scott as the university's first black scholarship athlete.[5] In 1965, Smith helpedHoward Lee, a black graduate student at North Carolina, purchase a home in an all-white neighborhood.[9] He opposed theVietnam War and, in the early 1980s, famously recorded radio spots to promote a freeze on nuclear weapons. He was a prominent opponent of the death penalty. In 1998, he appeared at a clemency hearing for a death-row inmate and pointed at then-GovernorJim Hunt: "You're a murderer. And I'm a murderer. The death penalty makes us all murderers." As head coach, he periodically held North Carolina basketball practices in North Carolina prisons.[49]
While coach, he was recruited by some in the Democratic Party to run for theUnited States Senate against incumbentJesse Helms. He declined. But in retirement, he continued to speak out on issues such as theIraq War,death penalty, andgay rights.[49][dead link][50] Although a staunch Democrat, Smith did support one of his former players,Richard Vinroot, aRepublican who ran forgovernor of North Carolina in2000.[51][52] In 2006, Smith became the spokesperson for Devout Democrats, an inter-faith, grassrootspolitical action committee designed to convince religious Americans to vote for Democrats. Smith was featured in an ad that ran in newspapers across North Carolina and was featured in anAssociated Press article.[53] On October 13, 2008, he endorsed SenatorBarack Obama's candidacy for President of the United States.[54]
One hallmark of Dean Smith's tenure as coach was the concept of the "Carolina Family," the idea that anyone associated with the program was entitled to the support of others. Many of his former players and coaching staff became successful basketball coaches and executives.[55] Smith'scoaching tree includes:
Smith was part of the coaching tree of James Naismith, by way of playing under Phog Allen at Kansas.
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