Hard Work
Page 28
Before our next game, against Marquette, I made a point with the team. “I’m tired of listening to how Marquette is going to beat us because of how hard they work,” I said. “I’m tired of hearing how they’re lunchpail guys. How they don’t have McDonald’s All-Americans, they eat at McDonald’s. You’re telling me that Marquette’s going to beat us because they want it more than you do?” A lot of the experts picked Marquette to win. We were ahead by 25 points at the half and it was never close.
As our staff looked at tape before the Elite Eight game against Kentucky, we thought the two most improved teams in the country were probably North Carolina and Kentucky. I felt that we were really going to play well. I had been lucky enough to coach in nine Elite Eight games previously and win seven of them. I even made a statement one time at a clinic, which I will never make again, that the two easiest games to coach in college are the Elite Eight game and the national championship game because you don’t have to supply much motivation. Because of what’s at stake, the want-to should naturally be there.
But at the start of the game against Kentucky, we did not have that fire, that sense of urgency. The players told me later that they felt like they were overconfident because they had already beaten Kentucky in December. That exposed the inexperience of our team. I’ve always felt that if somebody beats me one time, I want to beat their butt even more the next time we play because I am not going to let somebody do that to me again. That was Kentucky’s attitude.
We did make a great run in the second half to get the score tied with three minutes left. But Kentucky hit some big threes down the stretch, and we just couldn’t make the big shot this time. It was so hard to lose like that, because you don’t know how many opportunities you’re going to get, and the way the tournament played out, I believe if we had beaten Kentucky, we would have been the best team at the Final Four.
I have been in some tough locker rooms: in 1997 when my Kansas team lost to Arizona and I was convinced we had the best team in the country; in 2003 when we lost to Syracuse and I believed Kirk Hinrich and Nick Collison deserved to win it all. But this one was the toughest. The suddenness of your season ending is always the biggest shock in college basketball, and those kids were so young that it hit them really, really hard. Not a single player on our roster had ever lost a game in the NCAA Tournament. None of the kids in that locker room had ever experienced that finality. They were just destroyed. Normally I expect all of my players to look at me when I’m talking, but when I looked around that locker room there was not one player making eye contact. Some of them had their heads down crying. Others had towels draped over heads. One or two were just staring into space.
The hardest part for a coach in that moment is that you feel so inadequate. There was nothing I could say or do that was going to erase their hurt. It was so painful to look at those guys and know that I couldn’t help a group who had done so much to help me. I told them how proud I was of them. I apologized to them because I was so disappointed about how we played in the first half and blamed myself. I told them to remember how badly they were feeling and to use it as fuel for the next season when we could be an even better team.
I thought about how we had overcome so many things together; the Wears, Will Graves, Larry Drew, the tough start when nobody could ever have imagined an ACC championship or 29 wins. The depth of my appreciation for what they had done as a team made the pain of my inadequacy even sharper. Finally, I thanked them, and even that felt empty, knowing that there was no way those young men could ever truly understand how much they’d done for this old coach. There was no way I could ever thank them enough for that.
Roy Williams
April 2011
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
THERE ARE SO MANY PEOPLE I need to thank in my everyday life, specifically when it relates to their help with my career and this book.
I have been extremely fortunate with the administrative assistants I’ve had, and even more fortunate that I’ve had so few. When I first got to Kansas my personal assistant was Suzanne Bangert, and she was sensational. Then Debbie Walker came and stayed with me for seven years and was off the charts. Joanie Stevens took over and was with me for seven more years and took excellent care of me. Other people in my office were Susan Bragg, Carole Dickey, and Tami Hoffman, and they all did a great job. I know my 15 years at Kansas were made so much simpler because of those individuals. When I arrived at UNC, Jennifer Holbrook took up where the others left off and was just unbelievable. Nadia Lynch is now my assistant and has some big shoes to fill, but I feel strongly that she is going to do it. I have also been helped in Chapel Hill by Kaye Chase, Emily Cozart, Armin Dastur, Cynthia Stone, and Kay Thomas, who have been outstanding as well.
I’d also like to thank Eric Hoots, who has been a wonderful video coordinator; Wayne Walden, who was the most impressive academic adviser I have ever been around — I was lucky to have him for 21 years — and Jonas Sahratian, who is the most talented strength and conditioning coach in the whole world. I also have been very fortunate to have worked with three great trainers: Mark Cairns at Kansas and Marc Davis and Chris Hirth at UNC.
The fans at Kansas and North Carolina have been unbelievably good to me. Your overwhelming support, from the opening of Late Night with Roy in 1988 at Kansas to the moment I walked up to the stage of the Smith Center after our second national championship has always given me chills. I know that I will never be the best to a lot of people, but so many of you have made me feel that way. I thank all of you so much. There is no way I could have had such a great life and been involved in so many memorable accomplishments without my staff. Joe, Steve, Jerod, C.B. — you all are definitely “foxhole buddies” as well.
TIM AND I WOULD also like to thank Steve Kirschner, Matt Bowers, and Terry Kermit Roberts from the UNC Athletic Communications department for their extraordinary help with this project. Chris Theisen, Mitch Germann, Doug Vance, and Gary Bedore from Kansas were also incredibly accommodating as we asked them to dig through their archives. Thanks also to Jeffrey Camarati, Rich Clarkson, Mike Dickson, Jeff Jacobsen, J.D. Lyon, and Jack Morton for their help with the photography that brings many of the stories in this book to life. Joe Mustian and Jack Wooten also played indispensable roles in making this project complete.
At Algonquin Books, we would like to thank our extraordinarily skillful and patient editor, Kathy Pories, as well as Brunson Hoole, Anne Winslow, Laura Williams, Craig Popelars, Michael Taeckens, Ina Stern, Elisabeth Scharlatt, and Peter Workman.
We also appreciate all the work done by Chris Parris-Lamb and David Gernert at the Gernert Company.
A special thank-you to John Grisham for lending his brilliant words to the foreword and to Wanda Williams for inspiring and enhancing so many of the stories in this book.
TIM WOULD LIKE to thank his wife, Dana, and his kids, Atticus and Sawyer, for understanding why they haven’t seen much of him for a while.
Appendix A
COACH ROY WILLIAMS’ PLAYERS
UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
Name
Years
Todd Alexander
1990
Sean Alvarado
1989
Luke Axtell
2000–2001
Brett Ballard
2001–2002
Scooter Barry
1989
Jeff Boschee
1999–2002
Nick Bradford
1997–2000
Joel Branstrom
1995–1997
Terry Brown
1990–1991
Rick Calloway
1989–1990
Jeff Carey
1998–2002
Eric Chenowith
1998–2001
Nick Collison
2000–2003
John Crider
1999–2000
Lane Czaplinski
1990–1992
Ben Davis
1992
Lester Earl
> 1998–2000
Doug Elstun
1989–1991
Drew Gooden
2000–2002
Jeff Graves
2003–2004
Kenny Gregory
1998–2001
Jeff Gueldner
1989–1990
Greg Gurley
1992–1995
Jerod Haase
1994–1997
Darrin Hancock
1993
Lewis Harrison
2001–2002
Jeff Hawkins
2003–2003
Kirk Hinrich
2000–2003
Alonzo Jamison
1989–1992
Jelani Janisse
1998–1999
David Johanning
1990–1992
Ashante Johnson
1999–2000
Adonis Jordan
1990–1993
Brad Kampschroeder
1989
Todd Kappelmann
2000–2002
Mario Kinsey
2001
Raef LaFrentz
1995–1998
Keith Langford
2002–2003
Michael Lee
2002–2003
Marlon London
1999–2000
Mike Maddox
1989–1991
Pekka Markkanen
1990
Chris Martin
1998–1999
C.B. McGrath
1995–1998
Aaron Miles
2002–2003
Lincoln Minor
1989
Christian Moody
2002–2003
Bryant Nash
2001–2003
Macolm Nash
1989–1992
Milt Newton
1989
Moulaye Niang
2002–2003
Terry Nooner
1997–2000
Scott Novosel
1994–1995
Brett Olson
2003
Greg Ostertag
1992–1995
Eric Pauley
1992–1993
Sean Pearson
1992–1996
Paul Pierce
1996–1998
Scot Pollard
1994–1997
Kevin Pritchard
1989
Nick Proud
1994
T.J. Pugh
1996–1999
Mark Randall
1989–1991
Steve Ransom
1995–1997
Calvin Rayford
1992–1996
Patrick Richey
1991–1994
Ryan Robertson
1996–1999
Richard Scott
1991–1994
Wayne Simien
2001–2002
Billy Thomas
1995–1998
Sean Tunstall
1989–1991
Jacque Vaughn
1994–1997
Stephen Vinson
2002–2003
Kirk Wagner
1990–1991
Rex Walters
1991–1993
Blake Weichbrodt
1992–1994
Freeman West
1989–1990
T.J. Whatley
1993–1996
B.J. Williams
1994–1997
Travis Williams
1996–1997
Steve Woodberry
1991–1994
Chris Zerbe
2001–2002
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA
Name
Years
Harrison Barnes
2011
Justin Bohlander
2004
Daniel Bolick
2011
Reggie Bullock
2011
Dewey Burke
2006–2007
Marc Campbell
2007–2010
Stewart Cooper
2011
Mike Copeland
2006–2009
Patrick Crouch
2011
Ed Davis
2009–2010
Larry Drew II
2009–2011
David Dupont
2011
Wayne Ellington
2007–2009
Charlie Everett
2005
Raymond Felton
2004–2005
Brooks Foster
2005
Bobby Frasor
2006–2009
James Gallagher
2010
Marcus Ginyard
2006–2010
Damion Grant
2004–2005
Will Graves
2007–2010
Danny Green
2006–2009
Tyler Hansbrough
2006–2009
Van Hatchell
2011
John Henson
2010–2011
Jesse Holley
2004–2005
C.J. Hooker
2004–2005
D.J. Johnston
2011
Justin Knox
2011
Ty Lawson
2007–2009
Greg Little
2008
Jackie Manuel
2004–2005
Kendall Marshall
2011
Sean May
2004–2005
Rashad McCants
2004–2005
Leslie McDonald
2010–2011
Phillip McLamb
2002–2004
Jonathan Miller
2003–2004
Wes Miller
2004–2007
Patrick Moody
2008–2009
David Noel
2004–2006
Terrence Petree
2010
Damien Price
2004
Will Robinson
2006
Byron Sanders
2004–2006
Melvin Scott
2004–2005
Alex Stepheson
2007–2008
Dexter Strickland
2010–2011
J.B. Tanner
2008–2009
Reyshawn Terry
2004–2007
Quentin Thomas
2005–2008
Deon Thompson
2007–2010
Thomas Thornton
2010
Justin Watts
2009–2011
David Wear
2010
Travis Wear
2010
Thomas Wilkins
2006
Jawad Williams
2004–2005
Marvin Williams
2005
Surry Wood
2006–2008
Jack Wooten
2008–2009
Brandan Wright
2007
Tyler Zeller
2009–2011
Appendix B
COACH ROY WILLIAMS’ CAREER
643–163 record in 23 seasons
Two NCAA championships, 2005 and 2009
Naismith Hall of Fame Inductee, 2007
Seven-time National Coach of the Year
Seven Final Fours
Ranks first in the country in winning percentage among active coaches (79.8)
Fourth all-time in winning percentage
Fourth all-time with seven Final Fours
Third all-time with 58 NCAA Tournament wins
Second all-time with nine No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament
Second all-time with 20 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances
Third all-time with 77 NCAA Tournament games coached
Only coach to win an NCAA Tournament game in 20 consecutive seasons
One
of 13 coaches to win multiple NCAA Championships
14 regular season conference titles
Reached 500 wins in fewer seasons than any coach in history
Has won more games than any coach after 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 and 23 seasons