DURHAM, N.C. — Mike Krzyzewski just directed his exceptionally talented Duke basketball team through a two-hour practice that included more than a few spectacular plays, so he has plenty of reason to be enthused. But we are not talking about the Blue Devils at the moment.
We are talking about his belief the time is right for fundamental change in college basketball, and Krzyzewski is so jacked about the possibilities he seems to shed half his 70 years during a 35-minute conversation.
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“It’s an incredible time, a good time. I’m excited about it,” Krzyzewski told Sporting News. “I’m not saying I have all the answers. I’m saying: Let’s look at that, let’s look at this … and let’s put somebody in charge of college basketball, which I’ve been saying for 25 years.”
During a one-on-one interview Thursday, Krzyzewski made it clear on multiple occasions he is not delighting in the misfortune of others: the arrests of 10 men, including four NCAA Division I assistant coaches, on various charges resulting from an FBI investigation into illicit activities in the sport.
“I’m sorry that these events occurred, obviously,” Krzyzewski said. “But sometimes only when something bad happens will people look at change. It’s not time for a Band-Aid. It’s time for a major overhaul — of this entire journey, not just our part of it. Our part is the one that is furthest behind, or the one that is not in touch.”
The journey Krzyzewski is referencing involves the advancement of the basketball prospect from high school and summer basketball through the NCAA and, in some cases, onto the professional game. College basketball’s circumstance became complicated by the FBI sting operation that led to the arrests of coaches from Arizona, Auburn, Oklahoma State and Southern California as well as executives from Adidas and individuals involved in agency and management businesses.
In response to those criminal complaints, NCAA president Mark Emmert convened a commission of accomplished individuals to examine the issues affecting college basketball and to propose solutions to the problems identified. Its first meeting is expected to be Nov. 16.
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One concern that immediately arose about the panel’s composition is that there is almost no one involved, other than former college coaches Mike Montgomery and John Thompson III, with recent hands-on experience inside college hoops. Krzyzewski allowed that he wishes Jim Haney, the president of the National Association of Basketball Coaches, had been included along with someone representing the NBA.
There are several commission members Krzyzewski knows well, though, some because of ties to Duke. Grant Hill starred for the Blue Devils in the early '90s. Hall of Famer David Robinson’s son Justin plays for the Blue Devils now. Retired Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, now chairman of USA Basketball, was a fellow at Duke last year.
Krzyzewski wants the panel not to arrive with “preconceived notions” about how to improve the game.
“Hopefully they weren’t given the mission to see how this fits the old mold,” Krzyzewski said. “Hopefully they just can look at everything. I think that is what has happened.
“They are really smart people. Now, do they know the neighborhood? They don’t know the neighborhood. I think they will bring the people from the neighborhood in.
“I’d be the congressman that goes into the neighborhood before going to D.C. and voting on a doggone bill. Find out what’s going on."
These were Krzyzewski’s thoughts on the key areas for the commission to address:
Summer basketball
Krzyzewski strongly endorsed the continuation of tournaments commonly (though incorrectly) labeled “AAU basketball.” Many have criticized the involvement of athletic apparel companies in funding and sponsoring teams and tournaments involved in the circuit, and some have called for its abolition.
“That’s not a good idea because that would stop thousands and thousands of kids from being seen” by the 350-plus Division I programs. “Just the expense of 'Now I’ve got to see one kid over there' – it’s ridiculous.
“So figure it out,” Krzyzewski said. “Find out why grassroots is so important for the shoe companies. See how it can blend in.”
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Krzyzewski rejected the assertion by some that USA Basketball should take over the summer scene, explaining it does not have the resources to manage such a vast enterprise. He also noted that his experience with summer ball extends beyond his experience as a college coach; his two eldest grandsons are playing. "They love it," he said.
Krzyzewski believes the commission should speak with prospects and parents to see what their experiences have been.
(If they do, they will discover there is a near desperation among the family members of many college prospects for their sons to be scouted.)
"We certainly shouldn’t get rid of camps, and we certainly shouldn’t get rid of tournaments," Krzyzewski said. "That’s how these kids are seen. That’s how 351 staffs get to see a kid."
Shoe companies
Although two executives from Adidas were among those charged in the case, Krzyzewski rejected the widespread condemnation of the major athletic apparel companies. He contended their presence in college athletics has been overwhelmingly positive.
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"The shoe companies are good,” he said. “Our school is under a Nike contract — millions of dollars. UCLA is on an Under Armour, someone’s on an Adidas. . . . Our women’s soccer team, everyone is fitted . . . it pays for a lot.
"Now, how they deal with us in a bureaucratic state? Find out how that is. It doesn’t mean they deal with AAU and their grassroots the same way, because they’re not under the same rules. It’s not illegal if your son is really good, the company outfits his whole high school team, starts an AAU program and asks you to be the coach and they pay you. If the kid is good enough along with 12 other kids, they take you to Italy. Would you go on that trip? Of course you would. And they should. Is it illegal? No.
"Understand that … Understand it better."
Krzyzewski said there has been a massive change over the past three to five years in how grassroots basketball has operated. "Amazing," he said, noting that neither the apparel companies nor the athletes at that stage must answer to any governing body.
Amateurism
Krzyzewski believes it would be wise for the NCAA at least to examine its amateurism model and decide whether that is the proper way forward — and whether it might make sense to treat basketball differently than other sports.
Monetary exceptions already are made to a great extent in sports such as tennis, and with swimmers who succeed at the Olympic Games.
"Learn from the NBA, learn from the shoe companies. These people are big businesses. We try to say: We’re not doing that. We should know all that stuff. Then, if it can be incorporated — do you look at men’s college basketball differently than any other sport?"
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Krzyzewski insisted Duke never has been asked for money from recruits or their families, and he doesn’t contend the players the Devils lose are choosing other programs to get paid.
"The NBA right now is the promised land. If a kid and his family feels they’re going to get there earlier and be developed there, they should be afforded that opportunity," he said. "However, that doesn’t mean that we don’t change things so our thing becomes a little bit more enticing. Make everything more enticing. Get current.
"We’re way behind. And if we have this old thinking of, 'Well, what we do with them means we have to do it with everybody,' it’s not going to change.”
Commissioner
Krzyzewski has been advocating for college basketball to have a commissioner to advance the sport's interests for more than two decades, and it's an idea that has gotten essentially no traction. The NCAA does now have an exceptionally capable person in Danny Gavitt who serves as senior vice president of basketball, but he has less unilateral authority in that role than would be necessary to effectively govern.
Gavitt would be an exceptional choice to fill a commissioner or CEO of college basketball-type role, were it to be created, but first the NCAA would have to take a step away from operating everything by committee and empowering that individual.
"I will never have a relationship with a committee, but I can have a relationship with you," Krzyzewski said. "That’s how our big TV deals in college sports were done; they weren’t driven by a committee. They were driven by relationships. Run it like a business. The entities involved at either end, they’re businesses.
"I'm really big on all this. I'm not condemning anybody. I'm just saying: Let's go, man."
