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Monday meanderings: The death of Dean Smith reminds us of the reality of mortality. It also reminds us that our actions speak far louder than any words.
Video below of Nikki Leigh. Our idea of a good start to the week.
Surrounded by family, the former North Carolina basketball coach died peacefully Saturday night. He had been in declining health for a few years with reports of his having diminished memory. During his coaching career, he and his teams provided many memorable moments, including a freshman named Michael Jordan hitting a game-winning basket in the 1982 NCAA title game against Georgetown.
“Other than my parents, no one had a bigger influence on my life than Coach Smith,” Jordan said in a statement. “He was more than a coach — he was my mentor, my teacher, my second father. Coach was always there for me whenever I needed him and I loved him for it. In teaching me the game of basketball, he taught me about life. My heart goes out to Linnea and their kids. We’ve lost a great man who had an incredible impact on his players, his staff and the entire UNC family.”
The best memories Smith provided were those of having Charlie Scott become the first African-American scholarship athlete to play for the Tar Heels in 1967, of fighting for civil right and human rights. Of being a man who supported liberal causes. Yes, a coach who was a liberal. Such folks do exist. And Smith was a perfect example.
President Barack Obama issued a statement Sunday: “America lost not just a coaching legend but a gentleman and a citizen. When he retired, Dean Smith had won more games than any other college basketball coach in history. He went to 11 Final Fours, won two national titles, and reared a generation of players who went on to even better things elsewhere, including a young man named Michael Jordan — and all of us from Chicago are thankful for that.
“But more importantly, Coach Smith showed us something that I’ve seen again and again on the court — that basketball can tell us a lot more about who you are than a jump shot alone ever could. He graduated more than 96 percent of his players and taught his teams to point to the teammate who passed them the ball after a basket. He pushed forward the Civil Rights movement, recruiting the first black scholarship athlete to North Carolina and helping to integrate a restaurant and a neighborhood in Chapel Hill. And in his final years, Coach Smith showed us how to fight an illness with courage and dignity. For all of that, I couldn’t have been prouder to honor Coach Smith with Medal of Freedom in 2013.”
The world could use more Dean Smiths. Thankfully, there was at least one.
* In their 98-97 victory at Orlando, Bulls guard Derrick Rose had 11 assists. That’s two more than he had in his three previous games. Pretty sure that means he had nine combined those three contests.
* Bulls center Joakim Noah had 18 points. That’s six more than he had in his three previous games. You do the math on this one to compute his combined total for those three contests (and, yes, this is how some of us learned math as a youngster).
* Bulls forward Pau Gasol had 25 points and 15 rebounds. And the game-winning dunk off a Rose missed field-goal attempt. Rose was 4-of-14 from the field, including 1-of-4 three-point tries. In defense of his offense, Rose did his his lone three-pointer to make it a 97-96 deficit. Oh, and Gasol has 12 consecutive double-double contests.
* Bulls guard Jimmy Butler led the team in points 27 and minutes played — surprise — with 40. He also had six steals. The quest for a max contract presumably has begun anew.
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