There aren t that many coaches who got the better of Dean Smith. Lou Carnesecca was one of them. The two icons went head to head three times and Carnesecca s squad came out on top in two of them. But through their competition there was always respect.
They were two of the inaugural Joe Lapchick Character Award winners in 2008 and received them at a ceremony at Madison Square Garden. Carnesecca said that day It s an incredible honor to get this and it s made even better to have someone like Coach Smith getting it with me.
On Sunday the St. John s legend remembered the late North Carolina coach with these words in a statement Dean Smith was a gentleman and one of the greatest coaches and innovators in the game. He was ahead of his time and he will be missed greatly
Smith s death was met with sadness throughout the Tar Heel family and by those who knew him and competed against him.
We have lost a man who cannot be replaced. He was one of a kind and the sport of basketball lost one of its true pillars Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said in a statement. Dean possessed one of the greatest basketball minds and was a magnificent teacher and tactician. While building an elite program at North Carolina he was clearly ahead of his time in dealing with social issues. However his greatest gift was his unique ability to teach what it takes to become a good man. That was easy for him to do because he was a great man himself.
Dean Smith had an influence on all of us to be better in our coaching careers former Purdue coach Gene Keady now a St. John s special assistant said. He displayed great integrity honesty and was someone we looked up to. He will truly be missed in the basketball community.
After Monmouth defeated Canisius on Sunday Hawks coach King Rice broke down and wept about the Smith news. A guard at UNC from 1987 91 Rice often flirted with trouble.
View Gallery Dean Smith Sports Stars Lost in 2015They should ve sent me home 20 times and they never did because of Dean Smith he told reporters. I m just thankful I m blessed I m humbled.
Among his former players many remembered Smith as one of the most important people they knew. Michael Jordan said in a statement Other than my parents no one had a bigger influence on my life than Coach Smith. He was more than a coach he was my mentor my teacher my second father.
BOB JORDAN/AP Current UNC coach Roy Williams (l.) says Dean Smith (r.) was 'the greatest there ever was.'James Worthy said through Twitter There are so many things I could say about Coach Dean Smith but simply put he is the greatest man I ve ever known.
Mitch Kupchak a former Tar Heel and now the Lakers GM issued a statement that said He was a great man and someone I loved and respected greatly and I celebrate the fact that I knew him and had him in my life for as long as I did. His influence on my life didn t end when I left Chapel Hill... He had a hugely positive impact on the lives of hundreds of young men who were lucky enough to call him Coach and I was blessed to be among them.
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