A glance at Duke's Mike Krzyzewski's influence on basketball

With retiring Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski down to his final few games at Duke, here’s a look at his impact on the game, from college basketball coaches, to the NBA and international competition:

THE COLLEGE GAME

Eight former Blue Devils players under Krzyzewski are leading Division I programs as head coaches:

Tommy Amaker (Harvard), Kenny Blakeney (Howard), Jeff Capel (Pittsburgh), Chris Collins (Northwestern), Johnny Dawkins (UCF), Bobby Hurley (Arizona State), Nate James (Austin Peay) and Greg Paulus (Niagara).

That list doesn't include former assistant Mike Brey, who is in his 22nd season as Notre Dame’s head coach, or former Duke director of basketball operations Mike Schrage, in his third season at Elon.

NBA GAME

In all, 68 of Krzyzewski’s players at Duke have gone on to become NBA draft picks, including record totals of 42 first-round draft picks and 28 going in the lottery.

Krzyzewski has had three No. 1 overall selections: Elton Brand (1999), Kyrie Irving (2011) and Zion Williamson (2019).

There are 21 former Krzyzewski players as of February on NBA rosters — including current or former All-Stars Irving, Williamson, Jayson Tatum and Brandon Ingram – and an ACC-record 27 players last season.

Former Krzyzewski players working for NBA teams include:

Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder; Elton Brand as the general manager of the Philadelphia 76ers; Trajan Langdon as GM of the New Orleans Pelicans; Grant Hill as co-owner of the Atlanta Hawks; Mike Dunleavy Jr. as vice president of basketball operations for the Golden State Warriors; David Henderson as a scout for the Cleveland Cavaliers; and Martynas Pocius as an assistant director of pro personnel for the Denver Nuggets.

Five of Krzyzewski’s former players have been part of NBA championship teams: Danny Ferry (2003), Shane Battier (2012, 2013), Irving (2016), Dahntay Jones (2016), Quinn Cook (2018, 2020).

Duke notes that Krzyzewski has coached 113 NBA players between his time at the school and his tenure with USA Basketball.

INTERNATIONAL GAME

Krzyzewski coached the U.S. men’s national team to Olympic gold medals in 2008 (Beijing), 2012 (London) and 2016 (Rio de Janiero).

In all, five of Krzyzewski’s former players have won Olympic golds playing for the U.S. team: Christian Laettner (1992), Grant Hill (1996), Carlos Boozer (2008), Kyrie Irving (2016) and Jayson Tatum (2020).

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