Bilas compares Digger to Wooden, K, and Knight?

[diveonthefloor]

I don't have TiVo, but did my ears deceive me in the post game?

Did Jay lose all sense of reality?

[OldPhiKap]

I don't have TiVo, but did my ears deceive me in the post game?

Did Jay lose all sense of reality?

Jay was being polite.

Although that's as giddy as I have seen Jay in years.

[BobbyFan]

That seemed to be the implication, yes. But Bilas doesn't really feel that way; it was more him being a nice guy and not wanting Digger to feel left out after bringing up his coach (K) and Hubert's coach (Dean).

[hurleyfor3]

Although I do believe Digger has beaten all four coaches, including Dean Smith, who Jay alluded to with Hubert Davis. (K's the one I'm *not* sure about.)

[-bdbd]

That seemed to be the implication, yes. But Bilas doesn't really feel that way; it was more him being a nice guy and not wanting Digger to feel left out after bringing up his coach (K) and Hubert's coach (Dean).

Yes, he was being polite saying something about how players under K feel special to have been a part of his success, and then magnanimously adding, "like how Knight's and Smith's players felt, and Wooden's, and yours Digger..."

I don't know if y'all caught it, but Digger being in his usually obtuse self didn't catch the generous compliment and responded with, "Well, yeah..." before Hubert or someone jumped in to add something else. Pretty funny moment that flew by (and right over Digger's head)!

[Olympic Fan]

Although I do believe Digger has beaten all four coaches, including Dean Smith, who Jay alluded to with Hubert Davis. (K's the one I'm *not* sure about.)

Digger did beat K -- a 70-66 overtime win in South Bend in 1987.

That was only win in eight tries against K ... he finished 1-7. K had a lot to do with ending Digger's coaching career. He beat out Notre Dame for both Mark Alarie (who grew up Notre Dame fan) and Johnny Dawkins in 1982, which began his downfall. Digger had built his program on smart, classy guys from the DC area, but starting with Dawkins, K started beating him like a drum in the DC area -- guys like Amaker, Billy King, Danny Ferry and Grant Hill.

But his jealousy of Duke went back before that. Digger's only Final Four team lost in the semifinals to Duke in 1978 ... Gene Banks, a player Digger tried desperately to recruit -- even after he commited to Duke -- had a lot to do with that victory.

Not sure of his exact record against Dean, but Dean used to beat him regularly too ... including a Sweet 16 win in 1976 (when half he UNC team was hurt) and a second round NCAA win in 1985 on Notre Dame's home court in South Bend (back then you could play the NCAA on your home floor).

[SCMatt33]

Those guys have a pretty good rapport on Gameday and including Digger might have even been a little backhanded ribbing. Digger gave a kind of sarcastic "Gee...thanks" look when he was thrown in. Jay can have a pretty dry sense of humor sometimes but I thought it was more of a fun joke, than being polite by including Digger. I think some further evidence for that is that he said something similar in the pregame, but without including Digger.

[hurleyfor3]

Not sure of his exact record against Dean, but Dean used to beat him regularly too ... including a Sweet 16 win in 1976 (when half he UNC team was hurt) and a second round NCAA win in 1985 on Notre Dame's home court in South Bend (back then you could play the NCAA on your home floor).

The win against Dean I distinctly recall was in 1987 when unc was ranked #1. ND 60, unc 58. Was on NBC; Enberg and Maguire did the game.

[throatybeard]

The one I remember, barely, is we beat them in Durham by a point when JD blocked David Rivers' shot. I was 9. So I can't really say with 100% certainty whether I remember this from NBC or from Brill 1986.

[BD80]

Jay threw Digger a frickin' bone.

What pissed me off is that Jay kept including deano in the group. Objectively, he may be correct, but it burns us it does.

I want a shark with a laser

[77devil]

The one I remember, barely, is we beat them in Durham by a point when JD blocked David Rivers' shot. I was 9. So I can't really say with 100% certainty whether I remember this from NBC or from Brill 1986.

There was a clip of Brill from 2004 in the Coach K retrospective on ESPN over the weekend. He put the game/block/win in the group of significant contributions made by the seminal 1982-1986 class in turning the program around.

[gotoguy]

I thought Hubert made a good point about K's slow start and a losing record after 3 or 4 years. Nowadays most coaches would get their walking papers. Thank you Tom Butters!

[mkline09]

I thought Hubert made a good point about K's slow start and a losing record after 3 or 4 years. Nowadays most coaches would get their walking papers. Thank you Tom Butters!

Oh yeah. In this day and age with message boards, twitter and other social media a new coach, struggling has a very small window and very small margin for error. I hate to think it or say it but if Krzyzewski was hired today and had the same struggles he would be out after year two. Unless he had a super smart, visionary AD like Tom Butters.

[Indoor66]

Oh yeah. In this day and age with message boards, twitter and other social media a new coach, struggling has a very small window and very small margin for error. I hate to think it or say it but if Krzyzewski was hired today and had the same struggles he would be out after year two. Unless he had a super smart, visionary AD like Tom Butters.

Hey, some on this board come close to calling for K's head today - if we have two or three close games! Imagine if he lost 3 in a row.

[CameronBlue]

What pissed me off is that Jay kept including deano in the group. Objectively, he may be correct, but it burns us it does.

My only complaint about Bilas is not so much the sentiment toward UNC but how he will occasionally gerrymander the explanation to state a platitude that he sees as a great undiscovered truth. It's not that his points about UNC and Dean are untrue or hyperbolic, it's often that the timing is just bad and leaves the impression that his is coming to UNC's defense when it was actually never under assault. I still get a chuckle at the "If Barnes made just one more shot a game" argument mid-point last season. Bilas I love you as a Dukie but that was a Munch moment dude, a real scream.

[NSDukeFan]

Those guys have a pretty good rapport on Gameday and including Digger might have even been a little backhanded ribbing. Digger gave a kind of sarcastic "Gee...thanks" look when he was thrown in. Jay can have a pretty dry sense of humor sometimes but I thought it was more of a fun joke, than being polite by including Digger. I think some further evidence for that is that he said something similar in the pregame, but without including Digger.

I didn't think it was a joke at all as Jay seemed to be a bit emotional at coach K getting the win and I think was feeling very generous, and didn't want Digger to feel bad as he grabbed his hand when he made that comment, if I remember correctly.