Duke legends Coach K, Johnny Dawkins and UNC's Tyler Hansbrough inducted into National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame
Posted August 30, 2023 10:46 p.m. EDT
Updated August 30, 2023 11:28 p.m. EDT
Chicago — Legendary Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski, Duke point guard Johnny Dawkins and North Carolina legend Tyler Hansbrough were inducted Wednesday night into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.
“What does it mean? You’ve got to be kidding me,” Krzyzewski said. “Forget about dreams coming true, this is like incredible for this to happen.”
On Wednesday night, Krzyzewski thanked his players. He also mentioned former North Carolina head coach Roy Williams.
“We are the luckiest guys in the world because we [got] to coach these two programs,” Krzyzewski said. “And, we’re the luckiest guys in the world because these two programs have given us an opportunity to coach some of the greatest players in the history of this sport.”
With the inclusion of Dawkins and Coach K, the Blue Devils now have 10 former players, head coaches or assistant coaches in the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.
Krzyzewski was in the class of 2006 for the Hall of Fame, but couldn’t have an induction ceremony until he had been retired for a year.
Since 2016, Dawkins has been the head coach at the University of Central Florida. Under Krzyzewski, Dawkins worked as an assistant coach at Duke from 1998-1999 and as an associate head coach from 1999-2008. He also coached from 2008-2016 at Stanford.
“Everything I do as a coach, I measure it from my experiences at Duke as a player and a coach, everything,” Dawkins said. “And so, I measure it against that, which is a high standard.”
Dawkins is regarded as a key early figure in Duke’s ascent to becoming a national power. From 1982-86, Dawkins piled up 2,556 points - a mark that stood as the school's scoring record until 2006 and remains second all-time. He was a two-time consensus All-American, a four-time All-ACC selection and was the recipient of the 1986 Naismith National Player of the Year award.
Dawkins mentioned his strong relationship with Krzyzewski.
“Obviously, what he’s meant to me has been amazing,” Dawkins said of Coach K.
As a senior, Dawkins led Duke to the ACC regular season and tournament titles, and an appearance in the NCAA national championship game.
Dawkins played for the San Antonio Spurs (1986-1989), the Philadelphia 76ers (1989-1994) and the Detroit Pistons (1994-1995).
On Wednesday night, Hansbrough became the 14th Tar Heel player or coach inducted in the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.
“It’s a high honor,” Hansbrough said. “For me, going to UNC was probably the smartest decision I’ve made in my life so far.”
Hansbrough thanked Williams, Williams’ coaching staff and several North Carolina players. He mentioned how several former UNC players who were in the NBA and would come back to train during the summer in Chapel Hill.
“Sean May, Marvin Williams, those guys in the summer, they used to come back, train with us, beat us up in pickup and a lot of that success has to do with those guys as well,” Hansbrough said.
From 2005-09 Hansbrough led Carolina to a 120-22 record, three No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, three ACC regular-season titles, two ACC Tournament championships, two NCAA regional titles and Final Four berths and the 2009 NCAA championship.
Hansbrough grew up in Missouri. He credited his two brothers for instilling how hard he played on the basketball court.
“We competed at everything,” Hansbrough said. “If it’s not basketball, it’s pickleball.”
Hansbrough played for the Indiana Pacers (2009-2013), the Toronto Raptors (2015-2015) and the Charlotte Hornets (2015-2016). He also played in China for several years.
Herb Magee, a longtime head coach for Division II Thomas Jefferson University, and former scout Tom Konchalski were the other inductees. It is the Hall of Fame’s 18th induction class.
