On Wednesday afternoon, long-time College Hoops reporter Jeff Goodman reported that Mike Krzyzewski has decided to retire after this upcoming season.
Goodman also included that the leading candidate to replace Krzyzewski is former Duke player and current Assistant Coach Jon Scheyer. This is relevant news in the Pitt basketball world due to head coach Jeff Capel being a former Duke player and Assistant as well, and because he has previously been rumored to be the successor to Coach K.
This past season, when Krzyzewski received backlash for suggesting a reconsideration of a season during a pandemic, Capel was quick to stand up for his former coach.
“I think that’s ludicrous,” Capel said. “I think that’s absolutely ridiculous to say that about the person that’s won more games in the history of college basketball than anyone. I don’t think losing a couple of games this year is going to affect him. That has won more national championships than any active coach, that has done more for the game. Look, one of the things that sucks for Coach, is because of how much he’s won and his stature, he takes bullets. He’s an easy guy to take shots at.. For me, I get really upset by it because of how much I care about him, but also with working with him for 7 years I know how much he does for the game and I know how much he does for coaches. I’ve seen it.”
