Former UNC star Brendan Haywood, Samuel Jackson rip Mike Krzyzewski
Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski apologized Saturday for comments he made to Oregon forward Dillon Brooks after the Ducks knocked off the Blue Devils in the Sweet 16, but that hasn’t shielded him from criticism.
Former North Carolina star Brendan Haywood, now an analyst for CBS Sports Network, didn’t hold back when discussing the incident in which Krzyzewski lectured Brooks for a bit of late-game showboating in Oregon’s 82-68 win.
Haywood, while referencing the multiple tripping incidents involving Duke guard Grayson Allen this season, thinks Krzyzewski should keep his focus on his own players. Krzyzewski agreed and said in a statement Saturday that it is “not my place to talk to another team’s player.”
The incident in question took place with Thursday night’s game firmly in hand. Brooks hit a meaningless 3-pointer with the shot clock running down in the game’s final minute and then celebrated in the direction of Duke’s bench. During the postgame handshake, Krzyzewski told Brooks, “You’re too good of a player to do that.”
Brooks relayed – and agreed with – Krzyzewski’s sentiment when asked by reporters after the game. Krzyzewski, however, denied it in the postgame news conference – until CBS released audio of the interaction.
In a statement, Krzyzewski said he reached out to Oregon head coach Dana Altman and apologized.
“It is not my place to talk to another team’s player and doing so took the focus away from the terrific game that Dillon played,” Krzyzewski’s statement said. “In the postgame press conference, I reacted incorrectly to a reporter’s question about my comment to Dillon. Clearly, the story that night was about Oregon advancing to the Elite Eight, and the outstanding game they played. I sincerely hope I did not create a distraction for Coach Altman and his team at this critical time of year. Certainly, I have the utmost respect for the Oregon program and their tremendous accomplishments.”
Haywood wasn’t the only one to criticize Coach K. Even actor Samuel L. Jackson chimed in.
Samuel L. Jackson is fed up, it appears.
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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
