Duke great Jay Williams offers surprising take on Coach K

Former Duke player Jay Williams believes coach Mike Krzyzewski could be back on the sidelines next season. Despite Coach K making it well-known that he intended for 2021-22 to be his final year in charge of the Blue Devils, Williams speculated otherwise on ESPN’s Keyshawn, JWill and Max.

Williams explained that with the recent departure of Duke assistant Nolan Smith to Louisville, the Blue Devils recruiting class could be in danger without Krzyzewski.

“Here’s why I give it [Coach K returning] a legit chance, because if you’re Nolan Smith, and you have a great relationship with all these players, you’re in the conference, man. You’re at Louisville,” Williams said. “It turns into recruiting battles, man, and it weakens your hold on the number one class. So, if you’re Coach K, how do you strengthen that hold? By coming back.”

Duke has the No. 1 recruiting class for 2022, and signed the No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 players according to On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. Jon Scheyer, who is set to take over for Coach K next season, will do his best to ensure players such as Kyle Filipowski and Dereck Lively II don’t bolt for other programs.

So far, no recruit has suggested he will decommit from the Blue Devils, nor has Coach K said anything to back up the claims of Jay Williams. However, after the way this season ended, it wouldn’t be completely crazy if he decided to give it one more shot.

Krzyzewski led Duke to the Final Four for the 13th time this past season, surpassing John Wooden for the most ever appearances. He of course ended up losing to North Carolina in the Final Four, ending his career just two wins short of his sixth national championship. The Tar Heels also handed Coach K a loss in his final home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium, souring his farewell tour twofold.

A Hall of Famer and the all-time winningest college basketball coach with 1,170 victories, Krzyzewski has little left to prove. However, perhaps the idea of going out with a loss to his biggest rival won’t sit well with him and compel him to rethink a return. If he unretires, he certainly wouldn’t be the first big sports figure to do so. Just this year, Hall of Fame NFL quarterback Tom Brady announced his retirement before changing his mind two months later.