Why Is Coach K Retiring? Duke Legend Cites Family, COVID In Decision

Mike Krzyzewski is less than a month away from retirement as Duke's men's basketball coach.

Even if Coach K leads the Blue Devils to win a sixth national championship at the 2022 NCAA Tournament — not outside the realm of possibility for the nation's fourth-ranked team — the final day he could possibly coach is April 4. That date, or at any point during March Madness, will mark the final time Krzyzewski takes the court as Duke's coach.

It's a fact of life, though that doesn't make it seem any less real as Krzyzewski's final game — whenever that may be — draws nearer. After all, he has been a mainstay on the college basketball landscape for the better part of four decades. He has secured 15 ACC Tournament championships, 12 Final Four appearances, five NCAA Tournament titles and more than 1,100 victories as part of one of the greatest dynasties in college basketball history.

Why has Krzyzewski decided to step away from coaching? And why now? It's a decision, he said, he has mulled for a few years with his wife, Mickie. It finally became concrete when he announced his decision in a June 3 news conference.

COACH K'S FINAL SEASON

Chapter 1: Ending the era

Chapter 2: Inside the greatest game

Chapter 3: Getting recruited by the legend

Chapter 4: Redeeming USA Basketball

Chapter 5: Coaching against K

With that, The Sporting News breaks down Coach K's decision to retire as coach at Duke; how long he has led the Blue Devils; and who is set to replace him next.

Why is Coach K retiring from coaching at Duke?

Krzyzewski, 75, said in his June 3 news conference that his decision to step away from coaching had nothing to do with his health or the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Look, this is not about health. It’s not about COVID or saying why that year was so bad," Krzyzewski said at the time. It’s certainly not about what’s going (on) with college basketball. Boy, the game's changing. Alright. I’ve been in it for 46 years. Do you think the game has never changed?

"We’ve always had to adapt to the changes in culture, the changes in rules, the changes in the world. We’re going through one right now. Those aren’t the reasons. Those would be bad reasons, especially the health one."

Why then, did Coach K choose to retire? Speaking with The Sporting News' Mike DeCourcy, Krzyzewski cited his family as a big reason for the decision to step away:

“For me, the time — how much time do you have? There’s got to be something more that I’d like to do with my time," Krzyzewski told TSN. "As much as I love going to Peach Jam and all the recruiting, the amount of recruiting and the intensity that you do to get the level of player that we get is enormous.

"That’s part of it. The other thing is, Mickie, we’ve been married 52 years. We have 10 grandchildren; they’re all here. They’ve made a lot of sacrifices. And again, my daughters and my family would be all for me, whatever I would do. But Mickie and I have talked about it for a couple years."

MORE: Mike Krzyzewski set to retire: How long Coach K has been at Duke and more by the numbers

Indeed, Krzyzewski in his June 3 news conference, said he and his wife had mulled the decision for years, but that conversations had never reached "this level of seriousness." He also said he wanted the opportunity to coach one more year following the 2020-21 college basketball season, which saw the Blue Devils go 13-11 and miss the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1994-95.

While Krzyzewski said COVID was not the reason he decided to retire, the pandemic — and how it affected his team— did affect the timing. Coach K said he did not want to leave the program floundering, which would have made the job that much more difficult for his successor.

“As soon as COVID hit, I said there’s no way. We have to shepherd — I didn’t know where it would end or whatever — but I said we have to shepherd the program,” Krzyzewski told Sporting News. “I didn’t know that shepherding would lead the sheep through the Valley of Death and up the Himalayas. For everybody, it was tough.”

How long has Mike Krzyzewski coached at Duke?

Krzyzewski was hired to lead the Blue Devils in 1980, making this his 42nd and final season in Durham. Krzyzewski previously led Army for five years, from 1975-80, after previously playing for the Black Knights under coach Bob Knight.

In total, Krzyzewski has been a head basketball coach for 47 years.

Krzyzewski's early tenure in Durham didn't exactly bely a Hall of Fame career, however. Following a 17-13 record in his first year, the Blue Devils suffered records of 10-17 and 11-17 in 1981-82 and 1982-83, respectively — the only two losing seasons of his career at Duke. He didn't reach a .500 conference record until his fourth season — when he went 7-7 — which was also his first NCAA Tournament berth.

Two seasons later, in 1985-86, Krzyzewski led the Blue Devils to a 37-3 record, an ACC regular-season and conference tournament championship and 1986 NCAA Tournament runner-up finish. The Blue Devils got close over the following years, but did not win their first national championship until the 1991 NCAA Tournament. Duke repeated as champion the following year and won it all in 2001, 2010 and 2015.

In all, Krzyzewski has led Duke to 15 ACC championships, 13 ACC regular-season championships, 12 Final Fours and five national championships on top of 1,170 wins (and counting). He has three times been named the Naismith National Coach of the Year and was named the 1991-92 Sporting News Coach of the Year.

MORE: Who is Jon Scheyer? What to know about Mike Krzyzewski's replacement

Who is replacing Coach K at Duke?

Krzyzewski's preference to replace him at Duke was 34-year-old associate head coach Jon Scheyer, who played under Krzyzewski from 2006-10. Scheyer is set to take over for Duke in 2022-23, though Krzyzewski's succession plan did reportedly face a modicum of resistance.

Regardless, Scheyer — who has held his position since 2018 and who was an assistant at Duke from 2014-18 — has already taken on significant responsibilities that Krzyzewski used to handle. He filled the role of Duke's head coach at summer tournaments and showcases and has hosted families visiting campus at his home, as opposed to Krzyzewski's.

"Jon has done everything, and in the last few years, we've taken it up to another level," Krzyzewski said on June 3. "He's one of the smartest coaches in the country, to be quite frank. Nobody knows that as much as I know it.

"It's ironic. He's 33. I was 33 when I was here. My main wish for him is to not replicate my first three years. That wouldn't be good. Although, (incoming athletic director Nina King), maybe it would be a time for great belief."

Scheyer's presence on the staff was also a factor in Kryzewski's timing when it came to his retirement. The ability to lead Duke past the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic and pass the ball to Scheyer, so to speak, was a significant factor in that decision.

"The implementation of the decision has a lot to do with succession," Krzyzewski. "If you don’t have someone who (can) take command, you’re in trouble. But we do."