Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus #7 UConn on March 29, 2026 , Loss , 72, to, 73
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Final
Men's Basketball
72
vs #7 UConn
73
Featherston: Krzyzewski Watches Former Players In His Role At K Academy
7/27/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
By Al Featherston, GoDuke.com
Mike Krzyzewski isn't quite sure he approves of the passion his former players bring to their roles as volunteer coaches at the K Academy.
“Unlike me, some of the guys get really intense on the sidelines,” the Duke coach said (with a straight face). “Guys are yelling at referees, standing up, getting technicals ...”
Coach K was shaking his head as if such behavior was beyond the realm of his understanding. It was, of course, a joke for the reporters he was addressing ? writers and broadcasters who know him as the intense coach of the Blue Devil basketball team.
He showed them a different side of his personality Wednesday as the fifth annual K Academy opened with a session at the Emily Krzyzewski Center. Krzyzewski was relaxed and quite obviously enjoying himself in a way that he rarely gets to experience while coaching in the ACC.
One reporter asked the cause of the obvious difference in his demeanor.
“A few glasses of wine,” he responded, unable to resist another little joke, before he got serious and explained how much he enjoys this annual event ? a fantasy camp to raise money for charity.
“This is very exciting,” he said. “We offer these guys a chance to experience what it's like to be Duke basketball players. We really try to re-create the experience.”
But it's the purpose of the fantasy camp that's close to Coach K's heart.
“All of the money we raise goes to charity,” he said. “A little less than half goes to the Legacy Fund to finance scholarships at Duke. A little more than half goes to the Emily Krzyzewski Center.”
The community center ? named for Coach K's late mother ? was just a dream when the K Academy opened five years ago. Now it's a thriving facility on Chapel Hill Street, providing a safe, nurturing environment from hundreds of youngsters.
For the most part, the K Academy revolves around Cameron Indoor Stadium, but he scheduled the first afternoon for the gym at the Emily Krzyzewski Center. He pointed out that the court was purchased from the Metrodome in Minneapolis and is the same one that was in use when Duke won the 2001 NCAA title there. The hard-wood surface is still painted with the Final Four logos.
“We wanted an event here to show them what has resulted from their contributions,” he said. “We wanted them to see their dollars working.”
Coach K addressed the 87 campers ? who paid $10,000 each to participate in the five-day event ? before their first workouts, warning his “veteran players” (35-year-old an up) to be serious about their stretching, to stay in close touch with the trainers, but most of all, to enjoy the experience.
“Take a vacation from yourselves,” he said.
The Duke coach explained to reporters how he and his staff at the K Academy try to help the campers imagine the experience of being players. It starts when the players get recruiting letters from Coach K and his staff.
“We try to teach them some things I would do with corporate business ... so we have a few lectures, and they like that, too,” Krzyzewski said. “The main thing they like is getting to know one another, playing at Cameron, hitting a big shot, coming up to the line with the game on the line ... Really, it is a fantasy. My staff does a great job in re-creating the atmosphere. Obviously, we can't get 10,000 people in there with painted faces. But we do introduce crowd noise, have a tent village and all that stuff.”
Krzyzewski pointed out that 11 of this year's participants are veterans of all five K Academies. The roster of “players” includes a wide variety of doctors, lawyers, and corporate CEOs. Their names, biographies and stats are included in a brochure that very much resembles the real team brochures that Duke produces for the media.
“Some amazing friendships are formed,” Coach K said. “Before we played in New York last season, 18 of them got together to have dinner and attend the game.”
Some amazing friendships are also renewed among the former Duke players who return to help run the camp.
“It's like a family reunion,” Coach K said. “When you have an event that can bring a large number of them back at one time, that makes it better. And for us, there's no game. It's not like we're playing Virginia or Maryland or North Carolina and they come back and there's a lot of tension. This is a lot of fun -- not that these games aren't important, but we can have some fun.”
And it was clear that Krzyzewski wasn't joking when he said that.
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