In Praise Of Roy Williams

Couldn’t be more impressed or grateful

In one of his two autobiographies - we think it was the latter, called Second Wind: The Memoirs of an Opinionated Man, Bill Russell said something about how hard it is for men to get past competing with one another (it’s a good read by the way).

It’s true in the immediate sense, like between athletes and coaches, but it’s also true in the more distant sense, between a fan base and players or coaches from the opposite team.

It took Duke fans a very long time to appreciate Dean Smith, for instance, and that would have probably taken longer if his old rival, Mike Krzyzewski, hadn't led on that.

So it goes with Smith’s protegé, Roy Williams, who eventually followed in his footsteps as the UNC basketball coach.

We’ve made fun of Ol’ Roy plenty over the years, and his occasional over the top emotional reactions to things have been great fodder. He was the UNC coach, and it’s almost required to have a certain level of disdain. It’s the safe sort of tribalism, you know.

However, as much fun as we had poking fun at him, there were always things about him that were admirable. His players truly loved him, for one.

You know that scene at the beginning of Apple’s Ted Lasso series? Where Ted Lasso is jumping up and down with his team in glee?

That’s a direct tribute to Williams from Jason Sudekis (aka Ted Lasso), who grew up a Kansas fan, who saw Williams do the exact same thing after a big win.

While it’s easy to make fun of Ol’ Roy’s occasional forays into the mawkish, it’s not like he is insincere about what he feels. Quite the contrary. The man has always worn his emotions on his sleeve.

We also always appreciated the fact that he is from this state and deeply loyal to it. He grew up in the Western part of the state and knows the areas, and the people, who were devastated by Helene this past September.

So we’re really happy to see that Williams has been doing what he can to help out with the recovery.

He’s teamed up with Verizon to help wipe out debt for thousands of people who were deeply affected by the storm.

And Williams is actually calling people personally to tell them so.

How cool would that be? You’ve lived through a devastating, life-altering natural disaster and you have serious bills to pay just to get back on your feet and who calls you but Ol’ Roy Williams to tell you not to worry about it, that those bills have been paid.

Can you imagine a better call than that? Even State fans would be thrilled. Those people are getting off the phone and they’re bound to be euphoric.

Williams has at times been a prickly personality. He’s cursed on national TV more than once, he’s told fans off at Kansas and UNC, and clearly his temper runs hot.

But so does his kindness and decency. We feel sure we speak for all Duke fans in saying thank you, Coach Williams, for doing this, and all the other stuff we know you’ve done that hasn’t been publicized. You’re a good man.