Some of my best friends are Duke fans. That’s just a reality of growing up in North Carolina. Lately I’ve been feeling bad for these friends.

Not because their coach retired, definitely not because of those two epic losses to UNC, but because in the last chapter of his career – the one-and-done years -- Mike Krzyzewski robbed them of some of college basketball fandom’s deepest pleasures.

Krzyzewski never stopped winning by the ton but in recent seasons his methods diminished the emotional connection with fans that once defined his program. The name on the front of the jersey still fired passion, but it was hard to keep up with the names on the back.

Recruiting two-semester stars meant Duke teams sometimes lacked the cohesion and grit of veteran squads, while fans were denied the slow-burn joy of watching hard work pay off and talent mature into greatness.

Many of these players shone during their months in Durham. They seemed like great kids. But deeper bonds could not form. No way Duke fans bled for Paolo Banchero the same way Carolina fans did for, say, Marcus Paige when their last runs fell short.

The experience was degraded for opposing fans too. An endless parade of reliable villains gave way to two or three brief encounters with guys who had one foot out the door.  

Duke fans know. They confess it in private and lament it pseudonymously at DBR. And they know the juice wasn’t worth the squeeze. The o-n-d era has brought Duke (and Kentucky; we’re judged by the company we keep) no more titles than Carolina, fewer than Villanova.

Concern trolling and crocodile tears? Sure, I’ve been a Carolina fan since the days of Bob McAdoo. But it’s no less true. Nothing personal, either. To quote Reddit user SelfSniped “You can hate Coach K and like Mike Krzyzewski.”

Mike Krzyzewski is a family man. Loved by his players. He comforted Valvano and praised Bacot. Big ego, graceless loser? Venial sins. His last visit to the Dean Dome deserved more respect, but excess has been part of fandom since the Nika riots of 532 AD.

Yet “Coach K” the relentlessly promoted ESPN product, brought to you by AT&T and Amex, inspired a nation of haters. I’d guess he really is a molder of character but that’s a tough brand to maintain when the characters you mold move on so fast.

Athletes should be free to accept jobs before graduating. College basketball, much as I love it, is gross and corrupt. Krzyzewski didn’t make the rules, but he went all in on one that compromised his closing act. His hand-picked successor looks ready for more of the same.

The final years do not define a career that saw more wins than anyone else in the business and more titles than anyone not named John Wooden. They still kind of sucked.

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[Kim]

The rat is dead. Acceptable.