Fansided

Duke basketball: 10 realistic candidates to succeed Coach K when he retires

By Brad Berreman

Jan 19, 2021; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Duke Blue Devils head coach Mike Krzyzewski reacts on the court during the first half against the Pittsburgh Panthers at the Petersen Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 19, 2021; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Duke Blue Devils head coach Mike Krzyzewski reacts on the court during the first half against the Pittsburgh Panthers at the Petersen Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 5
Next
Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports /

4. Mike Brey, Notre Dame head coach

The Fighting Irish aren’t having a great season (5-8), but this list is not complete without Brey. Now in his 21st season at Notre Dame, he has a 442-241 record (.647 win percentage) with 15 20-plus win seasons. The high-point of his tenure has been back-to-back Elite Eight appearances in 2015 and 2016 and an 80-28 record over a three-season span including 2016-17.

Brey was an assistant coach at Duke from 1987-1995, before taking his first head coaching job at Delaware. So that easily ties him to any speculation as a candidate to succeed Krzyzewski. It may just be a matter of timing.

3. Jeff Capel, Pitt head coach

Just recently, Capel became the second Coach K disciple to beat him as a head coach (Brey has five wins) and his Panthers are 8-3 this season (heading into Tuesday night against North Carolina). Capel is 38-39 in his third season at Pitt, after other head coaching stints at Oklahoma (96-69 over five seasons) and VCU (79-41 over four seasons).

During his gap between head coaching jobs (2011-2018), Capel came back to Duke to be an assistant and associate head coach under Coach K. And yes, he played guard at Duke from 1993-1997. If Capel gets things on a nice track at Pitt, with the search for Krzyzewski’s replacement a little bit off in the future, he will advance the idea he’ll come back again–this time as the head coach.