Duke Basketball Report · Dec 1, 2019
You Tube Gold: Seashells And Balloons
Al McGuire enjoying life.In 1977, UNC was the favorite in the national championship game vs. Marquette. Dean Smith was fresh off of the 1976 Olympics and a gold medal.
On the other bench was Al McGuire, a guy who ran on naked emotion. Unlike Smith he wasn’t particularly organized and often seemed impulsive.
It was true to an extent, but McGuire was a fascinating figure. He was a coach but had the soul of a poet. And he expressed himself like no one else in the game. He spoke with flamboyance, a poet with a touch of PT Barnum. He might leave practice to his assistants, get on his Harley and stop to hang out with some hippies at a park.
You just never knew. McGuire was highly unpredictable.