This card completes the subset of coaches in Series I of 1993 Action Packed Hall of Fame. If you haven’t been following us, 1993 Action Packed Hall of Fame begins with a ten-card subset called “One on One” where players are matched up in pairs. We have videos on all ten cards if you’re interested. The subset of coaches follows this and we noticed that it’s NCAA heavy. Four college coaches but only two pros…but as a collector, I’m not disappointed with the selection. Tough to argue with the choices. We’re going to examine this Dean Smith card, but first, let’s look at all six cards in the subset, all obviously Hall-of-Famers, but there’s something else common here we need to point out. All of them represent loyalty and longevity in a single organization. Their teams really became inseparable from them.
We start with Red Auerbach, 16 of his 20 years with the Celtics. Then John Wooden, 27 years at UCLA. Red Holzman, 15 years with the Knicks. Lou Carnesecca…nearly all of his years at St. John’s. And there was some real loyalty to St. John’s here. There was a three-year interruption where he went to coach professionally, but he wanted to return to St. John’s even though it meant a pay cut. Bobby Knight…1971-2000 at Indiana. And now Dean Smith with the most consistency of them all…1961-1997 as the head coach at UNC Chapel Hill. This stability and consistency with one team is a neat theme that runs throughout these cards. The cynic in me says, “Well of course, if something’s going well, why would you leave?” But maybe the reverse has some truth too? Because of the loyalty, because of placing an organization above oneself and taking a larger view, greatness comes easier? Would really like your opinions. How much is luck of placement? How much is talent? How much is state-of-mind? Either way, a neat thread running through this subset!
Before we go, let’s make sure we examine this card like the others. Dean Smith certainly deserves a closer look. At the time of printing, he had an NCAA record with 18 tournament appearances in a row. He would grow this to 23 in a row. It’s not the current record, but only Tom Izzo, Coach K and Bill Self are ahead. His 49 total wins would become 65, I’m pretty sure he’s number three at the moment here. His Final Four appearances are now 11, still behind John Wooden and Coach K as well. Who can forget the 1982 NCAA Championship mentioned on this card… This card is also an important pair with the Bobby Knight one because Dean Smith also played for a Championship team. His wins mentioned on the card would grow to 879 and placing him solidly in the top 20 of all time. And we also have an Olympic gold medal with Dean Smith in 1976.
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