Dean Smith is starting to slip

In my lifetime, there have been three active college basketball coaches that transcended all others: Mike Krzyzweski, Bob Knight and Dean Smith (with Tom Izzo threatening to join the club). It's with that in mind that I pass along the sad news that it appears Dean Smith is starting to slip.

The man who retired as the winningest coach of all-time, with two national championships and names like Michael Jordan, James Worthy, Brad Daugherty, Sam Perkins, Rasheed Wallace, Jerry Stackhouse, Vince Carter and Antawn Jamison among those he coached (and don't forget some of my personal favorites like Ed Cota and Donald Williams) is starting to lose his memory according to the Fayetteville Observer. It reports that "people close to the coach say his famous memory is slipping. On some days he doesn't recognize people he has known for years."

The North Carolina basketball family is as tight as any college basketball family in the nation, especially among those who played or worked under Smith. Jordan still famously reveres Smith, even after he became the single biggest sports superstar in the world (and sorry, LeBron, but you're never reaching the MJ plateau of "global icon").  Says the article: "And more significantly, at least to those who are closest to him, his health issues have weakened his connections with so many former players. That has left the Carolina family shaken, with former Tar Heels missing the friendship and mentoring Smith delivered for years after their basketball careers were done."

Best wishes to the great Dean Smith, his immediate family and the Tar Heel basketball family.