"Keep your head up": When analyst Seth Davis recalled Duke legend Coach K showing his softer side after incident with Christian Laettner

College basketball analyst Seth Davis attended Duke from 1988 to 1992. During that time, he covered the Mike Krzyzewski-coached program. In January 2015, when Davis was working at Campus Insiders, he recalled one of his most memorable incidents involving Coach K, who showed his softer side to the world.

"I was sitting near the Duke bench during a game," Davis said in a video uploaded on the Stadium YouTube channel (Timestamp: 0:17). "I was the same year as Christian Laettner. He was a freshman that season as well.

"Laettner had made a very bad mistake during the game, and Coach K pulled him out and sat him on the bench and really got in Laettner's face. Yelled at him. (Even) I was very upset with what he had done. It was very profane, and he expressed his dissatisfaction and Coach K went to his seat on the bench.

"Now, we think of Christian Laettner as this cocky, talented player. But at the time, he was a freshman and still learning the ropes of college basketball. And he was visibly affected by getting this diatribe from his coach. He kinda bowed his head and put his head in his hands.

"And at that moment, Mike Krzyzewski leaned forward and shouted down the bench, 'Christian, keep your head up. Learn from your mistakes.' And it was the first time I began to understand how this man truly operates. He truly coaches his players from the inside out."

Coach K is one of the greatest college basketball coaches in history. He coached Duke from 1980 until his retirement in 2022, leading the program to five national titles.

Coach K also had a coaching stint at Army from 1975 to 1980. He recorded a 1,202-368 career coaching record.

Laettner went on to have a successful NBA career. He had stints with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Atlanta Hawks, Detroit Pistons, Dallas Mavericks, Washington Wizards and Miami Heat.

Coach K's Blue Devils won two national titles when Seth Davis was at Duke

College basketball analyst Seth Davis - Source: Imagn

During the four years that Seth Davis attended Duke, he had the privilege of covering a program that won two national titles (in 1991 and 1992). The Blue Devils also made the Final Four in each season he was at the university.

Davis graduated with a degree in political science in 1992 before eventually transitioning into a career as a top college basketball analyst and writer.

In November last year, Seth Davis co-founded Hoops HQ, a college basketball website that news for both men and women athletes all year long. He is also the editor-in-chief of the website.