UNC Basketball Champ Credits Coach K for Opening His Eyes

Duke basketball's Mike Krzyzewski is responsible for a "huge moment" in the life of former UNC basketball wing Theo Pinson.

UNC basketball forward Theo Pinson (Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

As co-host of Tidal League's Run Your Race podcast these days, UNC basketball treasure Theo Pinson is an entertaining truth-teller, no matter how toxic the topic may be to the ears of Tar Heel faithful.

On the latest episode, the former five-star recruit out of Wesleyan Christian in Greensboro, N.C., bordered on full-on singing the praises of retired Duke basketball legend Mike Krzyzewski. Well, sort of.

He recounted the all-time wins leader's brutal honesty when he was on the Blue Devil wishlist roughly a decade ago.

"I remember Coach K, and I know Carolina fans might not like this," the 27-year-old Pinson explained to co-host AJ Richardson, "but I went on a visit with [eventual 2014-15 Duke basketball one-and-done national champions] Jahlil Okafor, Justise Winslow, Tyus Jones...

"We all went to 'Late Night at Duke' — whatever they call it, I don't care about the school now."

What happened on Theo’s visit to #Duke with Jahlil Okafor, Justise Winslow and Tyus Jones? 🤣

Via: Run Your Race @tpinsonn @_KingCozy pic.twitter.com/3h7D2W1eSk

— Tidal League (@TidalLeague) September 5, 2023

Making sure he checked himself occasionally to keep the unfriendly spirit of the rivalry fully intact, Theo Pinson noted the stark contrast between how Coach K spoke to him compared to Okafor and Jones.

"We were all sitting in this theater room," he remembered. "He said, 'Tyus, you're the best point guard in the country. No doubt. Jahlil, you're a dog...nobody's gonna come at you. Theo, you gotta separate yourself.' Pretty much was like, 'There are a lot of Theo's. You gotta find something to separate yourself from everybody else.'"

After noting some choice words running through his head when he heard those words from Coach K, Pinson, who went undrafted following his four-year UNC basketball campaign but has carved out a five-year NBA career anyway, admitted to the impact that moment had on his game.

"All jokes aside, I understand what he was saying," Pinson, now a free agent, confessed. "I really did. Because I'm sitting there like, 'There are a lot of wings who are athletic, who can jump, and can do all that. What makes you better than the next guy who is 6-6 and can do what you do?' And he made a great point, and I thought about that to this day...

"That was a huge moment in my life."

Of course, Pinson specialized in being a relentless worker and competitor on his way to earning a full-time starting job late in the 2016-17 season, culminating in UNC basketball's sixth and most recent NCAA title.

Wrapping up his Coach K story, Pinson jokingly implied that perhaps Duke basketball would have benefitted from his services if not for the Hall of Famer's tell-it-like-it-is statements to him that day.

"That comment probably dictated me not going there, too," Pinson said while trying at first not to laugh. "I'm just playing. But no, I had a really good relationship with [now-retired UNC basketball head coach Roy Williams], and I knew it was time."

Stay tuned to All Tar Heels on SI.com for more UNC basketball news.