Tennessee women’s basketball coach Pat Summitt has been selected as an inaugural recipient of the Joe Lapchick Character Award.
The award, the idea of former St. John’s player and longtime high school coach Gus Alfieri, was established to recognize basketball coaches who have shown the character and coaching ability of Hall of Famer Joe Lapchick, who coached at St. John’s and with the New York Knicks.
Other recipients being honored at at the Nov. 20 ceremony at Madison Square Garden in New York City will be Hall of Fame coaches Lou Carnesecca of St. John’s and Dean Smith of North Carolina.
“There could not be a better time to focus attention on character in sports but the present and Joe Lapchick is the model for the person we should look to,” said Alfieri, who was on Lapchick’s 1959 NIT Championship team.
Summitt, who enters the 2008-09 season with a 983-182 career record in 34 seasons at Tennessee, is the winningest coach in college Division I basketball history. Every student-athlete Summitt has coached and finished her eligibility at Rocky Top has graduated. She is very involved in the community and continues to be a spokeswoman for the United Way.
“It is an honor to have been selected as the first recipient of the Joe Lapchick Character Award. He was a legendary figure on both the collegiate and professional level of our game,” said Summitt. “I am humbled to accept an award which bears his name.”
Lapchick was enshrined in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1966 after a successful playing career with the Original Celtics and Cleveland Rosenblums. He won four NIT championships in 20 seasons at St. John’s and led the NBA’s New York Knicks to three NBA Finals.
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Comments » 18
utvol008 writes:
Congrats Coach Summitt
thevoice writes:
Way to go coach. You represent this university and sport better than ANYONE!
Moaninglikeheck writes:
Lapchick award? Does Coach Summitt do some side work as a stripper? LOL!!! J/K congrats coach, you deserve it!
topgun writes:
Better than "Lapdance" I suppose.
Lofton4Three writes:
Yes, and she was nominated by none other than Johnny Majors himself...
KennesawVol writes:
Wonder if Geno's jealous??
murrayvol writes:
Is he breathing?
mempuss writes:
There is noone more deserving of ANY award they might receive than coach Summit. Congrats coach! Go Vols!
NoMoreWooAfterGoodOleRockyTop writes:
What award has FOOLmer won lately?
SEC Worst Coach of the Year Award 2002-current
ladivolfan writes:
A well deserved honor, but you know that the KNS staff that came up with the heading was chuckling as they typed
ncvol writes:
Congrats Pat....
Go Vols !!
pammyvol1000 writes:
Way to go Pat.. let's get this season started.
MillisaAnn writes:
Congrats Pat!!!
Go Lady Vols!!!
stormblast writes:
Throw it on the dung heap. There's only one trophy the Raccoon Slayer wants... NUMBER 9!!!!!
Greer_Vol_22 writes:
one thing is for sure, Geno would not make a good Lapchick.
BigOrangeVol writes:
This award is all about superior character, professionalism and coaching ability.
Geno Anal-enema doesn't meet the standard criteria for any of those qualities.
On a related note:
He did however win this years "Golden Smurf Award" and was surrounded by his entire family...Sloppy Smurf; Vanity Smurf; Lazy Smurf; Nosey Smuf; Clumsy Smurf; Scaredy Smurf; Greedy Smurf; Jerk Smurf; Cheater Smurf; Arrogant Smurf; Obnoxious Smurf; Lying Smurf and Narcissistic Smurf. The Smurf doesn't fall far from the treehouse!
LadyVolFanForever writes:
Congrats Coach. You are simply the best !
xvolx writes:
we gotta donk.
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