The man who introduced Mike Krzyzewski has the voice of God.

Beautiful commencement, sir.🥰 Attitude. Preparation. Fulfill the mission... Together. Get on the right bus.🤭💯 Amen. Agreed. Failure is not a destination. -Coach K

Follow your own heart. Be on a good team. Failure is not a destination. Attitude. Belief. Prepare. Execute.

Coach K is certainly to be commended for his achievements. But the one opportunity he let go by was not speaking up more about the Duke Lacrosse scandal. All the leadership concepts he talks about are nothing if not acted upon. He could have, in one of the most important times at Duke Athletics spoken out against a great travesty. He had the clout. He had the chips. He would not have been fired. He could have made a difference. Let those chips fall where there might, let waves of integrity transit, and take a stand with the same advice he gives here at the commencement, "What we have are standards and a standard is the way you live and the way you do things all the time and you require other people to do it all the time. ... We're going to tell each other the truth. We're going to have each other's back. ... We're going to win and lose together. Those are great standards." [15:24] Commenting on Duke basketball player, Grayson Allen's tremendous action to help the team clinch the 2015 championship title he says, "I'm proud he had the guts to say something. On a lot of teams people don't say anything. Don't make that what your team does. And then when somebody does say it, somebody whose in another higher position doesn't say, 'What are you talking about?' " [19:39] Coach Krzyzewski is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy and the Lacrosse incident became a battle. When asked for a comment in the heat of that battle Coach K said this, "I think it's important for me to remember my place. I am the basketball coach. I'm not the president, I'm not the athletic director and I'm not on the Board of Trustees and don't want to be." People's lives were at stake on the Lacrosse team, they were heading for a long term prison sentence, they were devastated; lives were ruined on one big lie and it became clear fairly early on. While it wasn't his battle, a strong, respectful, cover-your-back statement with the facts from Coach K would have kept those great standards for Duke and the community in the forefront - innocent until proven guilty. But politics, special interests, and the truth are a strange bedfellow. President Brodhead should have been fired. For Coach K it would have been another great defining moment. It would have been tough to speak; and there is no blame or shame going on here. It's a reminder to the Class of 2016 you will have opportunities in uncomfortable situations. Have the guts to say something - when armed with the truth ... and the chips.

One of the best and funny and inspiring commencements!

Happy Birthday Coach

Duke's next president.

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