From his legendary shot to his role as camp coach, former Duke star Christian Laettner reflects on his basketball journey

One of the greatest basketball players in NCAA history will be in town next month.  

Former Duke star Christian Laettner will help run a three-day basketball camp for girls and boys June 24-26 at Denmark High School as part of his basketball academy.

The 9-13 age group is sold out, but spots remain for ages 14-17. Those interested can sign up online at https://laettnercamps.com.

Laettner has plenty of knowledge to offer.

He won two national championships with the Blue Devils and is a former college player of the year. His game-winning shot against Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament as a senior in 1992 remains an iconic moment.

Laettner also was a member of the legendary "Dream Team" at the 1992 Olympics and played 13 seasons in the NBA.

Perhaps the biggest inquiry is how Denmark became one of the locations for his camp.

Laettner conducts them throughout the country, but Wisconsin has become a frequent stop in the last decade. The list includes gyms in places such as Shawano, Kaukauna and Mosinee.

It reminds the Angola, New York, native a lot of home, where he was a star player at Nichols High School in Buffalo and the program’s all-time leading scorer for 36 years before his mark of 2,066 points finally was surpassed in February.

“I’ve done so many camps in Wisconsin and it’s so much fun,” said Laettner, who spent his first 3½ seasons in the NBA with the Minnesota Timberwolves after being selected third overall in 1992. “It’s right next door to Minnesota, and it’s the same market. There is a lot of crossover there, even though people in Wisconsin are pulling for the Bucks.

“The people up there are just like people in Buffalo, New York. It’s pretty much the same type of area. Every town I’m in is like the small little town I was in, except when I get really close to Green Bay or really close to Madison. But when I was in Green Bay, I drove 20 minutes north and it looked just like Angola.”

Christian Laettner becomes Coach Laettner

Laettner wasn’t certain he’d enter the coaching ranks after his playing days were done, although it always made sense since his father was a coach and his mother a teacher.

He retired from the NBA in 2005, and for the next five years, he didn’t step on a court.

No playing. No coaching. Nothing.

That all changed in 2010.

He realized the one thing missing in his life was basketball. He still loved the game.

Laettner was a bit too old by that point to return as a player, so being a coach was the next best option. He got fulfillment in the smallest ways in his new role. Even if he reached just one kid, he deemed it a worthwhile day.

He now lives in Florida and has spent several nights a week the last five years coaching a group in Jacksonville as part of the Blue Chip Basketball Association.

The players sometimes don’t get what he’s preaching. But he appreciates one specific kid who soaks it all in so much that Laettner made a point to mention him by name.

“I swear I go for that one kid,” Laettner said. “He does everything we say and everything we coach. It’s so enjoyable to see that one out of 50 kids do exactly what we teach.”

The style of play has changed a bit since Laettner was growing up in the 1980s and early 1990s.

The physicality and rugged play of the Michael Jordan era in the NBA has turned into a more spaced-out style filled with 3-point bombs that have made Steph Curry a household name on his way to four titles.

Laettner sees those differences in young players, including how they sometimes are coached.

“Well, you know, when I was young my dad was able to maybe smack me on the back of the head once in a while if I wasn’t listening,” said Laettner, laughing. “Another thing is that everyone wants to do the Euro step. Everyone wants to do the 3-point shot. That’s why I try to focus and concentrate on some older-school stuff that they should add to their game.

“I’m not saying there is never a situation to do a Euro step. I’m not saying there is never situations to shooting your 3-point shot. But when you are young, let’s get you good at a power two-footed layup first before you do the Euro step. Let’s get you good at the wide-open 15-foot jumper instead of just jacking up 3s all the time.”

'The Shot'

It’s not a bad thing to be most remembered for doing something great.

When it comes to college basketball, there aren’t many games that top Duke’s epic 104-103 overtime win over Kentucky in the Elite Eight in March 1992.

While Grant Hill’s three-quarters-court inbounds pass to Laettner for an 18-foot turnaround buzzer-beating shot easily is the most revered moment of the contest, it was just one of several huge plays by Laettner in overtime.

He put Duke up by two points with 32 seconds left on a double-clutch attempt that might have been even more difficult than “The Shot.”

When Duke trailed by a point a short time later, he went to the line and calmly hit two free throws to put his team back up by one with 14 seconds left.

Kentucky went up again, but it only set up Laettner to become a villain in Lexington.

Laettner finished the game with 31 points. He shot 10-for-10 overall and 10-for-10 from the line.

If no individual performance is ever perfect, this was as close as it comes.

Perhaps that’s why more than 30 years later, Laettner still is asked about it. He doesn’t mind.

“I enjoy talking about it,” he said. “If I did it 100 times a year it might get tiresome. But I would say I only do it 25 times, and that’s not enough to get tiresome. You got to remember, it’s an awesome memory. People love asking me about it, talking to me about it, and I enjoy it and still treasure it.”

One can wonder how Laettner’s career and life would have been different had the shot clanked off the rim or, even worse, not even touched it.

Duke doesn’t win a second straight national championship to become the first team to repeat since UCLA won seven straight from 1967 to 1973. Laettner isn’t autographing photographs of one of the best images in basketball history decades after graduating, and he wouldn’t have ended up playing in the Final Four each season of his career.

He certainly isn’t getting an ESPN commercial starring Madison native Chris Farley wearing a Laettner jersey and re-creating the game-winner in his own comedic way.

Of course, Laettner still would have been a lottery pick in the draft. He still would have earned millions and had both a notable collegiate and pro career.

“You know, you think about how different it could be,” Laettner said. “I’m sure in a lot of ways it would still be the same, but to have something like that tied to your name makes it totally different and something that can never be taken away. Something you just cherish and treasure for all-time.

“To be known for something like that, or to get some name recognition for something like that and have a "30-for-30," I was flipping through the TV the other day and saw it was on. It’s just awesome stuff.”

As for that Farley spot, Laettner still sometimes sees it on social media.

He’s a big fan of it, and it leads to a fun memory about his chance encounter with the actor a few years before he died in 1997.

“I’m walking on an airplane and I’m walking through first class, about to sit in my exit-row seat because it has more leg room,” the 6-foot-11 Laettner said. “Chris Farley is sitting right there in first class. I waved to him, and he recognized me right away.

“I kind of patted him on the shoulder and I said, ‘Loved the commercial.’ He laughed and gave me like a thumbs up. I just kept walking to my seat. That was awesome.”

Playing with Magic, Jordan and Bird

Laettner had the opportunity to be part of the greatest basketball team assembled in 1992 when he was selected to be part of the U.S. men’s Olympic basketball squad.

One spot was reserved for a college player, and Laettner was picked over other notable names including Shaquille O’Neal from LSU and Alonzo Mourning from Georgetown.

Laettner averaged 4.8 points during the Olympics and earned a gold medal playing alongside a cast of NBA legends.

He dribbled up the court as a kid wanting to be Larry Bird or Magic Johnson, and now he was teammates with them. Not to mention Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley.

“I did not go into it intimidated,” Laettner said. “I went into it knowing my place. Realizing that I would be the last guy on the team. The least important guy on the team. Realizing I was the rookie or the freshman. Which means you have got to be prepared to take a little ribbing, teasing from those guys. Being asked to do stuff, like get their coffee and their doughnuts. Pick up their dirty laundry.

“I looked forward to it. Knew my place. Loved every second of it. My palms might have been a little sweaty the first practice. You are like, ‘Man, can I play with these guys? These are the greatest players.’ And I couldn’t really play with those guys. All I could do was hold on by the seat of my pants. Everything was faster than I was used to. It was just a great learning experience.”

Laettner’s mother saved an interesting piece of basketball history at his childhood home for more than three decades. It was uncovered again when his father put the home up for sale and Laettner returned one final time a few weeks before it sold.

He grabbed all his old mementos. While he was rummaging through them, he found a sheet of paper.

It was the hotel room assignment for the Dream Team in Barcelona.

Laettner stayed in Room 418 at the Hotel Ambassador.  The room on one side of him was occupied by Bird, the other side by David Robinson.  

“I made sure I didn’t bother them, even though they were right next to me,” Laettner said. “I was able to put (the hotel room assignment sheet) up for auction a few months ago. It did great. It’s such a memorable piece, and I’m happy I was able to give it to the world.”