Larry Krystkowiak

Larry Brett Krystkowiak (/krɪsˈkviæk/ kris-KOH-vee-ak;[1] born September 23, 1964) is a retired American professional basketball player, and current head coach of the Utah Utes men's basketball team.[2][3]

Larry Krystkowiak
Larry Krystkowiak in 2014.
Utah Utes
PositionHead coach
LeaguePac-12 Conference
Personal information
Born (1964-09-23) September 23, 1964
Missoula, Montana
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight220 lb (100 kg)
Career information
High schoolBig Sky (Missoula, Montana)
CollegeMontana (1982–1986)
NBA draft1986 / Round: 2 / Pick: 28th overall
Selected by the Chicago Bulls
Playing career1986–1998
PositionPower forward
Number42, 7
Coaching career1998–present
Career history
As player:
1986–1987San Antonio Spurs
19871992Milwaukee Bucks
1992–1993Utah Jazz
1993–1994Orlando Magic
1994–1995Chicago Bulls
1995–1996Levallois
1997Los Angeles Lakers
1997–1998Idaho Stampede
As coach:
1998–2000Montana (assistant)
2001–2002Old Dominion (assistant)
2003–2004Idaho Stampede
2004–2006Montana
2006–2007Milwaukee Bucks (assistant)
20072008Milwaukee Bucks
2010USA U18 men's national team
2010–2011New Jersey Nets (assistant)
2011–presentUtah
Career highlights and awards
As player:

As coach:

  • 2× Big Sky Tournament champion (2004, 2005)
  • Pac-12 AP Coach of the Year (2018)
Career NBA statistics
Points3,425 (8.2 ppg)
Rebounds2,051 (4.9 rpg)
Assists513 (1.2 apg)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Early life

He was born in Missoula, Montana[3] to Bernard and Helen Krystkowiak.[4] At a young age, his mother always encouraged Larry to participate in sports.[5] His mother died of Hodgkin's lymphoma when he was eight years old[6] and his father remarried. He primarily grew up in Shelby, Montana, and his step-mother did not approve of Larry playing sports.[4] At the age of 15, Larry moved out of Shelby and finished his high school career at Big Sky High School in Missoula.[7] During this time he lived with his older brother Bernie,[4] who became Larry's legal guardian.[5]

College career

Krystkowiak played college basketball for the University of Montana from 1982 to 1986 and still holds the school records for career points scored (2,017) and rebounds (1,105).[8] He is the only person to have been named Big Sky Conference MVP three times (1984–1986).[9] Krystkowiak's jersey number was retired by the University of Montana.

Professional playing career

Krystkowiak was selected by the Chicago Bulls in the 2nd round (28th overall pick) of the 1986 NBA draft. He played power forward for nine seasons in the NBA, spending the bulk of his career with the Milwaukee Bucks. He also played for the San Antonio Spurs, Utah Jazz, Orlando Magic, Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers. Krystkowiak scored the first two points in the history of the Bradley Center. In the 1988–89 season he averaged 12.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists and over 30 minutes per game for the Bucks.[3] Over his NBA career, he averaged 8.1 points and 4.9 rebounds per contest.[3]

Coaching career

Early career

Krystkowiak began his coaching career in 1998 as an assistant to Don Holst at his alma mater, the University of Montana. He coached at Montana until 2000 when he left to join Old Dominion as an assistant under former Griz head coach, Blaine Taylor.[9] He spent one season (2001–2002) at Old Dominion.

Krystkowiak got his first opportunity as a head coach with the CBA's Idaho Stampede in 2003–04. In his single season as the Stampede's head coach, he led the team to a 37–16 record and a CBA championship game berth.[8]

He was hired as head men's basketball coach at the University of Montana in May 2004. He led the Griz to a 42–20 overall record over the course of the next two seasons, reaching the NCAA tournament each year as a result of winning the Big Sky Conference tourney. In 2006 the Grizzlies beat heavily favored, fifth seed, Nevada, in the NCAA Tournament.

NBA coaching career

In June 2006 Krystkowiak left Montana to take a job as an assistant coach with the Milwaukee Bucks under Terry Stotts. Krystkowiak was responsible for working with the Milwaukee's big men, notably second year players Andrew Bogut and Charlie Villanueva.[10] He was named head coach of the team on March 14, 2007, after Stotts was fired. Stotts had led the Bucks to a 23–41 record during the 2006–07 season.[11] He signed a reported 4-year contract with the Bucks, with an average annual salary of $2 million[12] Krystkowiak's NBA head coaching debut on March 15, 2007, resulted in a 101–90 victory over the San Antonio Spurs.

On April 17, 2008, Krystkowiak was fired as Milwaukee Bucks head coach after a disappointing season in which the Bucks compiled the league's sixth worst record.[13]

In July 2010 Krystkowiak joined the New Jersey Nets coaching staff alongside Avery Johnson and Sam Mitchell.[14]

University of Utah

On April 3, 2011, it was announced that Krystkowiak would take over the head coaching position for the University of Utah men's basketball team, as they transitioned into Utah's first season in the newly realigned Pac-12.[4]

After Krystkowiak was named Utah's head coach, eight (8) players left the program to play elsewhere and he was forced to bring in several junior college and walk-on players to fill his depleted roster. In a season where starting center David Foster missed the entire season and starting point guard Josh "Jiggy" Watkins was dismissed halfway through, Krystkowiak and the Utes struggled to a 6-25 finish, including only three wins against their new Pac-12 opponents.

The 2012–2013 season showed much improvement for Krystkowiak's Utes. The additions of freshmen Jordan Loveridge and Brandon Taylor, as well as great play and leadership from senior center Jason Washburn, would help Utah more than double their win total from the previous season. On March 9, 2013, Utah closed out its season by defeating No. 19 Oregon, celebrating Senior Night at the Huntsman Center with the program's first victory over a ranked opponent since 2009. Utah then defeated USC and California in the first and second rounds of the Pac-12 tournament before losing a rematch with Oregon, the eventual champion.

Krystkowiak's third season saw the 2013–2014 Runnin' Utes reach their first postseason tournament under the coach. The addition of transfer point guard Delon Wright and an improved core of players led Utah to a 21-12 record, receiving an at-large bid to the NIT. The next year, he led his team to the sweet sixteen, their highest run in the tournament in years. In 2017–18, he led the Utes to their first NIT finals appearance in 44 years.

The National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame nominated Krystkowiak for its Class of 2013.[15] On June 21, 2018 Krystkowiak will be enshrined into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 2018 in Troy, Michigan.

Personal life

Larry and his wife, Jan, have five children, Cam, Luc, Ben and twin girls Samantha and Finley.[8] He has seen his father only once in over 30 years, because of the issues in his early life.[6]

Head coaching record

Larry Krystkowiak's record as a head coach.

CBA

TeamYearRegular SeasonPost Season
GWLPctFinishResult
Idaho Stampede2003–04[8] 533716.698Lost CBA championship game

College

Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Montana Grizzlies (Big Sky Conference) (2004–2006)
2004–05 Montana 18–139–52ndNCAA First Round
2005–06 Montana 24–710–42ndNCAA Second Round
Montana: 42–20 (.677)19–9 (.679)
Utah Utes (Pac-12 Conference) (2011–present)
2011–12 Utah 6–253–1511th
2012–13 Utah 15–185–1310th
2013–14 Utah 21–129–9T–8thNIT First Round
2014–15 Utah 26–913–5T–2ndNCAA Sweet Sixteen
2015–16 Utah 27–913–52ndNCAA Second Round
2016–17 Utah 20–1211–74thNIT First Round
2017–18 Utah 23–1211–7T–3rdNIT Runner-Up
2018–19 Utah 17–1411–73rd
2019–20 Utah 16–157–11T–8th
Utah: 171–126 (.576)75–75 (.500)
Total:213–146 (.593)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

NBA

Legend
Regular season G Games coached W Games won L Games lost W–L % Win–loss %
Playoffs PG Playoff games PW Playoff wins PL Playoff losses PW–L % Playoff win–loss %
Team Year G W L W–L% Finish PG PW PL PW–L% Result
Milwaukee 2006–07 18513.2785th in Central Missed playoffs
Milwaukee 2007–08 822656.3175th in Central Missed playoffs
Career 1003169.310
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See also

  • List of NCAA Division I men's basketball players with 2000 points and 1000 rebounds

References

  1. http://www.nba.com/global/intl_player_pronunciation_070426.html
  2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on April 1, 2015. Retrieved April 3, 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. BasketballReference entry
  4. sltrib.com
  5. si.com He Has Taken Some Tough Shots
  6. Basketball Times. Vol. 34. No.1. Sept 2011.
  7. Tribune Staff. "125 Montana Newsmakers: Larry Krystkowiak". Great Falls Tribune. Retrieved August 24, 2011.
  8. "NBA.com bio". Archived from the original on March 18, 2007. Retrieved March 15, 2007.
  9. Missoulian.com
  10. Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel Archived September 29, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  11. NBA.com Krystkowiak replaces Stotts
  12. 15, 2007&id=20650 info on Krytkowiak/Bucks contract Archived October 22, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  13. ESPN.com story on Bucks firing
  14. Mitchell, Krystkowiak join Nets staff
  15. "Election results". National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 21, 2013.
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