Basketball's Jimmy V, For Victory

• Richie Brand
• On 6:23 pm EST, Tuesday November 3, 2009

"Don't give up. Don't ever give up."

No matter how tough the opponent, Jim Valvano stamped that trait on his basketball team.

Whether it was as a player, coach or life in general, Valvano fought until the very end to maximize his time spent doing what he loved.

"There are 86,400 seconds in a day," the coach said. "It's up to you to decide what to do with them."

Valvano (1946-93) was geeked for that challenge. In a 19-year career as a college basketball head coach, his teams made the NCAA tournament nine times, peaking in 1983 when his North Carolina State Wolfpack upset top-ranked Houston to win the national title.

James Thomas Anthony Valvano was born in Corona, Queens, in 1946, grew up on Long Island and figured out what he wanted in a New York minute.

The Game Plan

Valvano was a man of action, and he wasn't shy about communicating it. At age 17, he took out an index card and penned his plans.

He would play basketball in high school and college, go on to be an assistant coach, then head coach, win a game in Madison Square Garden and cut down the nets after winning an NCAA title. He scored all those points in vivacious fashion.

"He had that ability at a young age to connect with everyone," brother Bob Valvano, also a former college head coach, told IBD. "We'd go to parties and he could make grown-ups double over in laughter. I just think it is a gift that he cultivated."

After he graduated from high school in Seaford, N.Y., Jim's plan was ready to set sail.

Valvano went to Rutgers University and made a splash, being named Senior Athlete of the Year in 1967.

Following graduation, and a gig as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Valvano landed his first head coaching spot at Johns Hopkins in 1969.

The new coach had the Blue Jays flying from the get-go. After leading the team to a 10-9 record -- Hopkins' first winning season in 24 years -- Valvano spent a couple of seasons as an assistant at Connecticut and three more as head coach at Bucknell before continuing in the same capacity at Iona College.

It was as coach of the Gaels where his coaching career flourished.

Led by Valvano and star player Jeff Ruland, Iona made its first trip to the NCAA tourney in 1979.

The Gaels went 29-5 the next season, again making it to the NCAAs.

Valvano was becoming a national figure. N.C. State came calling for him to replace longtime head coach Norm Sloan after the 1980 season, and Valvano's peers knew why.

One of them was Dick Vitale, former college and NBA head coach and current ESPN broadcaster. He saw that Valvano's people skills separated him from the pack.

"Jimmy had great communication abilities," Vitale said. "He had a gift. He could communicate with anyone, rich or poor. Jimmy always made you feel like a million dollars."

Bob Valvano marveled at the uncommon techniques his brother used to get the most out of his teams.

"He was always fearless," the brother said. "He would play gimmick defenses, unusual lineups. He would have his point guard defend a 6-9 guy. He was an unconventional thinker. His team reflected his innovative and courageous approach, and his players responded to him."

Jim Valvano carried his unique approach to coaching with him to Raleigh, N.C., where his team won 22 games in just his second season.

Then came 1983, a year for the ages. After finishing the regular season tied for third in the Atlantic Coast Conference, the Wolfpack banded together in the conference tournament, winning it to secure a berth in the NCAAs.

N.C. State stunningly reached the title game. Now all the Wolfpack had to do was pull off one of the greatest upsets in history -- beat the No. 1 Houston Cougars, winners of 26 straight games and led by future Hall of Famers Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler.

Valvano faced the daunting task the way he did with his index card. He mapped out a plan. He knew that dictating the game with a slow tempo was the only chance the Wolfpack had to stop the flashy Cougars.

The plan was a winner. In the final seconds, with the score tied at 52, N.C. State's Dereck Whittenburg heaved a 30-footer that air-balled. Lorenzo Charles stood alone under the basket to dunk home the miss at the buzzer and secure the title.

That slam and Valvano's frenzied dash around the court in celebration are replayed year after year during March Madness as a defining moment in tournament history.

Valvano coached seven more seasons in Raleigh before joining Vitale as a broadcaster for ESPN.

When a cancer-stricken Valvano accepted the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the March 1993 ESPY Awards, he unveiled a cause that has since helped countless lives.

In the 16 years since its inception, the V Foundation for Cancer Research has raised over $90 million and awarded research grants in 38 states and the District of Columbia.

The Uplifter

Valvano's dream for the V Foundation was to eradicate the disease that claimed his life two months after he gave his famous speech.

"Hopefully he is looking down from somewhere and is gratified at what has happened with the V Foundation," said Bob Valvano. "I am humbled by it. Maybe that is the reason he had to go at such a young age (47), with so much going for him."

During the speech, Valvano encouraged viewers to "laugh, to think and to cry" every day to get the most out of life.

"Jimmy's legacy to me," Vitale said, "will not be cutting down the nets (after the NCAA title). It will be the many millions of people he has affected worldwide."

Buzz up!