RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The family of North Carolina coaching great Dean Smith says the 79-year-old Hall of Famer is dealing with memory loss.
The family sent a letter to former players and coaches Saturday, providing details about Smith’s health after generally declining to comment for privacy reasons. Smith’s condition was described as a “progressive neurocognitive disorder that affects his memory.”
Smith retired in 1997 after 36 seasons in Chapel Hill as the winningest coach in Division I men’s basketball with 879 victories, a mark passed a decade later by Bob Knight at Texas Tech.
Smith won 13 Atlantic Coast Conference tournaments, reached 11 Final Fours and won the NCAA championship in 1982 and 1993.
