You wouldn't think Mike Krzyzewski would be on the spot at this stage of his career.

But he is.

And it's got nothing to do with locating a schoolboy who inhales rebounds.

Look, we all know Krzyzewski as a basketball giant. He's the coach for life at Duke. He's nailed down three national championships. He's snipped the nets at 10 ACC tournaments. One building and one makeshift tent village at Duke bear his name. He rakes in serious coin from the school, from endorsements and for telling business executives how to motivate like him (snarling helps). He's a Hall of Famer.

He's also on notice to deliver gold Aug. 24 in Beijing.

If he doesn't, looking up at the Tar Heels will be the least of his worries.

In case you hadn't noticed, the last seven years haven't been dazzling for Krzyzewski. Oh, sure, he keeps churning out wins like they're on a conveyer belt. He's knocked down four ACC titles during that stretch as well. But he's escaped an NCAA regional only once since winning it all in 2001. He's checked out on opening weekend the past two years. He's been leapfrogged by Ol' Roy in his league's pecking order.

Plus, he brought home a bronze medal from the 2006 world championships.

Repeat that metallurgical clunker, and his pedestal will really teeter.

The U.S. hasn't won a major international tournament since 2000, but that's not entirely on Krzyzewski. He didn't drive the U.S. into a sixth-place ditch at the 2002 worlds (George Karl, a UNC guy, was at the wheel). He didn't gripe about the roster he helped shape for the 2004 Olympics and guide the Yanks to a third-place comedown (that was Larry Brown, another UNC guy).

Those setbacks rattled USA Basketball honchos and prompted them to probe beyond the NBA mold for a coach without preconceived notions (see: agendas) who might blend a group of talented and headstrong gazillionaire pros into an honest-to-wanna-be-there team.

They gave Krzyzewski the job.

All he's got to do now is finish first.

Or else.

"Coach knows his legacy is on the line," former Blue Devil Shane Battier told the New York Times, and the starter's gun sounds Aug.10 when the Americans line up against China.

Krzyzewski won't have the crowd that night. He will have Kobe, LeBron and'Melo and Chris Paul, one legit center (Dwight Howard) and one other true power player (ex-Dookie Carlos Boozer). It's a squad, in other words, sort of like Duke's undersized -- and unremarkable -- recent editions. Woe unto Krzyzewski if that design has as much trouble in Beijing as it does in Bracketville.

The first group of U.S. pros sent to the Olympics -- the Dream Team of 1992 -- had no such deficiencies. It whomped opponents by an average margin of 43.8 points. Its coach, Chuck Daly, never called a timeout. It set a standard that'll forever be out of reach.

Krzyzewski was an assistant to Daly that year. He's watched other countries close the gap, experienced defeat first-hand at the world championships two years ago and now faces a risky undertaking. Americans might know the name of a track athlete or two, a swimmer here, a wrestler there. Most everyone knows Kobe and LeBron. And figures they and their buddies should slam-dunk the field.

"It's really the world's game," Krzyzewski said when the U.S. roster was unveiled last month. "We think we're the best at playing that game."

His crew had best prove the point between now and Aug. 24. A chunk of his reputation is at stake.
Contact Bob Lipper at (804) 649-6555 or blipper@timesdispatch.com.