Having explicitly denied the notion he was mulling retirement in a brief post-postgame address, North Carolina head basketball coach Roy Williams expanded on the sentiment.
According to The Raleigh News and Observer, Williams addressed the running commentary that there are multiple factors that could influence him to retire as soon as season's end. Doug Gottlieb conveyed this commentary during CBS' pregame show Saturday ahead of North Carolina's game against Miami.
Williams did not appreciate it, and told reporters after his postgame presser was over Gottlieb had "no freaking idea" what he was talking about.
Gottlieb contended afterward his comments should not be taken as a report, but rather as speculation. Williams recently suffered an episode of vertigo and is known to have ailing knees. Combined with the impending NCAA sanctions, Gottlieb indicated "people in basketball" saw Williams' retirement as a possibility.
"I don't ever want to leave when things - when I leave I want it to be in good shape," Williams told reporters Tuesday. "And for me, this would have been a very hard time to leave.
"If I was going to leave I would have left the first day because I knew I was not involved (in the NCAA violations).
"It's pretty simple for me."
Williams did not discuss his health, though he previously stated his vertigo episode was something he had experienced before, just never on the court. The 65-year-old coach did, however, acknowledge he is "going to get old one of these dadgum days."
